Conservation Reserve Program Assists Landowners
General Sign-up Began Aug. 2
FRANKFORT, Ky. (Aug. 3, 2010) – The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) recently announced a general sign-up for the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP). The CRP program offers landowners the opportunity to use their environmentally sensitive land for conservation benefits.
As a participant in the program, a landowner voluntarily removes environmentally sensitive land from agricultural production by entering into long-term contracts for 10 to 15 years. In exchange, FSA provides participants with rental payments and cost-share assistance.
Sign-up began Aug. 2 and ends Aug. 27, 2010. Contracts awarded under the sign-up are scheduled to become effective Oct. 1, 2010.
FSA will use the following factors to assess the environmental benefits for land offered under this competitive sign-up:
- wildlife habitat benefits resulting from covers on contract acreage;
- water quality benefits from reduced erosion, runoff and leaching;
- on-farm benefits from reduced erosion;
- benefits that will likely endure beyond the contract period;
- air quality benefits from reduced wind erosion; and
- cost.
To help ensure that interested landowners are aware of the sign-up period, the federal agriculture department has signed partnership agreements with several conservation and wildlife organizations, including the Kentucky Division of Forestry. For more information about enrollment and eligibility, landowners should contact their local FSA office or visit www.fsa.usda.gov/crp.
