NSAC Archives for the 'Conservation / Land Stewardship' Category
FY 2012 CRP General Sign Up Coming Soon; Preliminary FY 2012 CSP Sign Up Results – UPDATED February 1, 2012
Tuesday, January 31st, 2012
UPDATED February 1, 2012 Since our blog post on January 31, USDA announced that the FY 2012 Conservation Reserve Program general sign up period will be March 12-April 6. According to today’s press release, “contracts on an estimated 6.5 million acres will expire on Sept. 30, 2012″ and this sign up will attempt to fill Read the Rest…
New Regulatory Certainty Program Announced in Minnesota
Wednesday, January 18th, 2012
On Tuesday, January 17, Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Lisa Jackson, Minnesota Governor Mark Dayton, and USDA’s Chief of the Natural Resources Conservation Service Dave White met in Minnesota to announce a new partnership between the State, USDA, and EPA. Through the partnership, producers would receive immunity, also known as Read the Rest…
USDA Announces CIG Funding for Water Quality Markets
Saturday, January 14th, 2012
On Friday, January 13, USDA announced the availability of $10 million for water quality credit trading projects through the Conservation Innovation Grants (CIG) program. According to USDA’s vision of water quality credit trading, “a producer who implements conservation practices to reduce water quality pollutants can also benefit by generating water quality market credits that could Read the Rest…
EPA Releases Farm, Ranch & Rural Advisory Committee Recommendations
Thursday, January 12th, 2012
The EPA has released a Report from its Farm, Ranch & Rural Advisory Committee that was presented to EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson in December 2011. The Committee, as reconstituted under the Obama Administration, held its first meeting in September 2010. Administrator Jackson charged the Committee at the meeting with preparing recommendations regarding water quality issues Read the Rest…
It’s Time: Help us Speak up for Sustainable Agriculture
Thursday, January 12th, 2012
Stay tuned for a detailed blog post on the 2012 Farm Bill next week. The summer’s bounty may feel far away, but even in January, farmers and ranchers are busy – unloading hay for cattle on the snowy range, selecting next summer’s most-delicious tomato seeds, or harvesting fresh grapefruit for your breakfast table. Here in Read the Rest…
2012 Conservation Stewardship Program Sign-Up Period Extended
Tuesday, January 10th, 2012
INFORMATION ALERT 2012 Conservation Stewardship Program Sign-Up Extended On Friday, December 9, USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) announced that the fiscal year (FY) 2012 ranking period cutoff for the Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP) is January 13, 2012. Given the busy holiday season time frame, on January 10 NRCS extended the ranking period cutoff date Read the Rest…
NRCS Funding New Mississippi River Basin Initiative Projects
Thursday, January 5th, 2012
On January 3, the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) issued a notice that it is accepting proposals for new projects under the Mississippi River Basin Healthy Watersheds Initiative (MRBI). Proposals are due March 19, 2012. Under the MRBI, NRCS provides financial assistance to farmers in areas covered by MRBI projects who undertake conservation practices specified Read the Rest…
Deadline for FY2012 CIG Pre-Proposals due January 31
Wednesday, January 4th, 2012
On Wednesday, January 4, USDA issued a press release to remind program applicants that the deadline to submit a pre-proposal for a fiscal year (FY) 2012 Conservation Innovation Grant (CIG) is January 31. You can download the FY 2012 CIG Announcement of Program Funding from USDA’s CIG webpage. Those who are interested in proposing a Read the Rest…
NRCS Updates Nutrient Management Standard
Monday, December 19th, 2011
Last week, USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) released an updated version of its nutrient management standard, also known as conservation practice standard 590 (CPS 590). NRCS practice standards delineate the steps that a producer may or must take in order to receive payments for a particular conservation practice under NRCS conservation programs. According to Read the Rest…
Government Funding Bill Wrap Up and EPA Appropriations
Friday, December 16th, 2011
On Thursday, December 15, members of a House and Senate Conference Committee passed a nine-bill appropriations package, H.R. 2055, to fund most government functions through the end of fiscal year (FY) 2012. The House then voted, 296-121, on Friday afternoon to pass the funding package. The nearly 2,300 page package was scheduled to go to the Senate for Read the Rest…
