Initiative Expanded Nationwide in Fiscal Year 2006
WASHINGTON, Dec. 12, 2005—The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Natural Resources
Conservation Service Chief Bruce Knight today announced more than $10 million in
Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) funds will be used to assist
limited resource and beginning farmers and ranchers nationwide to implement
conservation practices on their land.
“Limited resource and beginning farmers and ranchers play an important role in
providing a safe, abundant and affordable food supply as they conserve private
land,” Knight said. “We expanded the initiative nationwide this fiscal year to
help these farmers and ranchers help the land.”
For the first time last fiscal year, NRCS invested $6.8 million in EQIP funds to
assist limited resource and beginning farmers and ranchers in implementing
conservation practices on cropland and rangeland. Eleven southern states and the
Caribbean Area agreed to dedicate up to $500,000 in EQIP funds to increase
participation in NRCS voluntary conservation programs through improved outreach
efforts to limited resource and beginning farmers and ranchers. Participating
states were Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana,
Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia.
The funds helped implement conservation practices for limited resource and
beginning farmers and ranchers with 100 acres or less of cropland or rangeland.
NRCS will offer cost-share rates of up to 90 percent for all conservation
practices and a $10,000 limit on each contract for eligible farmers and
ranchers. These criteria will remain in effect this fiscal year.
The Limited Resource Farmers Initiative stresses cost-effective and economical
conservation practices for erosion control, water management and grazing land
management such as livestock watering facilities, fencing and irrigation
systems. Limited resource and beginning farmers and ranchers could modify these
practices to suit their smaller operations.
Farmers and ranchers interested in learning more about the Limited Resource
Farmers Initiative should contact their local USDA Service Center or locate
their NRCS office at http://offices.sc.egov.usda.gov/locator/app.
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The Natural Resources
Conservation Service provides leadership in a partnership effort to help
people
conserve, maintain, and improve our natural resources and environment.
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