USDA’s Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS) can provide substantial conservation support for your farm or non-industrial forestland. For qualifying farmers and forest landowners, NRCS financial assistance programs, most notably EQIP or CSP, can help implement conservation practices to address an environmental problem on your farm or add conservation enhancements to continue your existing conservation efforts. Conservation practices or enhancements can be applied to cropland (including orchards), pasture/grazing land, hay fields, rangeland, field edges or buffer areas, woodlands/forests, small water bodies on farms, energy-inefficient buildings, and other farm-adjacent land. Qualifying practices and enhancements are specific activities with an intended, positive outcome on the farm and the surrounding natural environment. This year, substantially more funding is available for conservation practices/enhancements that are climate-smart.
Some things to note: NRCS’s financial assistance is competitive, and awarded funds come in the form of contractual cost-share. If you receive and sign a contract, you pay for the agreed-upon conservation improvements out of pocket, and the federal government reimburses you for a large portion of the cost. For qualifying Historically Underserved (HU) farmers, reimbursement for conservation practices implemented through an EQIP contract will cover a higher percentage of the total cost than reimbursements to the general public, and HU producers with pre-approved EQIP contracts can request an Advance Payment to afford some of the upfront costs. As with all binding contracts, there are always risks if the conservation practices are not implemented to the federal and state practice specifications.
Some Southeast states’ deadlines have passed, but others are upcoming. Now is a great time to weigh your options and consider applying in order to make those long-awaited improvements to systems on your farm, such as:
- Improving pasture soil, forage, and infrastructure,
- Covering and stabilizing bare soil with perennial vegetation,
- Improving soil fertility and crop health while reducing chemical use,
- Reducing water loss,
- Planting trees for crops, forage, shade, and climate change mitigation,
- Increasing wildlife and pollinator habitat, and
- Improving water quality, air quality, and more.
However, the application process can be challenging to understand, the level of advice from agents can vary, the wait for funding can feel long, and some farmers have had bad experiences with the agency.
Having someone who walks you through the process and helps you understand your eligibility, what to expect, and what to ask NRCS can make a big difference. That’s what RAFI and our partners are here to do in our Conservation Resources for Resilient Farms project.
RAFI staff and partnering technical assistance providers across the U.S. Southeast and Caribbean can offer you free and individualized, one-on-one support to help you better understand NRCS, prepare for an NRCS agent to visit your farm, feel confident with your application and required materials, and make a backup plan if you are not selected for funding in the competitive process.
Didn’t know NRCS financial assistance is a competitive process? Wondering “what is a ranking deadline?”
NRCS uses ranking dates (batching dates) to review, approve, and fund applications at several points throughout the year. This ensures that farmers, graziers, and non-industrial forest landowners looking to establish or enhance conservation practices on their land have several opportunities to compete for funding. NRCS accepts applications continually, and applications received after a ranking/batching date will automatically be considered during the next funding cycle. However, funding for the more popular conservation practices (i.e., high tunnels) or those with less funding can run out. Thus, applying that type of financial assistance may only be considered in the following fiscal year. This means you can apply anytime, but it may not be a good time to submit your application — the submission date matters.
That’s why contacting NRCS with your interest and/or applying before your state’s ranking date is important. Treat the ranking date as the absolute latest deadline to apply, but we encourage you to apply at least a month before this deadline for better quality service! Find your state’s “deadline” below to consider if you can apply to NRCS. If you have experienced difficulty in the past or the process does not feel clear, please don’t hesitate to request RAFI’s free, one-on-one assistance. Contact Jaimie McGirt at jaimie@rafi.gameflow.design or complete this intake form.
Check your state/territory’s ranking date in the chart below. You will see past dates to get a sense of when your state typically has deadlines, as well as any upcoming ranking dates:
NOTE: View all state and territory ranking dates here if you do not see your state/territory listed here.