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Source: USDA, 9/10/21 The U.S.
Department of Agriculture (USDA) has accepted offers for more than 2.5 million
acres from agricultural producers and private landowners for enrollment through
this year’s Grassland Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) Signup. This is double
last year’s enrollment and brings the total acres enrolled across all CRP
signups in 2021 to more than 5.3 million acres, surpassing USDA’s 4-million-acre
goal. Producers and landowners submitted offers for nearly 4 million acres in
Grassland CRP, the highest in the signup’s history. “This increased interest in working lands conservation serves two purposes,” said Zach Ducheneaux, Administrator of USDA’s Farm Service Agency. “It helps close the gap between enrollment and available acres, and it leaves room for the Administration to be innovative with the other conservation tools, such as the Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program, at our disposal as we work to enlist non-traditional partners in our conservation efforts.” Ducheneaux continued: “Grasslands sequester an incredible amount of carbon in their roots that is resilient even during drought and wildfire, while also providing good wildlife habitat and grazing opportunities for producers and landowners; because there is no better way to increase soil health than with thoughtful animal impact. This year, we rolled out improvements to Grassland CRP, including priority zones for elk migration and vulnerable soils, and we were pleased to see this level of interest from conservation-minded producers across the country. This is a powerful program, and we want to continue to grow interest in Grassland CRP as well as other CRP signups in the coming years.” Through Grassland CRP, producers and landowners can
conserve grasslands, rangelands, and pastures, while retaining the right to
conduct common grazing practices, such as haying, mowing, or harvesting seed
from the enrolled land, pursuant to approved conservation plans designed to
promote thoughtful use while creating and maintaining vital
habitat. Updates to Grassland CRP FSA rolled out a number of updates to its CRP signups
earlier this year. This included setting a minimum payment rate for Grassland
CRP as well as establishing new national priority zones. Producers enrolled 1.1 million acres in the two
priority zones, which include the Greater Yellowstone Elk Migratory Corridor,
which is focused on wildlife and includes counties in Idaho, Montana, and
Wyoming, and the Historical Dust Bowl Region, which still is at great risk of
high wind erosion and includes counties in Colorado, Oklahoma, Kansas, and
Texas. The two national priority areas adjoin or include habitat ranges of the
lesser prairie-chicken and sage grouse, both of which are part of larger USDA
wildlife habitat initiatives. The new Grassland enrollment acres include 1.4
million acres within the range of these two species. Download the “What’s New” fact sheet to learn more
about CRP updates. CRP and Climate Change Mitigation Additionally, lands enrolled in CRP – including grasslands – play an important role in addressing climate change. For example, this enrollment of more than 2.5 million acres of grazing land into Grassland CRP will mitigate an additional estimated 22,000 metric tons of CO2 equivalent. By the Numbers Top states for producers submitting offers included
Colorado, South Dakota, Nebraska, Montana, and New Mexico. In addition to the more than 2.5 million acres
enrolled in Grassland CRP, almost 1.9 million acres in offers were accepted
through the General CRP Signup and 902,000 acres were accepted so far through
the Continuous Signup. Additional enrollment information on the General and
Continuous signups is available in the Aug. 23, 2021 news release. The 2018 Farm Bill established a nationwide acreage limit
for CRP, with the total number of acres that may be enrolled capped at 25
million acres in fiscal year (FY) 2021 and growing to 27 million by FY 2023.
Currently, 20.6 million acres are enrolled. With more than 5.3 million acres
accepted for enrollment, the USDA will start 2022 off with about 22.9 million
acres, leaving room for further enrollment and program expansion up to the FY
2022 cap of 25.5 million.
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