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The Butte basedNational Center for Appropriate Technology(NCAT) gets $2.5 million to aid farms

The Butte-based National Center for Appropriate Technology http://www.ncat.org/ has received $2.5 million to continue its work on its largest project, one that provides free technical assistance to farmers, ranchers and others on sustainable farming practices.

"We’re all smiling here," said Kathy Hadley, executive director for NCAT, on Friday.

By the Standard Staff

http://www.mtstandard.com/articles/2004/01/26/newsbutte_top/hjjfjihdjcfeea.txt

The appropriation for the program was contained in a U.S. Department of Agriculture spending measure and was aided by Sen. Conrad Burns, R-Mont. "He’s been great to us and helped us."

Hadley explained that NCAT has received the same amount annually for the last three years, but it’s always nerve-wracking to wait until the spending measures are passed, because the program — and its accompanying jobs — depend on the funding.

NCAT has been running the program for about 16 years and it has grown substantially over time. The program assists agriculturalists in various ways, such as helping farmers conserve water, soil or help them diversify. The program also provides technical assistance to farmers looking to diversify crops or help entrepreneurs learn how to become certified in organic farming or raising certified organic beef.

The program can also help farmers or ranchers learn how to irrigate their land more efficiently. In addition, the program, outlined on http://www.attra.ncat.org offers publications and information.

"Last year we had about 525,000 publications downloaded," Hadley said.

Passage of the spending bill is a great relief to Hadley.

"We’ve got 18 people here whose jobs depend on this," Hadley said of the positions, which pay roughly $35,000 a year. In addition to the local jobs, the funding helps fund the expertise of NCAT employees in Helena, Missoula and in Fayetteville, Ark., where NCAT has another office.

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Offices

NCAT Headquarters

3040 Continental Dr.

Butte, MT 59701

OR

P.O. Box 3838

Butte, MT 59702

(406) 494-4572

(406) 494-2905 fax

(800) ASK-NCAT

**

NCAT Fayetteville

Hotz Hall – 4th Floor

1175 West Cleveland

Fayetteville, AR 72701

OR

P.O. Box 3657

Fayetteville, AR 72702

(479) 442-9824

(479) 442-9842 fax

***

NCAT Missoula

127 N. Higgins, Suite 201

Missoula, MT 59802

(406) 327-0705

(406) 549-4100 fax

***

NCAT California

P.O. Box 2218

Davis, CA 95617

(530) 792-7338

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NCAT also tries to spend the majority of its money locally whenever possible, such as purchasing supplies and using Butte labor, like an auditing firm.

Hadley said that the program is even more valuable now, given the consumer demand for safe food, and farmers and ranchers can fill those niche markets with organic produce and beef. The clamor for such products has risen dramatically, she added. Also popular is the new research and demand for ethanol and biodiesel products, also a new market for agriculturalists.

— Leslie McCartney, The Montana Standard

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