Building An Agricultural Research Program In Nevada – Part 1
By: Doug Busselman, Executive Vice President
Having spent the last couple of months working on developing the agreement with the University of Nevada, Reno administration on preserving the College of Agriculture, Biotechnology and Natural Resources as a College the emphasis now shifts to making what was saved a working institution that serves the needs of Nevada agriculture and students. One of the unresolved issues involves the long-term status of the Main Station Agricultural Experiment Station in Reno.
During the discussions of how the required $4.5 Million could be saved, the attention on the Main Station Farm was mostly on how the expenses associated with the facility could be offset. Given the past 20-plus year history of using research facilities as mostly agricultural production units, the mindset of those in charge has been and continues to be adopting an entrepreneurial focus, producing crops and livestock to generate income. In other words the strategy is to use the research facilities to farm.
Well, that’s not exactly what Nevada agriculture needs and from what we understand that is not what the University administration are looking for. Over the next year, we are told that the Main Station Farm will be evaluated with an assessment on how the facility is meeting the University’s mission of providing education and research. Depending on how that analysis goes forward, the 1,000-plus property may be transformed into something other than what it has been.
Perhaps now would be a good time to put some attention into developing an agricultural research program that matters to Nevada agriculture.
There has been some significant improvements made in the research operations of the Gund Ranch facility, owned by the University and located near Austin, NV. Following a major wildfire incident several years ago the work carried out on that operation has been about developing the model for how to bounce back from such an incident. Grazing research put attention on whether there was a reason to hold animals off a blackened area for two growing seasons (as current federal land management policy dictates). There has also been some developing approaches to livestock production and how to better fit the production cycles into what is taking place on the landscape. More recently, the research attention has been dealing with fall grazing of cheat grass and how this fits with the needs of the livestock doing the grazing and the lands being treated with this management technique.
The examples of the Gund can and should be applied to the needs of other Nevada agricultural producers on the other research facilities operated by the Nevada Agricultural Experiment Station system, including (and especially on the Main Station Farm).
Farm Bureau’s public policy, developed by farmer/rancher members, maintains the importance of keeping the Main Station Farm in an experiment and educational use, opposing the conversion of the property to urban uses. Farm Bureau policy also stresses that is shouldn’t be just a farm – for the sake of production.
We would strongly encourage an assessment of the needs of Nevada agriculture to determine the most critical priorities for establishing a meaningful research program.
Having spent the last couple of months working on developing the agreement with the University of Nevada, Reno administration on preserving the College of Agriculture, Biotechnology and Natural Resources as a College the emphasis now shifts to making what was saved a working institution that serves the needs of Nevada agriculture and students. One of the unresolved issues involves the long-term status of the Main Station Agricultural Experiment Station in Reno.
During the discussions of how the required $4.5 Million could be saved, the attention on the Main Station Farm was mostly on how the expenses associated with the facility could be offset. Given the past 20-plus year history of using research facilities as mostly agricultural production units, the mindset of those in charge has been and continues to be adopting an entrepreneurial focus, producing crops and livestock to generate income. In other words the strategy is to use the research facilities to farm.
Well, that’s not exactly what Nevada agriculture needs and from what we understand that is not what the University administration are looking for. Over the next year, we are told that the Main Station Farm will be evaluated with an assessment on how the facility is meeting the University’s mission of providing education and research. Depending on how that analysis goes forward, the 1,000-plus property may be transformed into something other than what it has been.
Perhaps now would be a good time to put some attention into developing an agricultural research program that matters to Nevada agriculture.
There has been some significant improvements made in the research operations of the Gund Ranch facility, owned by the University and located near Austin, NV. Following a major wildfire incident several years ago the work carried out on that operation has been about developing the model for how to bounce back from such an incident. Grazing research put attention on whether there was a reason to hold animals off a blackened area for two growing seasons (as current federal land management policy dictates). There has also been some developing approaches to livestock production and how to better fit the production cycles into what is taking place on the landscape. More recently, the research attention has been dealing with fall grazing of cheat grass and how this fits with the needs of the livestock doing the grazing and the lands being treated with this management technique.
The examples of the Gund can and should be applied to the needs of other Nevada agricultural producers on the other research facilities operated by the Nevada Agricultural Experiment Station system, including (and especially on the Main Station Farm).
Farm Bureau’s public policy, developed by farmer/rancher members, maintains the importance of keeping the Main Station Farm in an experiment and educational use, opposing the conversion of the property to urban uses. Farm Bureau policy also stresses that is shouldn’t be just a farm – for the sake of production.
We would strongly encourage an assessment of the needs of Nevada agriculture to determine the most critical priorities for establishing a meaningful research program.
Posted by Doug Busselman at 5/4/2010 8:43 AM 
Categories: Agriculture
Tags: University of Nevada Nevada College of Agriculture closing Agriculture
Categories: Agriculture
Tags: University of Nevada Nevada College of Agriculture closing Agriculture
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