EQIP Contract Development in Montana

Landowners first contact their local county Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) office. NRCS staff will meet with the landowner to discuss the landowner’s ideas and discuss alternatives and recommendations. Together a conservation plan is developed that incorporates the landowner’s objectives with ideas to help make their resources more sustainable.

If conservation practices are identified as needed, a landowner can decide to apply to any one of a handful of conservation programs offered by USDA. The Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) offers cost share assistance for installing new conservation practices or incentive payments for trying new management techniques. The amount of cost-share assistance is based on an NRCS fixed dollar cost-share amount as explained on the How EQIP in Montana Works webpage (Beginning Farmers or Limited Resource Producers may be eligible for 15% higher cost-share amounts).

If the landowner decides to apply for EQIP, the landowner completes the application form NRCS-CPA-1200 which can be obtained at their local USDA Service Center or from the National NRCS EQIP Web Page. The NRCS staff person will "rank" or score the application based on a ranking evaluation specific for their county or resource concern (see How EQIP in Montana Works). This score will be compared with other applications in the specific EQIP funding pool. If accepted, the landowner enters into a multi-year contract (from 1 to 10 years) with USDA that schedules the implementation of the practices in a time frame that works for both the individual and NRCS.

Last Modified: 07/12/2007