The Indiana County Conservation District is now accepting applications for a brand-new agricultural program.
The Agricultural Conservation Assistance Program is a statewide cost-share program aimed to help farmers implement best management practices to conserve resources while keeping soils and waterways healthy and clean.
Indiana County was awarded $2.58 million to be granted out to farmers over the next three years. Funding is available for cover crops, rotational grazing and watering systems, streamside buffers, livestock heavy use areas, and much more.
Through an open partnership with the Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS), ACAP will also assist farmers enrolled in NRCS’s Environmental Quality Incentives Program to cross-fund projects and decrease the overall out-of-pocket costs to farmers.
“The partnership of ACAP and EQIP funding is a great opportunity to get good conservation projects on the ground here in Indiana County,” Matt Heffner, NRCS district conservationist for Indiana County, stated in a press release.
Doug Beri, Indiana County Conservation District executive director, said it is a historic investment in agriculture in Indiana County made possible through the PA State Legislature.
“The district is excited to work with our farming community to accomplish great projects that protect our waterways while conserving our precious soil,” he said. “We will make substantial progress in addressing our county’s resource concerns while helping our area farmers.”
Source:indianagazette.com
Categories: Indiana, Sustainable Agriculture