Writer: Kay Ledbetter, 806-677-5608, skledbetter@ag.tamu.edu
Contact: Andy Holloway, 806-323-9114, andy.holloway@ag.tamu.edu
CANADIAN – A Mini Ag Conference, hosted by the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service, is set for Sept. 12 at the Hemphill County Exhibition Center, 10865 Exhibition Center Road in Canadian.
“This program is designed to provide beef producers as well as land and mineral owners important and critical information that is affecting our region and area in a big way,” said Andy Holloway, AgriLife Extension agriculture and natural resources agent for Hemphill County.
“Hemphill and surrounding counties have been severely impacted by the decline of the oil and gas markets, therefore this is having a big impact on beef production and the use of our rangeland.”
He said many surface owners who have wells but no minerals need to know their rights based on the law, and mineral owners need to understand the implications of shut-in royalty payments to their leases.
Also, Holloway said the Veterinary Feed Directive is one of the biggest changes affecting livestock health that has come down the pike in decades, and all livestock producers need to know of these changes in regulations.
The cost will be $25 per person and includes lunch. Those planning to attend should RSVP to the AgriLife Extension Hemphill County office at 806-323-9114 or andy.holloway@ag.tamu.edu by Sept. 9. Space is limited to the first 100 participants.
Two Texas Department of Agriculture continuing education units will be offered in the rules and regulations category.
The morning program will begin at 9 a.m. and feature attorneys Joe Lovell and Brian Farabough with Lovell, Lovell, Isern and Farabough in Amarillo.
They will discuss shut-in royalties for oil and gas mineral owners and the implications of those payments; surface owners’ rights concerning shut-in wells, damages and the responsibilities of both the oil and gas company and surface owner; groundwater issues and new legal considerations regarding recent rulings by the Texas Supreme Court; and surface damages pertaining to pipelines and wind turbines.
Lunch will be catered by The Cattle Exchange of Canadian and sponsored by Plains Land Bank and the Hemphill County Underground Water Conservation District.
The afternoon program will include Dr. Ted McCollum, AgriLife Extension beef cattle specialist in Amarillo, who will present “The Veterinary Feed Directive and Related Information for Livestock Producers.”
He will be followed by Mike Gittinger, National Weather Service warning coordination meteorologist in Amarillo, who will discuss upcoming weather patterns for the Texas Panhandle, El Niño and La Niña weather patterns and the expected short- and long-term climate conditions for this region.
The meeting will wrap up with questions and answers and conclude by 3:30 p.m.
For more information, contact one of the following AgriLife Extension county agents: Scott Strawn, Ochiltree, 806-435-4501; Michael Wilkes, Roberts, 806-868-3191; J.R. Sprague, Lipscomb, 806-862-4601; or Andrew Sprague, Hansford, 806-659-4132.
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