January 1, 2016
CapitalPress.com
11
Southwestern Idaho snowpack levels well above normal
By SEAN ELLIS
Capital Press
BOISE — A series of
storms that have hammered
Southwestern Idaho have re-
sulted in snowpack levels far
above normal for this time of
year.
But reservoirs in the re-
gion ended the 2015 irriga-
tion season with much less
carryover water than normal
and water managers say the
trend needs to continue in
order to ensure a good irri-
gation supply for 2016.
“This is my Christmas
present,” Ron Shurtleff,
watermaster for the Payette
River system, said about
the basin’s snowpack levels,
which were 150 percent of
normal on Dec. 28.
But the Payette system
ended 2015 with much less
carryover water than normal
and “we have a challenge to
get those reservoirs filled,”
Shurtleff added. “We’re very
thankful for this precipita-
tion and just hope it hangs
on.”
The Weiser River basin
stopped water deliveries at
the end of August this year,
well ahead of the system’s
normal Oct. 15 shutoff date.
But snowpack is at 166 per-
cent of normal for this date,
stock ponds are starting to
fill and the reservoir level
has risen a little bit recently.
“It’s looking way better
than last year, by a bunch,”
said Weiser Irrigation Dis-
trict Chairman Vernon Lol-
ley. “Things could change but
it’s a good start.”
Most irrigation districts
that get their water from the
Boise River basin also ended
the 2015 season with signifi-
cantly less carryover water
than normal.
But water managers are
encouraged by snowpack lev-
els that are at 157 percent of
normal.
“Every day this keeps hap-
pening, I smile,” Nampa &
Meridian Irrigation District
Water Superintendent Greg
Curtis said of the recent snow
storms.
But NMID ended the 2015
irrigation season with 20,000
acre-feet of carryover wa-
ter, half its normal amount,
and Curtis said there’s still a
long way to go before there is
enough snow in the mountains
to ensure irrigators have a
normal water supply in 2016.
“I like what’s happening,
but it has to keep going,” Cur-
tis said.
Last year’s snowpack lev-
els also started out good but
the situation reversed as the
winter progressed, said Tim
Page, manager of the Boi-
se Project Board of Control,
which provides water to five
irrigation districts in the Boise
River valley.
“It’s off to a good start but
my concern is, is it going to
continue to bring a few storms
in and keep that snowpack up
there,” he said. “This is just
(157) percent of normal for
today. If the storms stop, that
(157) percent can drop pretty
fast.”
Pioneer Irrigation District
ended the 2015 season with
about a third of its normal car-
ryover amount and is depend-
ing on a good snowpack to
get its 5,800 patrons through
2016.
“Those are good num-
bers to see, as long as it stick
with it,” PID Manager Mark
Zirschky said about the Boi-
se basin’s current snowpack
level.
Thresher Artisan Wheat finds new investors
being pretty diverse.”
Thresher was formed
in 2014 after Agspring ac-
quired General Mills’ East-
ern Idaho grain handling
infrastructure. Warner said
Thresher recently complet-
ed major overhauls to its
grain elevators in Black-
foot, American Falls, Rock-
ford and Newdale, as well
as to the Moreland grain
elevator, which it acquired
in March. The projects in-
creased Thresher’s regional
grain handling capacity by
nearly 2.5 million bushels,
and have improved the ef-
By JOHN O’CONNELL
Capital Press
The parent company of
Thresher Artisan Wheat, a
major buyer of Eastern Ida-
ho grain, recently completed
a financial restructuring that
corporate officials anticipate
will lead to new acquisitions
and investments in the region.
Kansas-based Agspring
has undergone a process
known as recapitalization,
which officials say should
provide long-term stability
for Thresher and the holding
company’s three other sub-
sidiaries.
“I am pleased with what
the Agspring recapitalization
means for our growers, agri-
business partners and down-
stream customers,” said
Thresher CEO Don Wille.
“Agspring and Thresher are
very committed to the long-
term growth of agriculture in
the Idaho region.”
Bradford Warner, vice
president of marketing
ficiency of unloading for
growers, Warner said.
“In many ways, we’re
powered up with the right
amount of capital to invest
where we need to do it,”
Warner said. “We’re pre-
pared to grow in this seg-
ment for a long time.”
Warner believes Thresh-
er’s model is unique, and
should be enticing to local
wheat supply-chain busi-
nesses that are interested in
significant growth but wish
to retain their local manage-
ment and control after being
acquired.
Submitted photo
Grain is stored at Thresher Artisan Wheat’s American Falls, Idaho, facility. It was among five Eastern
Idaho facilities that Thresher overhauled during the 2015 growing season, and company officials
anticipate a financial restructuring by Thresher’s parent company will lead to more investments and
acquisitions in the region.
with Agspring. explained
the company was founded
in 2012, backed by private
equity from a fund deal-
ing with natural resources.
He said the investors were
interested in selling their
stake and earning a return
after a few years. Agspring
has found new investors
who plan to remain in-
volved over the long term,
Warner said. They’re led
by American Infrastructure
MLP, a group that focuses
on infrastructure holdings.
“Agspring is their first
move into agriculture. That
has been an interest of theirs
for a long time,” Warner
said. “Their whole basis is
UI Extension course helps new farmers
By MATTHEW WEAVER
Capital Press
University of Idaho Ex-
tension is offering a course to
help beginning farmers.
The five-session course
called “Starting Your Sus-
tainable Idaho Small Farm”
begins Jan. 14 with an online
webinar. It will also include
in-person sessions and farm
tours and runs through March
31.
Local sessions will be of-
fered in Caldwell, Cascade,
McCall, Coeur d’Alene, Hai-
ley, Moscow, Salmon, Sand-
point and Weiser.
Called Cultivating Suc-
cess, the class is funded by a
$506,000 grant from USDA
National Institute of Food
Agriculture. The goal is to
increase the number and suc-
cess of small-acreage farmers.
The program emphasizes
the benefits of local agricul-
tural production. Demand
for locally grown food has
increased in the last three de-
Online
http://www.cultivatingsuccess.
org/
cades, said Iris Mayes, small
farms educator for UI Exten-
sion in Latah County.
Mayes hopes to have 10
to 20 people with a range of
experience at each of the 10
sites.
“There’s a synergy created
working with the other exist-
ing farmers, (who) are going
to be mentors in our program,
and help coach the new, up-
coming farmers,” she said.
UI Extension hopes to
build local farmer networks
and connect growers. Even
those who have been farm-
ing for eight to 10 years still
feel they have a lot to learn,
Mayes said.
“In that five- to 10-year
range, if someone’s been rent-
ing land, they usually want to
start owning their own land,”
she said.
The mentoring program
will begin later in 2016. UI
Extension is developing a
website to help participants
find land and capital, Mayes
said.
“This will help them be el-
igible for financing if they’re
trying to buy property,” she
said.
Cultivating Success orig-
inally began in 2001. UI and
Washington State University
Extension have offered it as
a for-credit and non-credit
class, but the new NIFA fund-
ing helps to make it more ac-
cessible, Mayes said.
“This is like a boiled-
down, concentrated version,”
she said. “Students will have
to do a lot of work on their
own as well. But people who
are wanting to get into this
small farming business are
pretty motivated.”
The program includes
whole-farm planning and re-
source assessment.
UI Extension will offer the
class each year.
“We’ll be doing a lot of
evaluation and getting feed-
back from the students about
what they think they will need
in the future,” Mayes said.
The course fee is $115.
The registration deadline is
Jan. 7.
ROP-32-52-2/#17
NIFA funding revamps Cultivating Success program
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