k1046 BC-KS-Hunter-Access 11-19 0198
Published on -11/19/2009, 2:04 PM
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Loss of CRP acres threatens hunters' public access
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WICHITA, Kan. (AP) -- Shrinking acreage in the nation's Conservation Reserve Program may threaten public access to land in a Kansas program that pays landowners to let people hunt on their property.
That is because half of the 1.06 million acres now enrolled in the Kansas hunter walk-in program are also in CRP.
Jake George is the private lands coordinator for the Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks. He says most of the CRP acreage now in the Kansas access program is expected to be plowed up as CRP contracts expire in coming years.
George says the access program is crucial because nearly 97 percent of the land in the state is privately owned.
Kansas officials say roughly 271,000 hunters come to the state each year, spending about $827 each.
