Joe Shomo owns 700 acres in rural Augusta County, Virginia, and rents an additional 900 acres. Shomo and his partner Sam Leonard run a 700-head cow/calf Angus operation. The two men are very passionate about farming and conservation. In fact, Shomo feels ecological disaster is a real threat..

"I think Mother Nature is getting ready to implode," Shomo says. "I look back to the oyster harvest from the Chesapeake Bay when I was young and compare it to today. I look at arguments on both sides of the global warming controversy. I think the signs are here, and we need to take action." That is why the two men got involved with CREP. They were looking for ways to help clean the water in their area and improve air quality.

According to Shomo, several of his neighbors were CREP participants. Shomo and Leonard talked with them about their experiences and determined the program was worth exploring.

In 2002 they entered into a contract on 42 acres. They build nearly 12,000 feet of fence and installed 15 watering stations for their cattle. The fencing keeps the cattle out of the Backcreek River. Shomo and Leonard also installed riparian buffers to filter the animal waste before runoff went into area streams.

"There are only two farmers that border Backcreek now that are not enrolled in CREP," says Leonard. "The water is now noticeably cleaner."

Shomo says the financial aspect of the program has also been good. "I recovered nearly 85 percent of my investment for the fencing, watering systems, and tree plantings," says Shomo. "Early participants in the program received even more because Ducks Unlimited and the Chesapeake Bay Foundation also paid a portion of the costs."

Shomo and Leonard say the cattle's health has shown definite improvement. "They prefer to drink from the watering stations rather than the creek," says Leonard. "We are installing additional fencing now but the cattle already walk to the watering stations to get the fresh, clean water rather than drink the creek water."

Shomo has also seen noticeable weight gain in his herd because the cattle do not have to walk as far to get to the water.

Shomo says now that the pastures are fenced they can to rotate the cattle. He says this allows the pastures to regenerate better and offers better feed for the herd. "We work hard to be good stewards of the land," says Shomo. "I think the farming community is doing a lot to improve the water quality of the Chesapeake Bay. We are at the riverhead, and that is where good water quality starts.".

Shomo added that he feels the agriculture community is sometimes unjustly blamed for causing all the water quality issues affecting the Bay. He says farmers, with the help of USDA and programs like CREP, are doing all they can to preserve the Bay's water quality.

Cattle in Augusta County, Virginia, are fenced out of a stream thanks to a CREP riparian buffer.

FSA and partners that helped implemented Virginia CREP tour successful practice area in Augusta County. From left to right are: David Coleman, tree planting contractor; Bobby Whitescarver, NRCS; Nick Nichols, producer; Marti Nichols, producer; Eric Bendfelt; Virginia Cooperative Extension Service; Joseph Shomo, producer; Jacqueline P. Easter, Virginia FSA State Executive Director; Robert A. Smith, Jr., State FSA Conservation Specialist; C. Wesley St. Clair, FSA District Director; Scott Glenn, producer; and Herman M. Kinsinger, producer.

Utilizing an old pump house on the property for alternate water supply lowered the cost of the practice. Partners touring the facility were, from left to right, Eric Bendfeldt, Virginia Cooperative Extension Service; Kevin Craun, Chesapeake Bay Foundation (CBF); Milton Miller, producer; Robert A. Smith, Jr., State FSA Conservation Specialist; Scott Glenn, producer; Libby Norris, CBF; C. Wesley St. Clair, FSA District Director; and David Coleman, tree planting contractor.

Look closely just inside the fenced riparian buffer area, and you will see trees planted in white tubes. The tubes protect saplings from damage by wildlife.

CREP riparian buffer prevents both animal waste and cropland chemical runoff from entering the stream.

Vegetation inside fenced riparian buffer improves water quality. The watering trough (to the left of the buffer) outside the buffer area provides an alternate water source for cattle.

Cattle head for the alternate water source. The stream crossing through the buffer allows the cattle to be moved from field to field.