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 NRCS is announcing the opportunity for landowners to enroll in
the program and releasing information on the Illinois Geographic
Area Rate Caps for 2019 Wetland Reserve Easements (WRE).
“For more than 25 years, NRCS has worked with landowners in
Illinois to protect their wetlands,” said Ivan Dozier NRCS state
conservationist in Illinois. “Conservation easements are
important tools for people trying to improve soil health, water
and air quality and wildlife habitat on their land.”
ACEP provides assistance to landowners helping conserve, restore
and protect wetlands. NRCS accepts ACEP applications year-round,
but applications are ranked and funded by enrollment period. The
first 2019 application cut-off for Illinois ACEP Wetland Reserve
Easements applications is April 26th, 2019.
Through ACEP Wetland Reserve Easements, NRCS helps landowners
restore, enhance, and protect wetland ecosystems. NRCS and the
landowner work together to develop a plan for restoration work
and maintenance of the easement. Assistant State Conservationist
for Easements, Paula Hingson, explains, “Seventy-five percent of
the nation's wetlands are situated on private and tribal lands.
Wetlands provide many benefits, including critical habitat for a
wide array of wildlife species. They also store floodwaters,
clean and recharge groundwater, sequester carbon, trap sediment
and filter pollutants for clean water.”
Wetland conservation easements are permanent, or they can be
established for 30 years or the maximum extent allowed by state
law. Eligible lands include:
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Farmed or converted wetlands that can successfully be
restored;
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Croplands or grasslands subject to flooding; and
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Riparian areas that link protected wetland areas.
John Maginel owns land in Alexander County, IL and has been
restoring acres to wetlands using conservation easements since
1999.
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“NRCS easements are a wonderful tool. They help us
put acres back the way they need to be, the way they were,” says
Maginel. He has restored acres with oak and cypress trees that
are 20 years old and has 40-foot tall red oaks on his land. “These
acres are wonderful spots for waterfowl, shorebirds, eagles and even
swans and sandhill cranes,” Maginel adds. He is currently waiting to
close on a new WRE agreement.
2019 Geographic Area Rate Caps (GARCs) for WRE
Dozier announces that the Geographic Area Rate Caps (GARCs) have
been updated for use in the WRE program. These GARC values inform
landowners of the dollars they will receive per acre for a Wetland
Reserve Easement. Some of the GARC rates declined slightly from
fiscal year 2018, due to decreases in land values. The GARC Values
distinguish cropland from non-cropland and range from $3,250 to
$5,500 per acre. See attached map to determine rates by Illinois
county or visit Illinois NRCS website at:
https://www.nrcs.usda.gov/ wps/cmis_proxy/https/ecm.nrcs.
usda.gov%3a443/fncmis/resources/ WEBP/
ContentStream/idd_8079B569-0000-CB12-AB1A2C7D1D998 205/0/FY19_
GARC_map.pdf.
More Information
ACEP remains a major part of the recently passed 2018 Farm Bill.
Program implementation will continue during fiscal year 2019 with
some minor changes from 2018. Landowners and others interested in
wetland reserve easements should contact their local USDA service
center to learn more.
[Jamie Thompson l Soil
Conservationist
USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service]
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