Page:United States Statutes at Large Volume 83.djvu/222

 194

PUBLIC LAW 91-118-NOV. 18, 1969

[83 STAT.

Public Law 91-118 November 18, 1969

[H. R. 10595]

AN ACT

To amend the Act of August 7, 1956 (70 Stat. 1115), as amended, providing for a Great Plains conservation program.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the tion and°Domes^-" United States of America in Congress assembled, That section tic Allotment 16(b)(1) of the Soil Conservation and Domestic Allotment Act, as ment.^"^"'^" amended, is amended to read as follows: 70 Stat. 1115. "(1) the Secretary is authorized, within the amounts of such Gre^^*pia^in^ appropriations as may be provided therefor, to enter into conconservation tracts of not to exceed ten years with owners and operators of program. land iu the Great Plains area having such control as the Secretary determines to be needed of the farms, ranches, or other lands covered thereby; but such contracts shall be entered into with respect to lands, other than farms or ranches, only where erosion is so serious as to make such contracts necessary for the protection of farm or ranch lands. Such contracts shall be designed to assist farm, ranch, or other land owners or operators to make, in orderly progression over a period of years, changes in their cropping systems or land uses which are needed to conserve, develop, protect, and utilize the soil and water resources of their farms, ranches, and other lands and to install the soil and water conservation measures and carry out the practices needed under such changed systems and uses. Such contracts may be entered into during the period ending not later than December 31, 1981, with respect to farms, ranches, and other lands in counties in the Great Plains area of the States of Colorado, Kansas, Montana, Nebraska, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas, and Wyoming, designated by the Secretary as susceptible to serious wind erosion by reason of their soil types, terrain, and climatic and other factors. The land owner or operator shall furnish to the Secretary a plan of farming operations or land use which incorporates such soil and water conservation practices and principles as may be determined by him to be practicable for maximum mitigation of climatic hazards of the area in which such land is located, and which outlines a schedule of proposed changes in cropping systems or land use and of the conservation measures which are to be carried out on the farm, ranch, or other land during the contract period to protect the farm, ranch, or other land from erosion and deterioration by natural causes. Such plan may also include practices and measures for (a) enhancing fish and wildlife and recreation resources, (b) promoting the economic use of land, and (c) reducing or controlling agricultural related pollution. Inclusion in the farm plan of these practices shall be the exclusive decision of the land owner or operator. Approved conservation plans of land owners and operators developed in cooperation with the soil and water conservation district in which their lands are situated shall form a basis for contracts. Under the contract the land owner or operator shall agree— " (i) to effectuate the plan for his farm, ranch, or other land substantially in accordance with the schedule outlined therein unless any requirement thereof is waived or modified by the Secretary pursuant to paragraph (3) of this subsection; "(ii) to forfeit all rights to further payments or grants under the contract and refund to the United States all payments or grants received thereunder upon his violation of the contract at any stage during the time he has control of the land if the Secretary, after considering the recommendations

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