Conservation Programs - Vermont NRCS

Conservation Technical Assistance Programs and Activities

• Conservation Technical Assistance (CTA) Provides voluntary conservation technical assistance to land-users, communities, units of state and local government, and other Federal agencies in planning and implementing conservation systems.
• Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) Provides technical and financial assistance to eligible farmers and ranchers to address soil, water, and related natural resource concerns on their lands.

Environmental Improvement Programs

• Agricultural Management Assistance Program (AMA) Provides financial and technical assistance to agricultural producers to voluntarily address issues such as water management, water quality, and erosion control by incorporating conservation into their farming operations.
• Cooperative Conservation Partnership Initiative (CCPI) Enables the use of certain conservation programs with resources of eligible partners to provide financial and technical assistance to owners and operators of agricultural and nonindustrial forestlands.
• Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) Offers financial and technical assistance to eligible participants for the installation or implementation of structural and management practices on eligible agricultural land.
• Conservation Innovation Grants (CIG) in Vermont Stimulates the development and adoption of innovative conservation approaches and technologies.
• EQIP Organic Initiative Supports producers who need to install practices in order to transition and/or maintain organic certification.
• EQIP Seasonal High Tunnel Initiative is a program available to agricultural producers, designed to strengthen local and regional food markets and increase the use of sustainable conservation practices that will improve plant and soil quality, reduce nutrient and pesticide transport and reduce energy inputs.
• EQIP On-Farm Energy Initiative assists producers to conserve energy on their farms through an Agriculture Energy Management Plan (AgEMP), also known as an on-farm energy audit and provide assistance to implement various recommended measures identified in an energy audit.
• EQIP Oil Spill Prevention, Control, and Countermeasure Pilot provides assistance to producers who are required to comply with U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulations related to environmental damage from accidental on-farm oil spills.
• America's Great Outdoors (AGO) Initiative Supports activities that gets people back in touch with the outdoors and protecting them.
• Wildlife Habitat Incentives Program (WHIP) Provides both technical assistance and financial assistance to establish and improve fish and wildlife habitat.
• WHIP Forestry Initiative Expands stewardship opportunities within WHIP for private forest lands (lands with existing tree cover or that is suitable for growing trees) through forest land planning.

Stewardship Programs

• Conservation Security Program (CSP) Identifies and rewards those farmers and ranchers who meet the highest standards of conservation and environmental management on their operations.
• Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP) Encourage producers to address resource concerns in a comprehensive manner by undertaking additional activities and improving, maintaining and managing existing conservation activities.

Water Resources Programs

• Emergency Watershed Protection (EWP) Provides emergency measures, including the purchase of flood plain easements, for runoff retardation and soil erosion prevention to safeguard lives and property from floods, drought, and the products of erosion on any watershed whenever fire, flood or any other natural occurrence is causing or has caused a sudden impairment of the watershed.

Easement Programs

• Farm and Ranch Lands Protection Program (FRPP) Provides matching funds to help purchase development rights to keep productive farm and ranch land in agricultural uses.
• Grassland Reserve Program (GRP) Helps landowners restore, protect, and enhance grassland, pastureland, and certain other lands, and provides assistance for rehabilitating grasslands.
• Wetlands Reserve Program (WRP) Provides technical and financial support to help landowners with their wetland restoration efforts.

Community Assistance Programs and Activities

• Small, Limited, and Beginning Farmer Assistance Link to the national NRCS web page for definitions and elevated assistance descriptions for Small, Limited, and Beginning Farmers
• Limited Resource Farmer / Rancher Self-Determination Tool Link to the national NRCS determination tool web page to determine eligibility as a Limited Resource Farmer / Rancher 

Compliance

• Highly Erodible Land Conservation (Food Security Act) Soil loss protection requirements for compliance with the HELC provisions
• Wetlands Conservation Compliance (Food Security Act) Information on wetlands Compliance programs

Commonly Used Application Forms

Agricultural Management Assistance Program (AMA)  Application Form NRCS CPA-1200

Cooperative Conservation Partnership Initiative (CCPI)   Application Form NRCS CPA-1200

Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP)  Application Form NRCS CPA-1200

Wildlife Habitat Incentives Program (WHIP)   Application Form NRCS CPA-1200