Our county's agriculture must remain competitive within local, national and even international markets. This requires a continuous flow of appropriate technology addressing local needs within New Mexico. Our Extension program works to maintain and strengthen programs that address these needs. Water is one of the most important limiting resources for our county's agriculture. All aspects of water use affect agricultural efficiency and profitability. Water management will become more critical as water demands for urbanization and industrialization increase. Emergency Preparedness is a must for the Agricultural Industry in Union County. The county agriculture industry is a major contributor to the economy of the state and to the nation. The negative impact of an outbreak of disease, impact of a natural or man-made disaster could result in economic losses of enormous scale and could be economically and socially devastating for the county population.

Union county hosts a population of 4500, all of which are directly or indirectly dependent on agriculture. The sustainability of agriculture then in our county is an important factor. Programs and individual contacts will enable us to reach this audience. With this dependence on agriculture for the county economic base, disaster (either man made or natural) is a constant concern with a need for a detailed working plan for the prevention, preparedness, response, and recovery to be available to the county and city government as well as the local producers in order to minimize the effects and maximize recovery of disastrous incidents.

• Additional Agricultural Resources

Brush & Weed Control

Union County has over 3 million acres and 50% have weed and brush problems where forage production is being hindered by competition from these species. Producers and land managers need to know management methods to decrease these populations and make the land more productive.

Range Management

Union County has 1.8 million acres of range land, not counting the Kiowa National Grasslands 90,000 acres. All range land is productive lands used for livestock production.