LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack
announced that $33 million in assistance will be provided to farmers and
ranchers to make conservation improvements that will improve water quality in
174 watersheds, including the Great Lakes.
The announcement was made on the secretary’s behalf by Ann
Mills, deputy under secretary for natural resources and environment, during a
Hypoxia Task Force meeting in Little Rock.
“This targeted approach provides a way to accelerate
voluntary, private lands conservation investments to improve water quality and
to focus water quality monitoring and assessment funds where they are most
needed,” Mills said. “When hundreds of farms take action in one area, one
watershed, it can make a real difference to improving water quality.”
Funding is provided through the National Water Quality
Initiative, administered by the Natural Resources Conservation Service. Now in
its third year, the initiative expanded to include more small watersheds across
the nation, and it builds on efforts to target high-impact conservation in areas
such as the Mississippi River basin, Gulf of Mexico, Chesapeake Bay and Great
With the help of partners at the local, state and national
level, NRCS identified priority watersheds in each state where on-farm
conservation investments will deliver the greatest water quality benefits. State
water quality agencies and local partners also provide assistance with watershed
planning, additional dollars and assistance for conservation, along with
outreach to farmers and ranchers.
“The collaborative goal is to ensure people and wildlife
have clean, safe water,” said NRCS Chief Jason Weller.
Eligible landowners will receive assistance under the
Environmental Quality Incentives Program for installing conservation systems
that help avoid, trap and control runoff in these high-priority watersheds.
These practices may include nutrient management, cover crops, conservation
cropping systems, filter strips and, in some cases, edge-of-field water quality
NRCS and partners are measuring the effects of conservation
practices on water quality. Edge-of-field monitoring and an NRCS
tool, Water Quality Index for
Agricultural Runoff , help landowners assess the positive impact of
their conservation efforts.
NRCS has helped farmers install monitoring stations to
measure the effectiveness of conservation systems.