Competing against the government

[helmsdale]

That's a good question

How about these additional ones:

a) Do you really need a gas guzzling super duty, Escalade or Helicat to get to your job everyday?

b) How much true equity do you actually have in all of those toys, house and vehicles?

c) If you can't answer those questions honestly, get the f of my front lawn

They're coming for the guy with the super duty and triple axle quad slide toy hauler that gets hauled to the lake twice a year.

They're coming for the guys with wild capital appreciation in their primary, let alone secondary/tertiary residence as well.

Theres a whole pile of lower middle class, or dare I say upper poverty class that will be demanding it all the while feeling secure that THEIR meager slice of paradise is theirs and theirs alone...

Weve consumed ourselves as of late with slicing the pie into equal portions rather than growing the whole pie!

[woodland]

My ancestors came out here with nothing a century ago and the only goal was to own some dirt. Still the same goal today…………..

The urban sprawl seems to have no issues with paving over potato ground and sloughs in their way. The coal mines chewed through creeks, sloughs, farmyards, and everything else in the way. I’m unapologetic in trying to produce economical quality food for the masses and provide for my family as well. Having cows wading in sloughs when there’s a waterer 500 feet away isn’t good for anyone either.

We’ve taken out a lot of fence lines in order to put up new fence. Some folks said I should build a new fence beside the trees but deadfall is magnetically attracted to shiny barb wire here.

I have pipelines, power lines, oil wells, coal mines, power plants, gravel pits in my back yard, and live in the middle of nowhere with poor services. All the things that nobody wants to deal with. All I ask is to just let me be…………………

Just got back from an afternoon of appointments in town and would’ve rather been in the pen of calves that got weaned yesterday. Both were loud and chaotic but I know one will be peaceful and glad to see me next week………🍀

[Retired]

Sure is nice to see you are all SAINTS and only trying to feed the hoi-ploi (aka as the un washed masses) and has nothing to do with greed.
Most of the small to mid size farmers around here all shake there head in wonder at all the spraying and draining of wet lands by the BTOs to sc**** every sq yard of dirt, we all made a decent living and still left some for the wildlife and just for the sake of looking at the trees now and then.

[helmsdale]

Sure is nice to see you are all SAINTS and only trying to feed the hoi-ploi (aka as the un washed masses) and has nothing to do with greed.
Most of the small to mid size farmers around here all shake there head in wonder at all the spraying and draining of wet lands by the BTOs to sc**** every sq yard of dirt, we all made a decent living and still left some for the wildlife and just for the sake of looking at the trees now and then.

There are plenty that are approaching, and for that matter have become that which your name implies, and the one common thread I've seen is $'s matter.

Yes, plenty of prior generations made due without the sloughs, and bushland (disclosure: we have none... but we do have occasional spring flooding lowland) but as to AF5's point, you can't offer top $, and also farm just the stuff that put food on the table of the prior generation. Perhaps you settled for less on the promise that the new owner would farm things somewhat resembling your past practices. If so, then good on you sir.

There are many that are not nearly as charitable as you. Its hard to resist the $'s that come with the highest offer. But surely the highest offer also means the buyer feels confident they can garner the largest return... and in that case bush/low land stands directly in their way.

[AlbertaFarmer5]

My point is ...NCC makes ranchers peasants. Whoever ranches this land as it would never qualify as farmland is renting it and doing the conservation work that the Mackies have done for probably over 50 years.

NCC will have rules and I have seen their idea of pasture conservation...they are a land aggregator. Funded by government.

I certainly agree with you here, How many of our ancestors came here where they could own the land they farm, to get away from virtual serfdom. And now we are reverting back to that again. Becoming landless peasants.

[GALAXIE500]

Sure is nice to see you are all SAINTS and only trying to feed the hoi-ploi (aka as the un washed masses) and has nothing to do with greed.
Most of the small to mid size farmers around here all shake there head in wonder at all the spraying and draining of wet lands by the BTOs to sc**** every sq yard of dirt, we all made a decent living and still left some for the wildlife and just for the sake of looking at the trees now and then.

Hutterite colonies are famous for exactly what you just stated here. I have seen it in my area in the last few years with a new colony being built 3 miles from my yard. Not only that , but the colony is in the most populated area of my RM.

[bucket]

The government has a Natural Heritage Conservation Program, lots of money.

Here is the kicker. They haven't got money for ranchers that do the hard work on conservation.

Wide angle view. Instead of paying NCC to buy the land and allow a rancher to rent it while NCC goes and makes money on the conservation easements / payments for offsets from large companies.....why not pay the land owner to continue to conserve the land as it has been for a 100 years?

Next owner gets the payment to do the same on an annual or 5 year deal to reduce administration costs.

Treat it like a guy selling land with an oil lease ...part of the package that I see on realtors listings is oil lease revenue of so many $$$

Why not a ranch that sells with conservation lease revenue?

Rather than using tax dollars to let NCC aggregate land holdings while being so called conservationists?

Black white face and BBF and black cattle come off that ranch that always get a mention in the sale lot they are in at local auction barn. There is more than conservation there , there is a legacy of cattle , and you don't get that by being poor operators.

Not that I could have bought it anyway or wanted to but it is a shame that NCC ends up with it as opposed to some young guy that could carry on the same as the Mackies have done for their time there.

[GALAXIE500]

NCC will never sell land . So there will be limited chance to use the land and it was government money that bought the land.

NCC was given 100 million in the federal budget prior to the pandemic.

And yet there is limited hope for a young guy to start out when bidding against government free money.

There is also limited hope for any young guy/gal to buy , rent any land when there are a bunch of greedy , land hungry bastards farming in all 4 directions of you. They can't look after what they have , but they still want more.

I am sure there are a LOT of people on this forum who have similar stories to share about that subject.

Always like reading what you got to say Bucket.

Galaxie 500

[wrongway]

why is it that only the landowners have to pay the costs for maintaining wetlands and fencelines? if city people want these areas to be preserved then landowners should be compensated. the US has the CRP program which makes annual payments approx equal to what rent would be on preserved acres. The EU also has such a program. WE can see here that as usual people wnat stuff untill they have to pay for it. Gosh at least have a credit on the real estate taxes! Yes?

[Retired]

why is it that only the landowners have to pay the costs for maintaining wetlands and fencelines? if city people want these areas to be preserved then landowners should be compensated. the US has the CRP program which makes annual payments approx equal to what rent would be on preserved acres. The EU also has such a program. WE can see here that as usual people wnat stuff untill they have to pay for it. Gosh at least have a credit on the real estate taxes! Yes?

I dont see any costs to leaving a slough or fenceline in place. There may be a some possible lost income ,but i wonder what the payback period is ,if it ever recovers cost. When you acquired that land The purchase price was reflected in the inconvience of these ,so you have been compensated already and the taxes are also lower.