Florida landowners are being reminded the deadline to sign up for the Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP) for the fiscal year 2021 funding is Friday, March 26. Through CSP, USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) in Florida helps agricultural producers and forest landowners earn payments for expanding conservation activities while maintaining agricultural production on their land. CSP also encourages the adoption of new technologies and management techniques. …
USDA Seeks Innovative Partner-led Projects Delivering Sustainable Agricultural Solutions
USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) is seeking proposals to fund up to $75 million in new, unique projects under the Regional Conservation Partnership Program’s (RCPP) Alternative Funding Arrangements (AFA). Proposals need to take innovative and non-traditional approaches to conservation solutions at the local, regional, and landscape scales. 15 projects will be funded this year through AFA, where partners have more flexibility …
Looking at the Integrated Livestock Protection
USDA researchers are studying how various non-lethal tools and strategies within an integrated approach can protect livestock from predator attack. Rod Bain has the story. Julie Young with USDA-APHIS Wildlife Services describes some of the strategies and tools, most non-lethal that make up an integrated livestock protection system against predators. Sponsored ContentFlorida Senator Shares Origins of Florida Cattle Enhancement BoardNovember …
Investment in Land and Water Conservation Announced by USDA
The U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service will invest more than $218 million to fund Great American Outdoors Act projects. Their objective is to conserve critical forest and wetland habitat, support the economic recovery of rural communities and increase public access to national forests and grasslands. This investment will improve public access by funding strategic land acquisitions. Funds will also …
USDA Offers CSP Participants Renewal Options for Contracts Set to Close
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has announced it is accepting Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP) renewal applications through March 31 for contracts set to end this year. Participants with existing CSP contracts that close on December 31, 2021, can benefit from recent program changes by renewing their contracts for an additional five years if they agree to adopt additional conservation …
New Florida Farmer Pleased with NRCS Program
USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) in Florida wants to remind landowners applications for the Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP) for the fiscal year 2021 will be accepted through March 26. Samantha Longster with S&S Micro Farm LLC located in Bartow, Florida is a new and beginning farmer who with her husband, started farming blueberries last year. They just entered into CSP to plant cover crops …
Information on USDA’s Climate-Smart Agriculture and Forestry Strategy Requested
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) published a Federal Register Notice requesting public input on a climate-smart agriculture and forestry strategy. The Notice represents an important step toward implementing President Biden’s Executive Order on Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad. The Order, signed January 27, states that, “America’s farmers, ranchers, and forest landowners have an important role to …
Ag Secretary Tom Vilsack on Passage of the American Rescue Plan Act
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack made the following statement today on the passage of the American Rescue Plan Act by the U.S. Congress. The bill now goes to President Biden for his signature. For a detailed review, see the USDA fact sheet (see below). “President Biden wasted no time fulfilling his pledge to the American people to bring substantial financial relief within …
Agriculture Included in New COVID-19 Relief Package
The $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief package, known as “The American Rescue Plan Act of 2021” is now official as President Biden signed the bill late last week. We’ve all heard how the package will include $1,400 stimulus checks for qualifying individuals, extends unemployment benefits, and more. But it also increases assistance through USDA’s Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). And according …
QLA Deadline Extended: GCC Encourages Participation in Program
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s decision to extend the deadline for the Quality Loss Adjustment (QLA) program provides Georgia cotton producers another month to apply. Taylor Sills, executive director of the Georgia Cotton Commission (GCC), encourages farmers to take advantage of this opportunity since the deadline is now April 9. “Last week the United States Department of Agriculture announced that …