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VOLUME XVI, NO. 6 |
TEXAS DAIRY REVIEW |
JUNE 2007 |
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Enjoy “pure udder fun” during June Dairy Month Lee Roy Parnell headlines New Mexico Dairyfest Taunt your tastebuds at summer cheeseburger cook-off |
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Enjoy “pure udder fun” during June Dairy Month |
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June is National Dairy Month but it doesn’t necessarily mean you have to take a cow to lunch. However, if you would like to honor producers (and their cows) during this special month, don’t hesitate to attend some of the dairy festivities being held in local communities and all over the nation. Dairy activities are especially prevalent where dairy farms are plentiful. Stephenville, Sulphur Springs, and Clovis, New Mexico, are only three of many locations that celebrate June Dairy Month. TriCounty Agribusiness Association (TCAA) in Stephenville, sponsors DairyFest each year. The day is dedicated to a family fun event celebrating the surrounding dairy industry. This year’s event will be on Sat., June 16, from 2-9 PM at Stephenville City Park. Heading up the Stephenville event is a 1K and 5K "Milk Town Trot," beginning at 8 a.m. Registration is at 7:15 a.m. and the fee is $10. Free T-shirts will be given to the first 100 entries. Armbands will be available at booths throughout the park for only $1. The armband allows the wearer to enjoy grilled cheese sandwiches, cheeseburgers, yogurt smoothies, ice cream and milk. Families are invited to come out and enjoy the day while children are free to play in the park or take in the many dairy-related games. Events includeMobile Dairy Classroom, Milk Mustache Photos, an Antique Tractor Show & Pull, and much more. Dairy is the largest industry in the area and plays a vital role in the wealth of the local economy and quality of life. Everyone is invited to make plans now to join the fun and show their appreciation for the many dairy farm families who work so hard to provide fresh, nutritious dairy products.
Sulphur Springs honors the dairy industry on
Fri., June 8-10 at the Hopkins County Civic Center. The ice cream contest is on June 10, at 5 p.m. All you can eat for $5.00. Call toll free 888-300-6623 for a list of events and times. Most events are free. United Dairy Women (UDW) of New Mexico are hosting their second annual DairyFest in Clovis at the Clovis Civic Center on Sat., June 30, from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. The group promises plenty of rich, delicious dairy foods to showcase the producers who provide them. Headlining the Clovis dairy event is singer/songwriter Lee Roy Parnell. The value of milk is unmatched by any other drink and can’t be reproduced by today’s scientific knowledge. That’s why it’s so important to cherish this valuable commodity and to show appreciation for those who provide it. |
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Lee Roy Parnell headlines New Mexico Dairyfest |
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The Second Annual New Mexico DairyFest, hosted by the United Dairy Women (UDW), will be held in Clovis, NM, at the Clovis Civic Center from 5 p.m. to 9 p. m. on Sat., June 30. Admission is $1and free food will include dairy rich foods such as grilled cheese sandwiches, cheeseburgers, ice cream, yogurt and milk. ‘‘We host DairyFest to celebrate June as National Dairy month,’’ said Michelle Heavyside, UDW president and founder. ‘‘It is an excellent opportunity to showcase the great bounty of rich, delicious dairy foods that are offered today as well as to extend our appreciation to the farmers who provide them.’’ Topping off the night will be a performance by country music artist Lee Roy Parnell. ‘‘We chose Lee Roy Parnell because of his diversity,’’ Heavyside said. ‘‘He is an accomplished guitarist and vocalist and will be sure to have the crowd up on their feet.’’ Parnell, a native of Stephenville, Texas, is one of the elite few who can be identified as a triple threat: an ace guitarist as well as a distinctive singer and songwriter. His music runs the gamut of diversity: blue-eyed soul, deltablues, roadhouse rock, southern boogie, Texas swing, and gospel, defying conventional classification. Parnell has played with Texas legends such as Joe Ely, Delbert McClinton, and Stevie Ray Vaughn. In his eleven years with Arista, he has had six albums, garnering eleven top singles, with four making it to ‘‘number one.’’ He has been awarded the Orville H. Gibson Guitar Award for best Male Guitartist; earned two Grammy nominations, three CMA award nominations, two BMI millionaire songwriting awards, and received the Star to Texas award for preservation of Texas music. Last year’s DairyFest drew close to 5,000 people and UDW is hoping for the same this year. ‘‘Our goal is to feed, entertain and educate our communities about the benefits of dairy,’’ Heavyside said. In addition to the free food and concert, there will be booths set up like a virtual dairy tour (calves to cows, seed to feed, bovine nutrition to physician, milk from farm to you, human nutrition and benefits and great taste of dairy products). There will also be interactive games and contests for the entire family which includes calf bottle milk chug race, milk boot race, milk dunk booth, stick cow race, and a cow pattie toss. ‘‘Bring the whole family and come out to DairyFest. It is a big family event with a little something for everyone to enjoy.’’ For more information about United Dairy Women and or DairyFest logon to www.uniteddairywomen.com . |
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Taunt your tastebuds at summer cheeseburger cook-off |
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If it’s cheeseburgers you have a hankering for, it won’t be hard to satisfy your taste buds if you mosey-on-out to Friona, Texas, to the Second Annual Cheeseburger Cook-off, Sat., July 21, at Friona City Park. Set-up for participants is at 8 a.m. with judging to begin at 11 a.m. Public consumption will begin at 12 noon. Last year, Friona held their first Cheeseburger Cook-off with great success, honored by State Rep. Warren Chisum, (R-Pampa), who showed up to participate in the event. From that point on, things began to cook in Austin, thanks to Chisum, who asked for letters of support from Friona citizens to officially designate Friona as the Cheeseburger Capital of Texas. The beef, cheese, buns, and basic fixins’ for the cook-off are plentiful in Parmer County that boasts eleven dairies and 40 surrounding feedyards including a beef packaging facility in Friona. Anything else you can think of, besides seasonings, that makes up traditional or gourmet Texas cheeseburgers is homegrown by locals. The 100% pure beef for the cook-off is donated by Cargill Meat Solutions and cheese is donated by both Southwest Cheese in Clovis and Hilmar Cheese in Dalhart. Buns are furnished by Mrs. Baird’s bakeries and the local Lion’s Club will once again cook their famous french fries. The Southwest Dairy Museum will also be on hand. The entry fee is $50 and the first 20 paid teams will be accepted for the contest. First place will win $500; 2nd place-$300; 3rd place-$100. |
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Gas wells inundate Praireview Dairy |
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Not a surprise to many, north central Texas is literally buzzing with oil and gas rigs and all the paraphernalia that goes with them. The increasing exploration of fracturing the Barnett Shale in the past four years has quickly become a widespread practice by oil and gas companies who are trying to capture the valuable gas energy source. But, beware. They may suddenly appear on your doorstep to begin drilling right in the middle of your livelihood. David Lloyd, owner of Prairieview Dairy, LLC, in Godley, Texas, is suddenly inundated with gas wells, pipelines, and trucks that are seriously hindering his rights as a property and business owner. So far, there are six wells, with three more in the workings. His 350-acre dairy is fast becoming a ‘‘city of lights’’ all of its own and for all the wrong reasons.
Nevermind the fact that Lloyd is trying to
tend to his 550 cow milking herd during all the disregard and disruption
by the oil company. Nevermind the fact that he was going to install an
irrigation system on the very spot that was taken up by a gas well.
Nevermind the fact that he had already been approved for EQUIP money by
the Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS), and ended up losing it. The property is leased by the former landowner to a notable oil and gas company that has popped up, along with others, all over the state. The upshot to all this is if you’re a property owner with mineral rights, and the oil company discovers natural gas, you can make a lot of money. But, if you’re a surface owner with no mineral rights, like Lloyd, you can only sit back and watch your land value plummet while the company invades your property. The constant disturbance and nuisance by the oil and gas mongers became so overwhelming to Lloyd that he sought the legal help of Fort Worth attorney Jim Bradbury, who is bound and determined to set things right.
‘‘This is not just about the lost Equip
money,’’ Bradbury said. ‘‘It’s much bigger than that.’’ Bradbury said so far, there’s no Texas law that protects surface owners from these tragic cases. ‘‘But, we’re hoping to change that.’’ Lloyd grew up in the dairy business near Stephenville and developed a genuine affection for the business over the years. When the trend for dairymen was to go west or to the Panhandle awhile back, Lloyd knew he didn’t want to move to either of those areas. He made a conscious decision to figure out a way to stay in the central Texas area. His reasoning had to do with the quality of life he and his wife Erin, a kindergarten teacher, were accustomed to, and being close to his family members. Lloyd said his dream was to own a dairy. He and Erin saved as much money as they could and applied for a Young Farmer's loan, which they didn’t get. ‘‘I worked for Monsanto and also on a dairy in Godley for Mr. O’Dowd. When he decided to sell it, I jumped at the chance.’’ Lloyd enlisted the help of his mother and stepfather to form Prairiview Dairy, LLC. ‘‘Without their help, and at my age, I wouldn’t have been able to buy a 750-cow freestall dairy.’’ Little did he know, however, that an oil company would soon come knocking. ‘‘The dairy has been doing great, but I don’t know that it was such a good investment for my family once these wells started being drilled’’ Lloyd said. ‘‘One of the worst things is this oil and gas company ruined my opportunity to build an irrigation system which was why I applied for the EQUIP money.’’ Lloyd said the gas well is too close to where he was going to put in a center pivot system. ‘‘I told them about the irrigation system I planned, but they didn’t care, and they put their well right there anyway. The pivot would only go around about halfway. It just wouldn’t work right and because of that, I lost the EQUIP money.’’ Lloyd said he had to use a different system that includes a $30,000 out-of-pocket hard reel hose. He added that each time he has to change any plans on the dairy, he has to hire an engineer to make sure the TCEQ will accept it. ‘‘All of this has cost money but they really don’t care.’’ Lloyd said the gas wells require a little over an acre of land each. Tons of gravel are moved in for the well pad and pipelines are necessary to transport the gas. Roads are built all over the property for the trucks to get in and out on a daily basis. ‘‘The truck traffic alone is a hazard, creating noise, and keeping the dust and dirt stirred at all times,’’ Lloyd said. ‘‘The peace and quiet is totally disrupted at all hours by a transfer pumping station located nearby.’’ Lloyd said he is compensated $5,000 for each well and also any damage to the property. ‘‘But, that’s only a one-time payment and it’s not near enough. ‘‘When I bought this place, I intended to dairy for another 30 years. But, I don’t know what will happen if they continue to drill these wells.’’ Since the invent of horizontal drilling and ‘‘fracing’’ the Barnett Shale, oil and gas companies have appeared in droves to tap into the available energy source.
The Barnett Shale is possibly the largest
onshore natural gas field in the U.S. with 2.1 trillion cubic feet of
natural gas and estimated to contain as much as 30 trillion cubic feet of
natural gas resources. Oil has also been found in lesser quantities but
with high oil prices, it is thought to have sufficient commercial value. The Barnett Shale is a ‘‘tight gas’’ reservoir where gas is not easily extracted. The shale is very hard and was impossible to produce gas in commercial quantities until recent improvements were made in hydrofracture technology. Hydraulic fracturing consists of pumping into the formation very large volumes of fresh water that generally has been treated with a friction reducer, biocides, scale inhibitor, and surfactants and contains sand as the propping agent. The water treating fluid maximizes the horizontal length of the fracture while minimizing the vertical fracture height. The fractures, which are held open by the sand, result in increased surface area, which further results in increases in the desorption of the gas from the shale and increases in the mobility of the gas. The result is more efficient recovery of a larger volume of the gas-in-place. Currently, counties that either have active drilling or the potential, include: Bosque (potential), Comanche (potential), Cooke (active), Denton (active), Ellis (potential), Erath (active), Hamilton (potential), Hill (active), Hood (active), Jack (potential), Johnson (active), Montague (potential), Palo Pinto (active), Parker (active), Somervell (potential), Tarrant (active), Wise (active). Oil operators such as EOG Resources and Devon Energy estimate that one-third to one-half of the land in these counties will get wells. |
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Sometimes you just can't win By Sherry Webb & Dr. Gary Goodall |
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While incredibly high hay prices due to drought conditions in the past few years are dropping with increased rainfall, fuel and fertilizer prices are spiraling upward forcing higher input costs. But, the silver lining may be peering through afterall---with lush pastures and higher quantities of hay available. Many producers overseeded pastures last fall with wheat or oats to get a step ahead on their forage supplies, decreased forage supplies, and to reduce nutrient loading in their pastures. Much of this forage was chopped for silage or green chop, but those wanting to put it up as hay had problems. Heavy rainfall this spring challenged hay growers and buyers alike. The constant rains forced narrowed baling windows to get hay cut, dried down and baled. Much of the early hay was high moisture hay that had to be quickly fed or it spoiled, said Dr. Gary Goodall, a nutritionist with Cargill Malt. ‘‘While you can buy hay cheaper this year, the quality may be poor due to baling at high moisture levels to beat the next rain or very mature forage when waiting for the rain to stop. ‘‘Hay samples this year are running 25-47% moisture. This hay does not store well and needs to be fed quickly.’’ he said. Several growers were selling the hay for seemingly low prices, i.e. $130/ton but it was running 25%+ moisture which makes it more expensive. Goodall recommended having the hay tested to determine the quality and evaluate the effectiveness in the ration. ‘‘Last year, alfalfa was selling for more than $200 per ton. This year, it’s currently selling for $160-180 per ton and is trending downward. But, soaring fuel prices maybe offsetting the hay price unless producers can manage to buy locally or from neighboring states such as Oklahoma to decrease the hauling expense.’’ he said. According to the Texas Department of Agriculture (TDA), hay prices are weak, with buyers bidding lower in hopes of pushing prices lower as new-crop hay enters trading channels. However, hay growers are holding firm in reaction to continuing higher fuel and fertilizer costs. A large percent of the early hay has been cut and rained-on as rain showers continue to hamper hay baling. Very little supplemental feeding has been noted as most of Texas has received considerable rainfall over the last several weeks and pasture conditions are good to excellent. The state of Texas Department of agriculture has the Hay and Grazing Hot Line set up for buyers and sellers, number is 1-877-429-1998. The web site for TDA is www.tda.state.tx.us. |
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Property damage recovery depends on lease & case law |
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Landowners are faced with several issues when their property is damaged or destroyed by oil and gas companies. This property damage occurs more frequently than most people may realize until it suddenly "hits home" and they find themselves in a similar situation. According to an article written by attorney Susan Zachos that appeared in the Real Estate Center’s quarterly publication, Letter of the Law, the recovery of property damage from an oil company depends on two important factors: the terms of the lease and Texas case law. No Texas statutes address the recovery of property damages directly. Most oil company leases are generally a version of a Producers 88 lease form. These leases obligate oil companies to pay damages only for injuries to growing crops or timber. Knowledgeable owners who own both the surface and minerals attempt to negotiate surface and subsurface damage clauses as part of the lease which generally requires oil companies to clean up and restore the property when operations cease and to pay property damages. However, a mineral owner who does not own surface rights has little, if any, incentive to negotiate surface damage provisions. This leaves surface owners in a precarious plight. Texas case law offers some hope for surface owners unprotected by lease terms. Early decisions by The Texas Supreme Court held that the mineral estate is dominant over the surface for purposes of exploration and production. Otherwise, the mineral estate would be of little or no value. Based on this rationale, Texas courts developed a doctrine of implied rights. Basically, the mineral owner has the implied right to use the surface as reasonably necessary for mineral exploration and production without 1) asking independent permission from the surface owner 2) restoring the surface when operations cease 3) having to pay surface damages. Over time, however, Texas courts recognized three exceptions to this rule. Oil companies remain liable for surface damages when they 1) use more land than reasonably necessary 2) injure the land negligently 3) fail to reasonably accommodate the surface use.
The Accommodation Doctrine is the most recent
exception recognized by the courts. The controversy leading up to its
recognition occurred when Getty Oil Company installed a beam pump within a
farmer’s circular irrigation system. The height of the pump prevented full
rotation of the irrigation system. The trial court and court of civil appeals agreed with Getty. However, the Texas Supreme Court introduced the Accommodation Doctrine. The surface owner is entitled to an accommodation of the surface use by the mineral estate owner under certain circumstances. The doctrine applies when the mineral owner has a reasonable alternative available that allows mineral development while at the same time permits the use of the surface for productive agriculture.
If the lease has a surface damage clause, the
terms prevail. If the lease lacks a surface damage clause, the surface
owner cannot recover unless one of the three exceptions to the implied
rights doctrine applies. *Article entitled ‘‘Recovery of Surface Damage and Remediation Costs, based on a paper by Susan Zachos, attorney with Kelly, Hart and Hollman, P.C., Austin, Texas, printed in Letter of the Law, Vol. II, No. 2, Spring 1997 |
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