Secretary Vilsack Announces New Climate Smart Agriculture Opportunities

On January 10, Secretary Vilsack announced several new and expanded opportunities for climate smart agriculture in 2022, including: a new and streamlined Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) Cover Crop Initiative, a partnership with the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) and Farmers for Soil Health to advance the use of soil health practices, and added flexibilities for producers to re-enroll in the Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP).

The roll out of the partnership between NRCS and Farmers for Soil Health includes a goal to double the number of corn and soybean acres using cover crops to 30 million by 2030. Additionally, NRCS is investing $38 million through the new target Cover Crop Initiative in 11 states to help agricultural producers mitigate climate change through the adoption of cover crops. States include Arkansas, California, Colorado, Georgia, Iowa, Michigan, Mississippi, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, and South Dakota. Sign-up dates will be determined at the state level, and applications will be selected for funding by Feb. 11, 2022.

You can find the press release following the announcement by Secretary Vilsack here.