Reload Nebraska
The Challenges Ahead
 | In the early 1990s Nebraskas CRP enrollment peaked at 1.38 million acres. In 2009, we still have 1.12 million acres. The challenging news is that in the next five years there will be an 84.5% decline in CRP acres. This decline will impact the most successful habitat program the state has ever seen. |
| While the number of resident pheasants hunters has fluctuated over time; we have gone from a high of 101,333 resident pheasants hunters in 1987, to a slim number of 45,028 in 2007. The last eight years have shown a 49.2% decline in the number of resident pheasant hunters. We are now on the verge of losing an entire generation of hunters and sportspeople. We simply cant afford to let that happen. |  |
 | Since 2002, land values have shown a steady double-digit percent increase in value nearly every year. In fact, the average Nebraska land value has increased 54% in the last four years. With increasing land values comes increasing costs associated with wildlife and conservation program projects. In order to work within most farming and ranching operations, conservation programs now require increased cost-share and payment incentives to compete with land costs. Those increased costs mean that habitat project dollars are stretched further and able to impact fewer acres. |