USDA NRCS GRP WHIP CSP

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1 USDA NRCS GRP WHIP CSP

2 Environmental Qualities Incentives Program The Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) is a voluntary conservation program. It supports production agriculture and environmental quality as compatible goals. Through EQIP, farmers may receive financial and technical help install conservation practices on agricultural land to solve a resource concern.

3 FY 13 EQIP in Minnesota General MN EQIP (20,000,000.00) MN Cropland MN Livestock Ag Waste MN Livestock Grazing/Pasture/Hayland MN Wildlife MN Tribal MN Socially Disadvantaged MN Beginning Farmer Rancher MN Drainage Water Management ($95,000) MN Forestry Initiative ($991,829.00) MN Soil Health Initiative ($1,001,964.00) MN Cover Crop/Preventative Planting ($2,236,000.00) Certified Organic ($112,000) Organic Transition ($10,460.00) On farm Energy ($61,242.00)

4 FY 13 EQIP in Minnesota Driftless Area Initiative($956,861.00) Ag Certainty ($599,914.00) Elm Creek Middle Sauk River Whiskey Creek Whitewater River Mississippi River Basin Initiative ($1,593,625.00) Watson Creek Rush Pine Creek Root River Green Valley/Austin Watershed Redwood County Little Cottonwood Grand Pearl National Water Quality Initiative ($257,609.00) Gilchrist Lake Big Twin Lake Sevenmile Creek

5 Conservation Stewardship Program (CStP) CSP will help owners and operators of agricultural lands maintain conservation stewardship and implement and maintain additional needed conservation practices. The conservation benefits gained will keep farms and ranches more sustainable and profitable and increase the benefits provided to all Americans through improved natural resources.

6 Conservation Stewardship Program (CStP) had 3,183 active contracts and provided $55.5 million in annual payments. CSP 2013 signup enrolled an additional 552 contracts with $10.0 million obligated. Totals: 3,735 contracts for $65.6 million in annual payments.

7 Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) Administered through Farm Service Agency (FSA) General CRP Continuous CRP (CCRP) State Acres For Wildlife Enhancement (SAFE) Riparian Buffers Contour Buffer Strips Grassed Waterways Windbreaks/Shelterbelts Conservation Cover Tree and Shrub Establishment Rare and Declining Habitat

8 Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) Administered through Farm Service Agency (FSA) Number of SU45 Offers: 980 Number of existing General Contracts: 21,104 Number of existing CCRP Contracts: 37,713

9 Other Conservation Programs Grassland Reserve Program (GRP) FY 2013, NRCS and FSA completed acquisition of three perpetual GRP easements all located in Fillmore County. Wetland Reserve Program (WRP) During fiscal year 2013, 46 prior year funded WRP easements were finalized on a total of 4800 acres. Restoration was completed on previously closed WRP easements on 57 projects covering 7750 acres. In 2013, $3 million was obligated with 30 participants on over 3,000 acres. The majority of these obligations included RIM funding. Wildlife Habitat Incentives Program (WHIP) Conservation Technical Assistance (CTA)

10 Common Conservation Practices Brush Management Conservation Cover Conservation Crop Rotation Cover Crops Residue Management (No Till) Fence Field Borders Photo courtesy of River Country RC&D Photo courtesy of River Country RC&D *Not a complete list of all eligible practices

11 Common Conservation Practices (Continued) Grassed Waterways Nutrient Management Organic Transition Plans Pest Management Pipelines Prescribed Grazing Photo courtesy of River Country RC&D

Passage Tree and Shrub Establishment Underground Outlet Waste

12 Common Conservation Practices (continued) Seasonal High Tunnel System for Crops Stream Crossings and Aquatic Organism Passage Tree and Shrub Establishment Underground Outlet Waste Storage Facility Well for Grazing Well Decommissioning Windbreaks

13 Conservation Stewardship CStP Enhancements Program (Often Overlooked) Air, Animal, Energy, Plants, Soil Erosion, Soil Quality, Water Quality, and More

14 Conservation Stewardship Program Enhancements Extending buffers along streams Locally grown and marketed farm products Harvest hay that allows wildlife to escape Resource Conserving Crop Rotation Windbreak Renovation Habitat development for beneficial insects Continuous no till organic systems

15 Conservation Stewardship Program Enhancements Continuous cover crops Use of cover crop mixes Use deep rooted crops to break up compaction Use of non chemical methods to kill cover crops Transition to organic cropping systems IPM Grazing management for wildlife Retrofitting watering facilities for wildlife escape

16 Conservation Stewardship Program Enhancements Managing calving to coincide with forage availability Monitor key grazing areas for improved management Rotation of supplemental feeding areas Non chemical pest control for livestock Transition to organic grazing systems Composting on farm organic waste Protection of sensitive areas on winter grazing land Managing livestock access to water bodies/courses

17 NRCS Soil Health Initiative United States Department of Agriculture is an equal opportunity provider and employer.

18 Food for thought World population is estimated to reach 9.1 billion by To sustain this level of growth, we will need to produce as much food in the next 40 years as we have in the past 500 years.

19 Food for thought Globally, desertification and farmland conversion is accelerating. In the U.S. alone, between , 14 million acres of prime farmland was lost to development. Between 1982 and 2010, MN lost an estimated 800,000 acres of farmland From UW Extension: Center for and Use Education Report: Losing Ground: Tracking the rate of Farmland Loss in Wisconsin Counties 1992 to 23010:

20 Food for thought Need to optimize inputs Producers are searching for ways to optimize inputs and maximize profits.

21 Food for thought Agriculture is facing a huge loss of nonrenewable resources we can t wait till 2050 to start. The clock s ticking. We re already at the tipping point. We must start planning now. Paul Farrell, MarketWatch

22 Everything.

23 Why Soil Health? There is a growing market need There is producer interest Takes advantage of our purpose (Conservation) Provides the best return on our conservation investment

24 Soil Health is a Systemic Resource Treatment (Win, Win, Win) By focusing on soil health, we can have a positive impact on every major resource concern. Increase efficiencies and farm profitability. Maintain or even increase ag productivity.

25 Benefits of healthy soils Improve water quality Regulate water and reduce flooding Cycle organic wastes and detoxify noxious chemicals

26 Soil Health Benefits (continued) Increase soil carbon and remove CO 2 Save energy (fuel and plant nutrients) Save water and increase drought tolerance

27 Soil Health Benefits (continued) Improve income sustainability Improve plant health; and Increase nutrientrich food production

28 Soil Health Benefits (continued) Improve wildlife value (on and off site) Reduce disease and pest problems

29 Watershed Level Benefits Reductions in sediment and nutrient delivery to surface waters Increased infiltration and water holding capacity.

30 Soil Health Planning Principles 1. Manage More by Disturbing Soil Less 2. Use Plant Diversity to Increase Diversity in the Soil 3. Grow Living Roots Throughout the Year 4. Keep the Soil Covered as Much as Possible

Soil Health Management Systems (SHMSs) SHMSs are a series of conservation and agronomic practices that when combined together lead to maintaining or increased soil health and productivity.

31 Soil Health Management Systems (SHMSs) SHMSs are a series of conservation and agronomic practices that when combined together lead to maintaining or increased soil health and productivity. Must be implemented as a system (Synergy) Based on the 4 soil health planning principles Not all practices are applicable to all crops or enterprises. Some systems may benefit from additional practices while other systems may only need one practice. Similar to an RMS plans and CORE 4 planning but the underlying goal/resource is soil health.

32 Soil Health Management System Conservation Practices Mandatory 328 Conservation Cropping Rotation 329 No till or Strip till 340 Cover Crops 590 Nutrient Management 595 Pest Management (Integrated) 528 Prescribed Grazing As Applicable 512 Forage and Biomass Planting Conservation Buffers, Filter Strips, Contour Farming, Contour Strip Cropping, and more Recommended Precision Application of Nutrients Controlled Traffic no Tillage Strip Cropping More Diverse Crop Rotation Much More

33 The Ultimate Goal Increase the number of producers operating with Soil Health Management Systems (SHMSs).

34 Manage More by Disturbing the Soil Less Same Map Unit Different Management 62.8% loss of SOM after 17 yr intensive tillage 20 cm layer Forest SOM = 4.3 % CT 17 yr Soybean monoculture SOM = 1.6 %

36 Integrated communications support

37 Banner stands, exhibits

38 NRCS campaign features soil health farmers making the case for soil health

39 Video Products

40 Web Resources /health/

41 New Soil Test Kits

42 Overall Objective Increasing our Soil Health resources cost effectively, while increasing the productivity of our State s working lands. Getting More Common Sense Conservation on the Land

file a complaint with USDA. Information about how to file a discrimination complaint is available from the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights.

43 The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits discrimination against its customers. If you believe you experienced discrimination when obtaining services from USDA, participating in a USDA program, or participating in a program that receives financial assistance from USDA, you may file a complaint with USDA. Information about how to file a discrimination complaint is available from the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights. USDA prohibits discrimination in all its programs and activities on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, disability, and where applicable, sex (including gender identity and expression), marital status, familial status, parental status, religion, sexual orientation, political beliefs, genetic information, reprisal, or because all or part of an individual s income is derived from any public assistance program. (Not all prohibited bases apply to all programs.) To file a complaint of discrimination, complete, sign, and mail a program discrimination complaint form, available at any USDA office location or online at or write to: USDA Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights 1400 Independence Avenue, SW. Washington, DC Or call toll free at (866) (voice) to obtain additional information, the appropriate office or to request documents. Individuals who are deaf, hard of hearing, or have speech disabilities may contact USDA through the Federal Relay service at (800) or (800) (in Spanish). USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer, and lender. Persons with disabilities who require alternative means for communication of program information (e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, etc.) should contact USDA's TARGET Center at (202) (voice and TDD). United States Department of Agriculture is an equal opportunity provider and employer.

Natural Resources Conservation Service

Natural Resources Conservation Service Helping people, help the land Presented To: THE PAST, PRESENT, FUTURE, NATURAL FOOD HEALTH, INC. INFORMATIONAL WORKSHOP December 14 th, 2012 - Greensboro, GA Presented