Source: USDA, 1/10/22
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Natural Resources
Conservation Service (NRCS) is announcing several new and expanded
opportunities for climate smart agriculture in 2022. Updates include nationwide
availability of the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) Conservation Incentive
Contracts option, a new and streamlined EQIP Cover Crop Initiative, and added
flexibilities for producers to easily re-enroll in the Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP). These improvements to NRCS’ working lands conservation programs, combined with continued program opportunities in all states, are part of the Biden-Harris Administration’s broader effort to support climate-smart agriculture.“Climate change is happening, and America’s agricultural communities are on the frontlines,” NRCS Chief Terry Cosby said. “We have to continue to support and expand the adoption of conservation approaches to support producers in their work to address the climate crisis and build more resilient operations. We are continuously working to improve our programs to ensure we’re giving farmers and ranchers the best tools to conserve natural resources.” New Partnership
AnnouncedNRCS is announcing a new partnership with Farmers For Soil Health, an initiative of the United Soybean Board, National Corn Growers Association and National Pork Board. Farmers For Soil Health works to advance use of soil health practices – especially cover crops – on corn and soybean farms. The initiative has a goal of doubling the number of corn and soybean acres using cover crops to 30 million acres by 2030. “We are pleased to see NRCS announce this new incentive program for cover crops,” said John Johnson, coordinator of Farmers for Soil Health. “Cover crops have great potential to improve soil health, improve water quality, sequester carbon, and make our farms more resilient to severe climate events. We look forward to our partnership with NRCS, working to expand adoption of cover crop practices to help our farmers meet our sustainability goals.” Other partners include
the National Association of Conservation Districts, Soil Health Institute, and
The Sustainability Consortium. EQIP Cover Crop
InitiativeTo complement the new
partnership, NRCS is investing $38 million through the new targeted Cover Crop
Initiative in 11 states to help agricultural producers mitigate climate change
through the widespread adoption of cover crops. States include Arkansas,
California, Colorado, Georgia, Iowa, Michigan, Mississippi, Ohio, Pennsylvania,
South Carolina and South Dakota. States were selected for this initial pilot
based on their demonstrated demand for additional support for the cover crop
practice. Sign-up dates will be
determined at the state-level, and applications will be selected for funding by
Feb. 11, 2022. The initiative is aimed
at improving soil health through a targeted, rapid, and streamlined application
and contract approval process. NRCS will continue to build on this framework
and streamlined application process to support farmers and ranchers across the
country. Cover crops offer
agricultural producers a natural and inexpensive climate solution through their
ability to sequester atmospheric carbon dioxide into soils. Cover crops can
provide an accelerated, positive impact on natural resource concerns. In fiscal
2021, NRCS provided technical and financial assistance to help producers plant
2.3 million acres of cover crops through EQIP. EQIP Conservation
Incentive ContractsConservation Incentive
Contracts address priority resource concerns, including sequestering carbon and
improving soil health in high-priority areas. Through these contracts, works
with producers to strengthen the quality and condition of natural resources on
their operations using management practices, such as irrigation water
management, drainage water management, feed management and residue and tillage
management that target resource concerns, including degraded soil and water
quality, available water and soil erosion. Conservation Incentive
Contracts offer producers annual incentive payments to implement management
practices as well as conservation evaluation and monitoring activities to help
manage, maintain and improve priority natural resource concerns within state
high-priority areas and build on existing conservation efforts. Download our “Conservation Incentive Contracts” fact sheet for a list of practices (PDF,
1 MB). Conservation Incentive
Contracts last five years. The 2018 Farm Bill created the new Conservation
Incentive Contract option, and it was piloted in 2021 in four states. CSP Re-Enrollment
OptionNRCS updated CSP to allow
an agricultural producer to immediately re-enroll in the program following an
unfunded application to renew an existing contract. Previously, if a CSP
participant did not re-enroll the year their contract expired, they were
ineligible for the program for two years. This ineligibility was
imposed on CSP participants even if their failure to sign a renewal contract
was due to the unavailability of funds, which is beyond their control. USDA is
now waiving this two-year ineligibility restriction for all CSP applications. This year, producers
renewed 2,600 CSP contracts covering 3.4 million acres. Applicants with
unfunded fiscal 2022 CSP renewals will receive letters this month, notifying
them they are automatically eligible to apply for future CSP funding
opportunities, rather than needing to wait two years to reapply. How to ApplyNRCS accepts applications for conservation programs – including EQIP and CSP – year-round, however producers and landowners should apply by state-specific, signup dates to be considered for each year’s funding. To apply, producers should contact their local USDA Service
Center. More InformationThrough conservation programs, NRCS provides technical and financial assistance to help producers and landowners make conservation improvements on their land that benefit natural resources, build resiliency, and contribute to the nation’s broader effort to combat the impacts of climate change. More broadly, these efforts build on others across USDA to encourage use of conservation practices. For example, USDA’s Risk Management Agency (RMA) recently provided $59.5 million in premium support for producers who planted cover crops on 12.2 million acres through the new Pandemic Cover Crop Program. Last week, RMA announced a new option for insurance
coverage, the Post Application Coverage Endorsement, for producers who “split apply” fertilizer on corn.
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