Ames, Iowa — Now’s the time to plan for winter weather, and the Iowa Department of Transportation is doing just that — and if you own farm ground along state highways, you may be able to help them.
They are asking farmers who have ground along state highways to leave some corn standing as a snow fence. Former northwest Iowan Craig Bargfrede, who is now the Winter Operations Administrator for the Iowa DOT in Ames tells us about the program.
Bargfrede tells us that the bonus is that not only will the DOT pay you for the value of the corn, but you can also still harvest it by hand in the fall or by hand or machine in the spring. Plus, Bargfrede says they now also work with farmers who place bales along the highway instead.
He tells us who to call if you have corn or could put bales on some ag land that might be helpful to the DOT.
Bargfrede says if you don’t know what garage to call or who to ask for, you can just call him at 515-290-2713 and he will help you get in touch with the person who handles the program at the local level.
