USDA Announces Conservation Funding for Michigan Farmers 

and Forest Owners

EAST LANSING, Oct. 21, 2024 – The U.S. Department of Agriculture has funds available for Michigan farmers and forest owners to implement conservation practices that will improve and conserve the state’s water, soil, and other natural resources. Applications must be submitted by Nov. 22, 2024, for this current round of funding.

The conservation funds are available through the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) administered by the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service. The funding includes additional funds provided through the Inflation Reduction Act and the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative. EQIP funding is available for a wide range of conservation practices on all types of agricultural operations and private forestland. Funding is typically provided after the conservation practice is implemented but advance funding is available for qualifying producers.

Examples of conservation practices eligible for EQIP include forest management plans, cover crops, prescribed grazing plans, residue management (including conservation tillage and no till), pest and nutrient management plans, timber stand improvement, tree and windbreak planting, and many others. Landowners and producers should contact their local USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service office for more information.

Included in the current round of funding are the following initiatives:

• Funding provided through the Inflation Reduction Act is available for conservation practices that reduce the production of greenhouse gas emissions and/or sequester carbon. Some practices eligible for this funding include cover crops, residue management, forest stand improvement, and prescribed grazing.
• Great Lakes Restoration Initiative funding is available to farmers and non-industrial forestland owners in the Saginaw Bay and Western Lake Erie Basin watersheds. Some of the conservation practices available through this initiative include cover crops, residue management, tree and shrub establishment, and prescribed grazing.
• Michigan has funding targeted to cropland and soil health. These funds are available for adopting cover crops, residue management (conservation tillage and no-till), and conservation crop rotation. This funding is available to producers adopting one or more of these practices.
• EQIP funding is available for producers to replace diesel tractors with new low-emitting or electric equipment. In order to receive assistance, those using the practice are required to document the destruction and proper disposal of their existing equipment being replaced to prevent the old units from continued operation, reuse or movement to another location.
• The Western Lake Erie Basin Initiative provides conservation funding to address water quality in the southeast Michigan watershed. Practices eligible for this funding include cover crops, residue management, drainage water management, and prescribed grazing.
• There are two funding pools that provide funding for seasonal high tunnels, often called hoophouses. One pool is available to producers throughout Michigan and a separate pool of funding is available to producers in Wayne and Genesee counties.
• Urban producers in six Southeast Michigan counties, Genesee County, and Kent County are eligible for the Michigan Water Source Pilot for Urban Farmers. This initiative provides funding for water harvesting catchments, irrigation efficiency improvements, and other related practices.
• Targeted funding is available for identified Source Water Protection areas. Producers in designated Source Water Protection areas can apply for funding for implementation of conservation practices that protect water quality such as cover crops, residue management, and prescribed grazing.
• Funding through the National Water Quality Initiative is available to producers in the Lake Creek Watershed in Ionia County. Several conservation practices that protect water quality are eligible for funding.

In addition to these initiatives, general EQIP funding is available to all Michigan producers and landowners. EQIP funding must address a current conservation concern on the farming or forest operation. Applications are selected competitively, based on conservation benefits and impact. Applications in designated funding pools, that meet a set ranking threshold, may be eligible to be approved and obligated prior to a final ranking of all applications through a new funding process called Act Now. Act Now allows producers to implement designated conservation practices faster than though the traditional funding process.

Additional application selections may take place later in the year if funding is available. For more information about EQIP and other USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service programs go to www.mi.nrcs.usda.gov.