8
CapitalPress.com
Friday, September 3, 2021
Nonproﬁ t helps Oregon farmers
improve their energy eﬃ ciency
By SIERRA DAWN McCLAIN
Capital Press
As Mindy and John
Woody’s ﬂ ock of sheep grew,
so did the couple’s monthly
pasture irrigation bill.
“The pumping was get-
ting really costly,” said John
Woody.
So, the Woodys, who run
goats, cattle, 100 lambs and
50 ewes in Douglas County,
Ore., decided to explore
options for producing their
own energy. They wanted
to install a small array of
solar panels — less than an
acre — to meet their farm’s
energy needs, but instal-
lation would be expen-
sive, and grant applica-
tions looked “complex and
convoluted.”
“We found (USDA’s
Rural Development REAP
program) and wanted to
apply for it, but the grant
application was daunting in
terms of amount of paper-
work,” said Woody.
Then the Woodys found
Lake County Resources Ini-
tiative, or LCRI, a small,
Lakeview-based
nonproﬁ t
that helps farmers statewide
with energy eﬃ ciency proj-
ects and grants.
With LCRI’s guidance, the
Woodys navigated the paper-
work and received a $23,615
REAP grant and other fund-
ing. The Woodys turned on
their new solar energy system
for the ﬁ rst time Aug. 20.
“I don’t think it would’ve
been possible without LCRI,”
said Woody.
Several farmers who have
received help from LCRI say
the nonproﬁ t is an under-ap-
preciated and important ser-
vice for Oregon farmers.
The work of improving
rural energy eﬃ ciency “has
never been more important”
than at this time when rural
energy bills are so high, said
Hannah Mullin, in public
relations for LCRI.
According to a joint report
from the American Council
for an Energy-Eﬃ cient Econ-
omy and Energy Eﬃ ciency
for All, rural households pay
about 40% more on energy
bills than their metropolitan
counterparts.
Nick Johnson, exec-
utive director for LCRI,
said the nonproﬁ t’s work is
also important as farmers
seek to make irrigation eﬃ -
ciency improvements during
drought.
Over the past decade, the
nonproﬁ t has served hun-
dreds of Oregon farms.
According to Johnson, proj-
ects have included solar array
installations, irrigation sys-
tem improvements, ﬁ tting of
more energy-eﬃ cient light-
ing systems and equipment
upgrades.
LCRI oﬀ ers several ser-
vices, some only to speciﬁ c
counties, others statewide.
Farmers whose businesses
are located in Lakeview are
eligible for cash incentives
through Energy Trust of Ore-
gon, with guidance from
LCRI.
Farmers across the entire
state can receive project assis-
tance from LCRI with USDA
Rural Energy for America
Program, or REAP, grants.
LCRI oﬀ ers consulting,
advice, grant-writing support
and helps connect producers
with contractors.
LCRI also helps farmers
statewide apply for additional
incentive programs, including
REAP.
Farmers in four counties
— Lake, Klamath, Harney
and Modoc — are eligible for
an additional service: agri-
cultural energy assessments,
or energy audits. During an
assessment, experts tour a
farm, looking for ways farm-
ers can cut costs.
Idaho almonds fare decently in challenging year
By BRAD CARLSON
Capital Press
PARMA, Idaho — Yields
in a southwest Idaho almond
trial won’t be down as much
as a University of Idaho
pomologist feared.
Essie Fallahi, of the UI’s
Parma Research and Exten-
sion Center, expects overall
yields to be down 10-20%
from the long-term average,
depending on variety.
This year’s crop con-
tended with early-April
frosts — as almonds were in
full bloom — and poor polli-
nation conditions.
UI’s almond trial is in its
seventh year. The full-or-
chard study on irrigated
ground involves 16 vari-
eties — a mix of early,
medium and late maturities
selected in part for their cold
tolerance.
Fallahi said the cur-
Brad Carlson/Capital Press
Brad Carlson/Capital Press
Keevan MacKenzie and Kelly Moylan shake-harvest an
early almond variety Aug. 26 at the University of Idaho
Parma Research and Extension Center.
rent trial has shown a year
with good growing condi-
tions produces almond yields
about the same as those seen
in California.
In a year when frost is
severe and untimely in Idaho,
“we can expect a reduced
yield in all the stone fruits,
including almond,” he said.
Southwest Idaho almonds
are challenged by the poten-
tial of frost at bloom time,
“the same challenge as
peaches,” he said. “We can
use peaches as a point of ref-
erence, mainly because both
bloom at the same time and
LIVE LARGE IN YOUR OWN
PARK MODEL TINY HOME!
The #1 factory direct dealer for skillfully crafted park model homes!
We help design your perfect floor plan, build your home to order and
deliver it straight to you!
A Tiny Home Dealer You Can Trust!
* CHOOSE YOUR DESIGN AND DECOR!
* THE BEST PRICED TINY HOMES!
Contact Us Today!
888-222-2699 | www.park-model-homes.com
S260045-1
University of Idaho pomol-
ogist Essie Fallahi shows
almonds at UI’s Parma Re-
search and Extension Cen-
ter on Aug. 26.
both are from the Prunus
genus.”
California Almond Board
oﬃ cials visited in August. In
Idaho, lower land and other
costs have the potential to
make up for reduced yields
in a challenging year, Fal-
lahi said.
Irrigation infrastructure
is another plus.
U.S. Air Force
A formation of F-15C Eagle and F-15E Strike Eagle
jets from the 366th Fighter Wing, Mountain Home Air
Force Base, Idaho.
Ranchers warily view plan to
revise Air Force training ranges
By BRAD CARLSON
Capital Press
Proposed changes to Air
Force training ranges in
remote parts of Idaho and
Nevada could impact ranch-
ers in the area.
The plan to ﬂ y F-15E
Strike Eagle ﬁ ghter jets
lower and faster than the
speed of sound is a major
component of the Air Force
Airspace Optimization for
Readiness proposal for the
Mountain Home base in
Idaho.
The Air Force recently
extended the 45-day pub-
lic comment period on its
Draft Environmental Impact
Statement through Sept. 22.
Rancher Gus Brackett
of the 71 Livestock Asso-
ciation said the extent the
ranches’ day-to-day oper-
ations and the cattle are
aﬀ ected remains to be seen.
However, “it seems like
when it comes to mitigating
environmental concerns, the
ranchers will bear the brunt
of whatever mitigation is
necessary,” he said. The
group plans to comment on
the proposal.
The
approximately
40-member 71 Livestock
was founded in 1917 to help
in rangeland adjudication.
Named after a founder’s
cattle brand, it represents
ranchers in an area gener-
ally bordered by the Snake
River to the north, the Jar-
bidge mountains and wil-
derness area to the south,
Salmon Falls Creek to the
east and the Bruneau River
to the west.
The proposal’s poten-
tial impact on Jarbidge and
Owyhee Canyonlands wil-
derness areas and on sage
grouse habitat are major
concerns, Brackett said.
“The land our organiza-
tion encompasses is some of
the best sage grouse habitat
remaining,” he said.
While the plan’s impact
on the grouse population is
unknown, “if the population
declines, the only way they
can mitigate for that decline
is to remove cattle from the
range,” Brackett said.
That’s easier than con-
trolling predators, for exam-
ple, he said.
Brackett is a principal
in Brackett Ranches, in the
Flat Creek-Three Creek area
about 80 miles southwest
of Twin Falls. The Juni-
per Butte Training Range
is closest to the ranch while
the Saylor Creek Bombing
Range is farthest.
The proposal excludes
ranches and homes in the
Three Creek area.
“The impact is not the jet
ﬂ ight,” Brackett said. “It’s
the sonic boom.”
“You could make the
case cattle would be less
calm,” he said.
The Air Force in its plan
said it aims to establish con-
sistent low-altitude and
supersonic training ﬂ oors
across the six areas Moun-
tain Home AFB ﬁ ghters use.
The Air Force said Para-
dise North, Paradise South,
Owyhee South and Jarbidge
South aren’t adequate due to
their medium-altitude ﬂ oors
and high supersonic ﬂ oors,
“which make it impossible
to train at lower altitudes in
the manner that real-world
threats require.”
Idaho wolf-caused depredations
down during most recent quarter
The number of Idaho
livestock
depredations
conﬁ rmed as wolf-caused
dropped in the most recent
quarter, though the number
of investigations increased,
USDA Wildlife Services
told the state Wolf Depre-
dation Control Board Aug.
31.
Wildlife
Services,
which the board pays to
investigate livestock dep-
redations and conduct con-
trol actions, investigated
44 depredations from April
1 to June 30, State Director
Jared Hedelius said.
It conﬁ rmed 18 as wolf-
caused. Additionally, seven
were listed as probable, 15
as possible or unknown
and four as caused by pred-
ators other than wolves.
He said the 44 investi-
gations involved six cows
conﬁ rmed as killed and
one injured, ﬁ ve calves
killed and four injured, and
17 sheep and a herding dog
killed.
Wildlife
Services
removed 13 wolves for
livestock protection and
put radio collars on two.
In
the
year-earlier
period, Wildlife Services
investigated 31 depreda-
tions and conﬁ rmed 24 to be
wolf-caused. Twenty-ﬁ ve
wolves were removed and
four were collared.
In the state’s ﬁ scal year
that started July 1, Wild-
life Services conducted 187
depredation investigations
and conﬁ rmed 108 as wolf-
caused, Hedelius said.
A year earlier, 102 of
the 205 depredations inves-
tigated were conﬁ rmed as
caused by wolves.
The number of reported
depredations and con-
ﬁ rmations
can
vary
widely, he told Capital
Press.
Idaho Wolf Depreda-
tion Control Board mem-
ber Richard Savage, a
Clark County rancher, said
weather variations can inﬂ u-
ence totals between report-
ing periods. Other poten-
tial factors include control
actions, hunting and trap-
ping, and movement of
wolves, livestock and ungu-
lates, he said.
The board is funded by
the livestock industry, the
Idaho Department of Fish
and Game and the Legisla-
ture’s General Fund, which
is sourced by income and
sales tax primarily. IDFG
does not receive General
Fund money.