The Texas Department of Agriculture is waging a new attack on the feral hogs that are running roughshod over the state. A new matching grant will help fund programs put together by multiple counties, private industry and landowners. Agriculture Commissioner Todd Staples said the new County Hog Abatement Matching Program or CHAMP has almost $60,000 to allocate in the first year.
“We know that we have to take an aggressive stance in order to protect people's property and people's lives," Staples said. "These feral hogs are not only impacting our rural areas of the state, but increasingly, they're in the suburban and urban areas – our front yards, golf courses and public parks.”
Applications for these grants are due July 1. Staples said there are more than 2.6 million feral hogs in Texas – the most of any state -- and they’ve done an estimated $500 million of damage.