§§ 656.4–656.9 7 CFR Ch. VI (1–1–04 Edition)

§§ 656.4–656.9 [Reserved] (1) Provide leadership for inventories of important farmlands for the State, PART 657—PRIME AND UNIQUE county, or other subdivision of the FARMLANDS State. Each is to work with appro- priate agencies of State government and others to establish priorities for Subpart A—Important Farmlands Inventory making these inventories. Sec. (2) Identify the soil mapping units 657.1 Purpose. within the State that qualify as prime. 657.2 Policy. In doing this, State Conservationists, 657.3 Applicability. in consultation with the cooperators of 657.4 NRCS responsibilities. the National Cooperative Soil Survey, 657.5 Identification of important farmlands. have the flexibility to make local devi- AUTHORITY: 7 U.S.C. 1010a; 16 U.S.C. 590a– ation from the permeability criterion 590f; 42 U.S.C. 3271–3274. or to be more restrictive for other spe- SOURCE: 43 FR 4031, Jan. 31, 1978, unless cific criteria in order to assure the otherwise noted. most accurate identification of prime farmlands for a State. Each is to invite Subpart A—Important Farmlands representatives of the Governor’s of- Inventory fice, agencies of the State government, and others to identify farmlands of § 657.1 Purpose. statewide importance and unique farm- lands that are to be inventoried within NRCS is concerned about any action the framework of this memorandum. that tends to impair the productive ca- (3) Prepare a statewide list of: pacity of American agriculture. The (i) Soil mapping units that meet the Nation needs to know the extent and criteria for prime farmland; location of the best land for producing (ii) Soil mapping units that are farm- food, feed, fiber forage, and oilseed lands of statewide importance if the crops. In addition to prime and unique criteria used were based on soil infor- farmlands, farmlands that are of state- mation; and wide and local importance for pro- (iii) Specific high-value food and ducing these crops also need to be iden- fiber crops that are grown and, when tified. combined with other favorable factors, § 657.2 Policy. qualify lands to meet the criteria for unique farmlands. Copies are to be fur- It is NRCS policy to make and keep nished to NRCS Field Offices and to current an inventory of the prime National Soil Survey Center. (see 7 farmland and unique farmland of the CFR 600.2(c), 600.6) Nation. This inventory is to be carried (4) Coordinate soil mapping units out in cooperation with other inter- that qualify as prime farmlands with ested agencies at the National, State, adjacent States, including Major Land and local levels of government. The ob- Resource Area Offices (see 7 CFR 600.4, jective of the inventory is to identify 600.7) responsible for the soil series. the extent and location of important Since farmlands of statewide impor- rural lands needed to produce food, tance and unique farmlands are des- feed, fiber, forage, and oilseed crops. ignated by others at the State level, the soil mapping units and areas iden- § 657.3 Applicability. tified need not be coordinated among Inventories made under this memo- States. randum do not constitute a designation (5) Instruct NRCS District Conserva- of any land area to a specific land use. tionists to arrange local review of Such designations are the responsi- lands identified as prime, unique, and bility of appropriate local and State of- additional farmlands of statewide im- ficials. portance by Conservation Districts and representatives of local agencies. This § 657.4 NRCS responsibilities. review is to determine if additional (a) State Conservationist. Each NRCS farmland should be identified to meet State Conservationist is to: local decisionmaking needs.

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(6) Make and publish each important frequently or are protected from flood- farmland inventory on a base map of ing. Examples of soils that qualify as national map accuracy at an inter- prime farmland are Palouse silt loam, 0 mediate scale of 1:50,000 or 1:100,000. to 7 percent slopes; Brookston silty State Conservationists who need base clay loam, drained; and Tama silty maps of other scales are to submit clay loam, 0 to 5 percent slopes. their requests with justification to the (2) Specific criteria. Prime farmlands Chief for consideration. meet all the following criteria: Terms (b) National Soil Survey Center. The used in this section are defined in National Soil Survey Center is to pro- USDA publications: ‘‘Soil Taxonomy, vide requested technical assistance to Agriculture Handbook 436’’; ‘‘Soil Sur- State Conservationists and Major Land vey Manual, Agriculture Handbook 18’’; Resource Area Offices in inventorying ‘‘Rainfall-erosion Losses From Crop- prime and unique farmlands (see 7 CFR land, Agriculture Handbook 282’’; 600.2(c)(1), 600.4, 600.7). This includes re- ‘‘Wind Erosion Forces in the United viewing statewide lists of soil mapping States and Their Use in Predicting Soil units that meet the criteria for prime Loss, Agriculture Handbook 346’’; and farmlands and resolving coordination ‘‘Saline and Alkali Soils, Agriculture problems that may occur among States Handbook 60.’’ for specific soil series or soil mapping (i) The soils have: units. (A) Aquic, udic, ustic, or xeric mois- (c) National Office. The Deputy Chief ture regimes and sufficient available for Soil Survey and Resource Assess- water capacity within a depth of 40 ment (see 7 CFR 600.2(b)(3)) is to pro- inches (1 meter), or in the root zone vide national leadership in preparing (root zone is the part of the soil that is guidelines for inventorying prime penetrated or can be penetrated by farmlands and for national statistics plant roots) if the root zone is less than and reports of prime farmlands. 40 inches deep, to produce the com- [43 FR 4031, Jan. 31, 1978, as amended at 65 monly grown cultivated crops (cul- FR 57538, Sept. 25, 2000] tivated crops include, but are not lim- ited to, grain, forage, fiber, oilseed, § 657.5 Identification of important sugar beets, sugarcane, vegetables, to- farmlands. bacco, orchard, vineyard, and bush (a) Prime farmlands—(1) General. fruit crops) adapted to the region in 7 Prime farmland is land that has the or more years out of 10; or best combination of physical and (B) Xeric or ustic moisture regimes chemical characteristics for producing in which the available water capacity food, feed, forage, fiber, and oilseed is limited, but the area has a developed crops, and is also available for these irrigation water supply that is depend- uses (the land could be cropland, able (a dependable water supply is one pastureland, rangeland, forest land, or in which enough water is available for other land, but not urban built-up land irrigation in 8 out of 10 years for the or water). It has the soil quality, grow- crops commonly grown) and of ade- ing season, and moisture supply needed quate quality; or, to economically produce sustained (C) Aridic or torric moisture regimes high yields of crops when treated and and the area has a developed irrigation managed, including water manage- water supply that is dependable and of ment, according to acceptable farming adequate quality; and, methods. In general, prime farmlands (ii) The soils have a temperature re- have an adequate and dependable water gime that is frigid, mesic, thermic, or supply from precipitation or irrigation, hyperthermic (pergelic and cryic re- a favorable temperature and growing gimes are excluded). These are soils season, acceptable acidity or alka- that, at a depth of 20 inches (50 cm), linity, acceptable salt and sodium con- have a mean annual temperature high- tent, and few or no rocks. They are per- er than 32° F (0° C). In addition, the meable to water and air. Prime farm- mean summer temperature at this lands are not excessively erodible or depth in soils with an O horizon is saturated with water for a long period higher than 47° F (8° C); in soils that of time, and they either do not flood have no O horizon, the mean summer

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temperature is higher than 59° F (15° value food or fiber crop; (ii) Has a C); and, moisture supply that is adequate for (iii) The soils have a pH between 4.5 the specific crop; the supply is from and 8.4 in all horizons within a depth of stored moisture, precipitation, or a de- 40 inches (1 meter) or in the root zone veloped-irrigation system; (iii) Com- if the root zone is less than 40 inches bines favorable factors of soil quality, deep; and, growing season, temperature, humid- (iv) The soils either have no water ity, air drainage, elevation, aspect, or table or have a water table that is other conditions, such a nearness to maintained at a sufficient depth during market, that favor the growth of a spe- the cropping season to allow cultivated cific food or fiber crop. crops common to the area to be grown; (c) Additional farmland of statewide im- and, portance. This is land, in addition to (v) The soils can be managed so that, prime and unique farmlands, that is of in all horizons within a depth of 40 statewide importance for the produc- inches (1 meter) or in the root zone if tion of food, feed, fiber, forage, and oil the root zone is less than 40 inches seed crops. Criteria for defining and de- deep, during part of each year the con- lineating this land are to be deter- ductivity of the saturation extract is mined by the appropriate State agency less than 4 mmhos/cm and the ex- or agencies. Generally, additional changeable sodium percentage (ESP) is farmlands of statewide importance in- less than 15; and, clude those that are nearly prime farm- (vi) The soils are not flooded fre- land and that economically produce quently during the growing season (less high yields of crops when treated and often than once in 2 years); and, managed according to acceptable farm- (vii) The product of K (erodibility ing methods. Some may produce as factor) x percent slope is less than 2.0, high a yield as prime farmlands if con- and the product of I (soils erodibility) × ditions are favorable. In some States, C (climatic factor) does not exceed 60; additonal farmlands of statewide im- and portance may include tracts of land (viii) The soils have a permeability that have been designated for agri- rate of at least 0.06 inch (0.15 cm) per culture by State law. hour in the upper 20 inches (50 cm) and (d) Additional farmland of local impor- the mean annual soil temperature at a tance. In some local areas there is con- depth of 20 inches (50 cm) is less than cern for certain additional farmlands 59° F (15° C); the permeability rate is for the production of food, feed, fiber, not a limiting factor if the mean an- forage, and oilseed crops, even though nual soil temperature is 59° F (15° C) or these lands are not identified as having higher; and, national or statewide importance. (ix) Less than 10 percent of the sur- Where appropriate, these lands are to face layer (upper 6 inches) in these be identified by the local agency or soils consists of rock fragments coarser agencies concerned. In places, addi- than 3 inches (7.6 cm). tional farmlands of local importance (b) Unique farmland—(1) General. may include tracts of land that have Unique farmland is land other than been designated for agriculture by prime farmland that is used for the local ordinance. production of specific high value food and fiber crops. It has the special com- PART 658—FARMLAND bination of soil quality, location, grow- ing season, and moisture supply needed PROTECTION POLICY ACT to economically produce sustained high quality and/or high yields of a spe- Sec. 658.1 Purpose. cific crop when treated and managed 658.2 Definitions. according to acceptable farming meth- 658.3 Applicability and exemptions. ods. Examples of such crops are citrus, 658.4 Guidelines for use of criteria. tree nuts, olives, cranberries, fruit, and 658.5 Criteria. vegetables. 658.6 Technical assistance. (2) Specific characteristics of unique 658.7 USDA assistance with Federal agen- farmland. (i) Is used for a specific high- cies’ reviews of policies and procedures.

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