Conservation reserve program sign-up ends Sept. 24
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CRP is a voluntary program available to agricultural producers to help them safeguard environmentally sensitive land. Producers enrolled in CRP plant long-term, resource-conserving covers to improve the quality of water, control soil erosion, and enhance wildlife habitat. In return, FSA provides participants with rental payments and cost-share assistance.
Contract duration is between 10 and 15 years. FSA administers CRP, while other USDA agencies and partners provide technical support. More detailed information on CRP is available in the FSA fact sheet entitled “Conservation Reserve Program.”
To be eligible for placement in CRP, land must be either (1) crop land (including field margins) that is planted or considered planted to an agricultural commodity four of the previous six crop years from 1996 to 2001, and which is physically and legally capable of being planted in a normal manner to an agricultural commodity; (2) certain marginal pasture land that is enrolled in the Water Bank Program; or (3) certain land devoted to hardwood trees that was under CRP contract which expired on Sept. 30, 2001 or earlier.
In addition to the eligible land requirements, crop land must meet one of the following criteria: (1) have a weighted average erosion index of 8 or higher; (2) be expiring CRP acreage; or (3) be located in a national or state CRP conservation priority area.
A person must have owned or operated the land for at least 12 months prior to close of the CRP sign-up period, unless the new owner acquires the land due to the previous owner’s death, the ownership change occurred due to foreclosure where the owner exercised a timely right or redemption in accordance with state law, or the circumstances of the acquisition present adequate assurance to FSA that the new owner did not acquire the land for the purpose of placing it in CRP.
In return for establishing long-term, resource-conserving covers, FSA provides rental payment to participants. FSA bases rental rates on the relative productivity of the soils within each county and the average dry land cash rent or cash-rent equivalent. The maximum CRP rental rate for each offer is calculated in advance of enrollment.
Producers may offer land at that rate or offer a lower rental rate to increase the likelihood that their offer will be accepted. Annual rental payments may include an additional amount up to $5 per acre per year as an incentive to perform certain maintenance obligations. Cost share assistance is provided to participants who establish approved cover on eligible crop land. The cost-share assistance can be an amount not more than 50 percent of the participants costs in establishing approved practices.
Offers for CRP sign-up will be ranked according to the Environmental Benefits Index (EBI). FSA collects data for each of the EBI factors based on the relative environmental benefits for the land offered. Each eligible offer is ranked in comparison to all other offers and selections made from that ranking. Decisions on the EBI cutoff will be made after the sign-up ends. Producers can consult with local USDA experts on steps producers can take to maximize EBI points and increase the likelihood that their offer will be accepted.
The local Farm Service Agency county office is currently accepting offers from eligible producers and will continue to do so through Sept. 24. Contact the county office located at 1031 Smithville Highway, Suite 202 or by calling 473-2277.