The Wisconsin U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) is extending the previously announced Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP) sign-up date. The new application deadline for CSP sign-ups is March 17, 2023. This extension is due to the recent announcement of additional funding made available through the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). Through CSP, Wisconsin NRCS helps farmers, and forest landowners earn payments for expanding conservation activities while maintaining agricultural production on their land. CSP also encourages adoption of new technologies and management techniques. Specifically, this additional IRA allocation will be used to target applications willing to adopt Climate Smart Conservation Activities.
“CSP continues to be a very effective tool for private landowners working to achieve their conservation and management goals,” said Jamie Keith, Acting State Conservationist for Wisconsin. “It is the largest conservation program in the United States with more than 70 million acres of productive agricultural and forest land enrolled.”
On August 16, 2022, President Biden signed the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) into law. Some of the highlights of this once-in-a-generation investment and opportunity for the agricultural communities that USDA serves are the following:
- IRA will provide an additional $19.5 billion over five years for climate smart agriculture through several of the conservation programs that USDA’s Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS) implements.
- This builds on other climate efforts, including the renewed efforts to encourage producers to adopt cover crops and implement nutrient management in recent years.
- In administering the Inflation Reduction Act climate investments, USDA will also support other environmental co-benefits, including – among other things – water conservation, wildlife habitat improvements, and reducing runoff.
While applications are accepted throughout the year, interested producers should submit applications to their local NRCS office by the extended deadline to ensure their applications are considered for 2023 funding.
Source : usda.gov