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CRP General Sign-up 45 Begins May 20, 2013

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CRP General Sign Up 45 begins today and runs through June 14, 2013. CRP land is crucial habitat for not only pheasants, but all game species.

The following are some links that will help answer questions you may have about the process.

Biologists at the Pheasants Forever national office are also very willing to help you navigate through the system and make the most of habitat dollars. Mike Stephenson is our region representative and can either be emailed at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or can be reached by telephone at 605.651.2716. Matt Morlock, Farm Biologist, can be reached at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. , or 605.881.8258.

South Dakota CRP Meetings for Landowners Prior to Signup Hosted by PF

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→The following is a press release received from Pheasants Forever national.←

For immediate release: Rehan Nana (651) 4973

South Dakota CRP Meetings for Landowners Prior to Sign-up Hosted by PF

General CRP sign-up is May 20-June 14, 2013

South Dakota - May 7, 2013 - Pheasants Forever is hosting informational meetings across South Dakota for landowners and agricultural producers in advance of the USDS Farm Service Agency's Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) general sign-up that runs May 20th through June 14th. Led by Pheasants Forever Farm Bill Wildlife Biologists, landowners can learn how to increase their farm or ranch income while creating wildlife habitat in the process.

"It is Pheasants Forever's belief that there is room for conservation on every farm and ranch in the country," says Dave Nomsen, Pheasants Forever's Vice President of Government Affairs, "Just a look at recent history - from a wet cycle to a historic drought last year - showcases this need for conservation. Programs like CRP provide stability for producers on lower-yielding, tougher-to-farm acres, while simultaneously serving as America's top habitat tool for pheasants and quail."

At CRP information meetings, Pheasants Forever Farm Bill Wildlife Biologists will discuss how the conservation Reserve Program works, and provide landowners with expertise on increasing the chances of their acreage qualifying for the program. While a majority of meetings are occurring prior to the opening of CRP General Sign-up 45, in some areas meetings extend into the first few weeks of the open sign-up period.

Nomsen encourages landowners to attend the meetings and to not assume there's no room for conservation practices in an era of record crop production and prices. "CRP rental rates may be significantly higher in some areas than in years past, some CRP practices allow for haying and grazing, others encourage pollinator habitat, and those pollinating insects are also necessary for agricultural production. Every farm in the country, whether it's 200 acres or 2,000 acres, has a percentage of acreage in production that annually loses money. So we're looking to work together with landowners to identify these areas and help their bottom line, and also help Pheasant Forever's bottom line of conserving wildlife habitat."

The CRP information meetings are organized by Pheasants Forever, Quail Forever, the Farm Service Agency and the Natural Resources Conservation Service.

Landowners who can't make a CRP informational meeting are encouraged to make an appointment with their local Pheasants Forever Farm Bill Wildlife Biologist or visit their local FSA office.

Pheasants Forever, including its quail conservation division, Quail Forever, is the nation's largest nonprofit organization dedicated to upland habitat conservation. Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever have more than 135,000 members and 730 local chapters across the United States and Canada. Chapters are empowered to determine how 100 percent of their locally raised conservation funds are spent, the only national conservation organization that operates through this truly grassroots structure.

Contact a South Dakota Pheasants Forever

Biologist Meeting Venue Name Town County Date Time

This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Barnett Center Aberdeen Brown 5/13/13 7pm

This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Marshall Cty Comm. Ctr. Britton Marshall 5/15/13 7pm

This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Clark Community Center Clark Clark 5/16/13 7pm

This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Eureka Fire Hall Eureka McPherson 5/16/13 1pm

This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Murdo Tech Center Murdo Jones 5/29/13 6pm

This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Izaak Walton League Pierre Hughes 5/15/13 6pm

This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Jet Lanes Presho Lyman 5/6/13 6pm

This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Outdoor Campus West Rapid City Pennington 5/1/13 6pm

This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Redfield Community Center Redfield Spink 5/2/13 6:30pm

This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Roscoe Rife Hall Roscoe Edmunds 5/14/13 2pm

This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Clover Leaf Bar & Grill Selby Walworth 5/16/13 5pm

This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 4H Building Sisseton Roberts 5/17/13 9am

This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Volga Community CEnter Volga Brookings 5/22/13 7pm

This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Two Spurs Bar & Grill Wagner Charles Mix 5/21/13 6pm

This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Bramble Park Zoo Watertown Codington 5/21/13 6pm

This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Day County Courthouse Webster Day 5/15/13 7pm

This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. American Legion Winner Gregory 5/13/13 7pm

Pheasants Forever: A Top Rated Charity

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If you are looking for a place to invest your charitable dollars, we ask you to please consider Pheasants Forever. Not only did this non-profit organization recently receive a top honor, but 100% of the money raised by the local chapters stays with the local chapter to invest how they see fit.

→The following is an excerpt from the 'Pheasants Forever 2012 Annual Report' article in the Spring 2013 Pheasants Forever Upland Journal.←

Charity Navigator Recognizes Pheasants Forever with Top Charity Rating

Just as our chapters watch where every cent goes, so does your national office. Pheasants Forever recently received a 4 star rating - the highest possible - from Charity Navigator. The nonprofit wildlife habitat conservation organization received the designation based on its sound fiscal management, commitment to accountability and operational transparency. Based on Charity Navigator's standards, Pheasants Forever outperforms most other charities in America.

As a premiere charity rating service, Charity Navigator's goal is to provide donors with essential informtiaon needed to give them greater confidence in the charitable choices they make. "Receiving four out of a possible four stars indicates that your organization adheres to good governance and other best practices...and consistently executes its mission in a fiscally responsible way," said Ken Berger, president and CEO of Charity Navigator. Only a quarter of the charities it evaluates receive Charity Navigator's highest rating.

Receiving an exceptional designation from Charity Navigator is another factor that sets PF apart. This rating, Pheasants Forever's unique local model, a 30-year track record of outstanding habitat accomplishments and our program efficiency of 91.23 all stand out as strong reasons why supporters and donors can trust in Pheasants Forever to turn their charitable dollars into wildlife habitat.

With more than 137,000 members, making it North America's largest devotee to upland conservation, Pheasants Forever has completed more than 440,000 wildlife habitat projects which have helped create or restore 8.5 million acres of wildlife habitat in its first three decades. Included among those projects are 1,346 land acquisitions, which have permanently conserved 169,507 acres while simultaneously opening those acres to public pheasant hunting and other forms of outdoor recreation.