Jack, thanks so much for that info. That makes me feel better with the direction I’m leaning towards. Did you have someone do your controlled burn or did you do it yourself?
Here is what we did: We contacted the local NRCS/USDA office and told them about the property we bought and they sent out a representative. After reviewing our land and talking with out about our objectives, they developed a multi-year plan and told us what program they thought would fit us best. In our case, it was the EQIP program. We applied for the program and were selected. Once approved we had to wait for money to become available. It was a first approved, first funded thing for us. It didn't take long. They provided guidance on filling out all the forms.
The program we were in paid a certain amount per liner foot for firebreaks, a certain amount per acre for the herbicide application to the clear cut, and a certain amount per acre for the controlled burn. We got to decide how to make that happen we could hire out, or do it ourselves. They provided a list of vendors that know an understand their specifications. The work had to be done to those specifications but could be done by anyone we wanted.
Since this was our first time, we contracted it all out. We made money on the firebreaks and a little on the controlled burn (we paid the contractor less than USDA paid us) and we lost money on the herbicide application. In the end, we about broke even, but we got wildlife habitat work done that we would have otherwise had to pay for ourselves which would have meant less money available for food plots or something else.
The way is worked was this: We got the work done to their specifications on our own dime. We then called them and told them it was complete. They then sent out an inspector to ensure the work was done and properly. They then measured the liner footage or acreage and paid us accordingly.
(The above is the answer to your PM that I thought others would benefit from as well)
As for the controlled burn, we hired a certified burner to conduct the burn. He brought a dozer, a crew, and equipment and developed the burn plan and contacted the appropriate authorities for notification. There is less legal liability if you use a certified burner in our state and something goes wrong. I have participated in controlled burns before but wanted more experience. He let me be part of the crew and knocked my labor off the price. I think one of our other owners may have participated as well, I can't recall.
The offer the controlled burner certification class one time each fall and so far I have not been able to schedule enough days off to take it. I think it is 4 days. I plan to do it in the future. We will still need a dozer. Fortunately the controlled burner let me operate the dozer while he had it on site. He just charged me the hours unoperated for the time I put on it. He was impressed enough with how I handled it that he said he will be willing to drop the dozer off if I got my controlled burner certification. Typically the dozer is only for last minute fire brakes or if something gets out of control. So, we should only have the delivery charge if all goes well.
So, we hope to conduct our future burns ourselves. Drip torches and rakes are not that expensive.
Thanks,
Jack
