U.S.D.A. Offers Farm Conservation Help In Chesapeake Bay Watershed

The new Chesapeake Bay Watershed Initiative, recently authorized in the 2008 Farm Bill, offers additional conservation opportunities for farms located within the Chesapeake Bay Watershed for technical and financial assistance to install agricultural practices to help control erosion and minimize excess nutrients and sediments to restore, preserve, and protect water quality.

 

In Pennsylvania, CBWI will focus on priority practices in priority areas to complement other statewide program offerings. The Pennsylvania Natural Resources Conservation Service will place priority on the implementation of core conservation practices-- tillage and residue management, improved nutrient management, and stream-side buffers.

 

Cathy Myers, Deputy Secretary of the Department of Environmental Protection, is a strong supporter of CBWI.

 

"This initiative has the potential to benefit both farmers and the environment. I encourage farmers to apply for this opportunity to implement core conservation practices that will assist farmers in sustaining their farm's productivity and help Pennsylvania to better protect local water quality and the Chesapeake Bay," said Myers

 

Agricultural land throughout the entire Bay watershed is eligible for this new conservation opportunity. Special consideration in the ranking process will be given to local watersheds that have been identified as priorities. Priority watersheds were identified using a combination of factors, which included the level of nutrient yield to the Bay, percentage of agricultural land use cover, local nutrient or dissolved oxygen issues, the potential for water quality response, and implementation opportunities. Pennsylvania and the other Bay states worked with the Chesapeake Bay Program Office in Annapolis, Maryland to identify priority areas.

 

The CBWI funding is the largest amount of farm conservation money ever to target the Bay. The United States Department of Agriculture recently released $23 million to the six states in the Bay watershed to provide technical and financial assistance to farmers in the watershed. Pennsylvania received $6.7 million for this new initiative.

 

For more information visit the PA Chesapeake Bay Watershed webpage. You can also contact the local NRCS or County Conservation District office to request assistance.