CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — State Conservationist Ivan Dozier announced the U. S. Department of Agriculture-Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) will offer special funding for precision conservation management through the Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP). Precision conservation management is an innovative service program designed to combine financial farm business planning with precision conservation technology to help farmers make intelligent conservation decisions. NRCS has partnered with the Illinois Corn Growers Association to help producers address resource concerns, such as water quality and soil health.
Producers have a couple different program options they can apply for using this RCPP project, depending on what best fits their needs. One program option is the Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP). CSP allows producers to build on their existing on-farm conservation efforts while strengthening their operation by signing up to use special enhancements, or new practices and management techniques.
The Agricultural Conservation Easement Program (ACEP) is the other program option available to producers through RCPP. ACEP provides financial and technical assistance to help producers conserve agricultural lands and wetlands and access their related benefits. Under the Wetlands Reserve Easements component, NRCS assists producers to restore, protect, and enhance enrolled wetlands for future generations.
The NRCS Precision Conservation Management RCPP project will be available to producers with land located in the following counties: Champaign, Christian, Douglas, Edgar, Ford, Livingston, Macoupin, McLean, Sangamon, Tazewell, Vermilion, and Woodford. To take advantage of this special conservation funding opportunity, interested producers should submit an application to their local NRCS field office by the cutoff dates below:
CSP | June 21, 2019 |
ACEP | June 28, 2019 |
Producers are reminded that they can submit a CSP or ACEP application to their local field office at any time throughout the year. To see if you are eligible to participate in the program, contact the local NRCS field office or visit the Illinois NRCS website at www.il.nrcs.usda.gov.
— USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service
For more articles out of Illinois, click here.