USDA Signs Technical Service Provider Agreement with Certified Professional In Erosion and Sediment Control, Inc.

ROCHESTER, N.Y., Aug 2, 2005—U.S. Department of Agriculture today signed an agreement that will allow farmers and ranchers who need technical assistance with soil erosion, sediment control and storm water quality to obtain that assistance from certified technical service providers (TSPs) or third-party vendors.

USDA-Natural Resources Conservation Service Chief Bruce Knight signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the Certified Professional in Erosion and Sediment Control, Inc. (CPESC) at the Soil and Water Conservation Society’s annual conference. Knight and CPESC Executive Director David Ward signed the three-year agreement, which recognizes certifications in soil erosion and sediment control as well as storm water quality.

“This MOU ensures private landowners who participate in USDA conservation programs will receive top-notch services from CPESC experts as these landowners plan, design and implement conservation practices such as buffers, conservation tillage, vegetative land stabilization and channel and stream stabilization,” said Knight.

The 2002 Farm Bill expanded the availability of technical assistance to private landowners by encouraging the use of TSPs to assist USDA in delivering conservation technical assistance services to landowners.

The MOU allows CPESC to recommend its members to NRCS for certification in soil erosion and sediment control and storm water quality. They must complete CPESC’s certified programs in these two areas to meet USDA’s performance criteria for providing conservation assistance in soil erosion and sediment control and storm water quality.

CPESC, headquartered in Marion, North Carolina, is a non profit, professional international organization with about 2,000 members throughout the United States as well as several countries, including Canada. The organization was first formed in 1983 through SWCS and became incorporated three years ago.

USDA has already signed MOUs with 13 organizations that provide for the partner organizations to recommend qualified individuals to USDA for certification as technical service providers in conservation planning and design, layout, installation and checkout of approved conservation practices.

In addition to the MOU signed today, USDA has existing agreements with the American Society of Agronomy, Society for Range Management, Iowa State University, The Wildlife Society, Society of American Foresters, The Irrigation Association, University of Tennessee, National Alliance of Independent Crop Consultants, Environmental Management Solutions, American Registry of Professional Animal Scientists, Association of Consulting Foresters of America, American Fisheries Society and American Forage and Grassland Council.

USDA-NRCS certifies TSPs and lists them on a national, web-based registry called TechReg. Farmers, ranchers and other landowners seeking conservation technical assistance can locate a TSP through this registry. More than 2,400 certified TSPs from across the nation are registered.
Additional information on technical service provider assistance is available at http://techreg.usda.gov.
 

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