The USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) in Alabama recently announced signup is underway for Fiscal Year 2023 Farm Bill Easement and Financial Assistance Programs. This includes the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) and EQIP Conservation Incentive Contracts.
EQIP provides financial and technical assistance to agricultural producers to address natural resource concerns and deliver environmental benefits such as improved water and air quality, conserved ground and surface water, increased soil health and reduced soil erosion and sedimentation, improved or created wildlife habitat, and mitigation against increasing weather volatility. Initiatives include: Bobwhite Quail, Feral Swine, High Tunnel, Irrigation, Longleaf Pine, Urban Ag, Animal Mortality, On Farm Energy, Organic, Shortleaf, Soil Quality, Strikeforce, Technical Service Provider, Water Quality, White Oak, and Working Lands For Wildlife – Gopher Tortoise.
While EQIP applications are accepted on a continuous basis, selecting applications for funding is completed periodically through batching periods with specific cutoff dates. The signup deadline for these programs is November 18th, 2022. Applications received after that date will be held and considered for subsequent funding opportunities.
For more information stop by NRCS at your local USDA Service Center.