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EQIP Program funds
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Subject: EQIP news release
$200 MILLION FOR NEW ENVIRONMENTAL PROGRAM
Release No. 0079.97
Jim Petterson (202) 720-4623
Diana Morse (202) 720-4772
GLICKMAN ANNOUNCES $200 MILLION FOR NEW
ENVIRONMENTAL PROGRAM FOR AGRICULTURE
RALEIGH, N.C., March 10, 1997--Agriculture Secretary Dan
Glickman today announced preliminary state funding allocations
for USDA's new $200 million Environmental Quality Incentives
Program (EQIP) that will help farmers and ranchers address
agriculture's priority natural resource and environmental problems.
"The new EQIP program is part of the Clinton Administration's
commitment to providing farmers and ranchers with flexible,
effective and voluntary conservation programs," Glickman said.
"The EQIP will be one of our key tools to help producers protect
natural resources and ensure the sustainability of our food supply."
Producers will be able to sign EQIP contracts when the final
rules and regulations for the program are published in the Federal
Register, expected in April. In the meantime, producers may
contact local USDA Service Centers and the Natural Resources
Conservation Service (NRCS) for information on possible eligibility
for EQIP. Producers also can work with NRCS to develop their own
conservation plans which are required for any EQIP contract.
EQIP will be delivered primarily to state priority areas. Under
EQIP, state priority areas are watersheds, or geographic regions
with special environmental sensitivity or significant soil, water,
or related natural resource concerns. Each state's priority areas
were locally-determined by the NRCS state conservationist, in
conjunction with state technical committees and USDA Farm
Service Agency personnel.
To determine state funding allocations, another USDA team
developed an objective rating system based on 26 national
environmental factors. These factors addressed a wide range of
natural resource conditions, such as soil erosion and deposition,
water quality and quantity, wildlife habitat, wetlands, grazing
lands, and other concerns.
Under EQIP, USDA can provide cost-share assistance to
family-sized farms and ranches for up to 75 percent of the costs of
certain environmental protection practices, such as grassed
waterways, filter strips, manure management facilities, capping
abandoned wells, and wildlife habitat enhancement. USDA also
may provide incentive payments to encourage producers to apply
such land management practices as nutrient, manure, irrigation
water, wildlife, and integrated pest management.
Approximately $170 million is involved in today's announcement.
The remaining $30 million will be allocated to the states when their
final needs for technical, financial, and educational assistance are
determined. In some cases, only technical assistance may be
needed because financial assistance is already available through
state programs.
EQIP is a new USDA program under the 1996 Farm Bill. It provides
technical, financial, and educational assistance to farmers and
ranchers to address significant natural resource concerns and
objectives. EQIP replaces four previous programs: the Agricultural
Conservation Program, Water Quality Incentives Program, Great
Plains Conservation Program, and the Colorado River Basin Salinity
Control Program.
EQIP will be unveiled in conjunction with the Department's other
conservation programs like the Conservation Reserve Program, the
Wetlands Reserve Program, and the Wildlife Habitat Incentives
Program, to provide complete solutions to agriculture's
environmental challenges.
Initial state funding levels for EQIP program assistance announced
by the Secretary are as follows:
Environmental Quality Incentives Program
Initial Fiscal Year 1997 Funds Distribution
State Initial Amount
Alabama $3,700,000
Alaska 150,000
Arizona 2,000,000
Arkansas 5,200,000
California 4,950,000
Colorado 5,650,000
Connecticut 500,000
Delaware 650,000
Florida 3,250,000
Georgia 4,050,000
Hawaii 500,000
Idaho 2,900,000
Illinois 4,850,000
Indiana 2,550,000
Iowa 4,850,000
Kansas 6,650,000
Kentucky 3,100,000
Louisiana 4,850,000
Maine 2,400,000
Maryland 1,350,000
Massachusetts 450,000
Michigan 4,200,000
Minnesota 5,850,000
Mississippi 4,300,000
Missouri 5,100,000
Montana 6,350,000
Nebraska 5,250,000
Nevada 900,000
New Hampshire 500,000
New Jersey 600,000
New Mexico 2,650,000
New York 3,450,000
North Carolina 3,900,000
North Dakota 4,200,000
Ohio 3,050,000
Oklahoma 4,300,000
Oregon 3,550,000
Pennsylvania 3,400,000
Puerto Rico & Virgin Islands 350,000
Rhode Island 250,000
South Carolina 2,550,000
South Dakota 4,100,000
Tennessee 2,750,000
Texas 13,700,000
Utah 3,150,000
Vermont 1,100,000
Virginia 3,000,000
Washington 3,550,000
West Virginia 1,700,000
Wisconsin 4,200,000
Wyoming 2,750,000
Pacific Basin 200,000
US Total Distributed $169,450,000
Not Yet Distributed 1/ 30,550,000
EQIP US Total $200,000,000
1/ Note: The funds will be allocated to the states when their final
needs for technical, financial, and educational assistance are
determined.
#
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Ralph A. Otto
Deputy Administrator
USDA Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service
Natural Resources and Environment
Stop 2210, 1400 Independence Ave., SW
Washington, DC 20250-2210
Voice phone: (202) 401-5877
FAX phone : (202) 401-1706
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