The Conservation Reserve Program

With summer just around the corner, a lot of working people are dreaming about taking a vacation. But did you know that working lands need time off, too? The USDA’s Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) gives farmers and landowners the opportunity to give their land a rest by converting highly erodible cropland or other environmentally sensitive acreage to vegetative cover. Through CRP, farmers get a yearly rental payment for the term of the multi-year contract. In return, their property is replenished with tame or native grasses, wildlife plantings, trees, filterstrips, or buffers between field and streams. The end result stops soil erosion, improves water quality, brings quail and/or other wildlife back to the property, and allows the land to come back to its natural state of health.

One of the greatest benefits of taking land out of pasture or crop production is that participating farmers will be paid for at least ten years for putting their land in CRP. Cost sharing is provided to establish the vegetative cover practices, and even though the land will not be available for grazing or agriculture purposes, owners will still have full access for all hunting and recreational activities. For more information about the Conservation Reserve Program, contact your nearest USDA Service Center listed in the blue pages of your phone directory. Or visit the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) website at http://www.tn.nrcs.usda.gov/ and look for CRP under Programs or the Farm Services Administration (FSA) website at http://www.fsa.usda.gov and look for CRP under Conservation Programs.

The Conservation Reserve Program is administered by FSA with the NRCS providing technical and eligibility determinations, conservation planning and practice implementation.