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 The Illinois Department of Agriculture (IDOA) announced today
the approval of the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Services
(NRCS) Illinois Nutrient Loss Reduction Strategy (NLRS) and
Conservation Planning Assistance grant agreement.
The IDOA/NRCS partnership leverages $3.5 million Illinois state
NLRS funds with $9.8 million of federal funds from the USDA/NRCS
to deliver over $13.3 million in new funding to support
conservation planning and NLRS staffing and programming.
The project will allow the addition of up to 40 conservation
planners across the state of Illinois. The conservation planners
will be recruited and supervised by IDOA and hired by a
subcontract hiring agent the Sangamon County Soil and Water
Conservation District. The conservation planners will increase
Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) technical assistance for
planning, implementation, and maintenance. They will increase
capacity to develop new conservation plans and to conduct
conservation implementation follow-up to improve conservation
successes.
“This historic funding increases investments in agricultural
conservation and nutrient management rest on human capacity,”
said Governor J.B. Pritzker. “Illinois like other states across
the nation have noted, we need strong individual, organizational
and societal capacity to design and implement conservation
measures, adapt them and sustain their impact over time.”
"Governor Pritzker and the Illinois legislature have taken an
important, momentous step towards reducing nutrient losses
across Illinois’ 27 million acres,” said IDOA Director Jerry
Costello. “From increased human capacity, to supporting healthy
farmland and conservation initiatives, to cost-share programs
like the fall covers for spring savings cover crop program, the
Illinois Department of Agriculture stands ready to serve the
states over 72,000 producers with significant leveraged
resources to continue to lead the charge.”
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The conservation planners will also support the
Illinois Nutrient Loss Reduction Strategy (NLRS) efforts as the
latest bi-annual report indicates an increase in overall
nutrients being lost to Illinois streams and rivers. In
addition, the new planners will be able to assist with the IDOA
conservation programs to increase overall producer opportunities
to participate in State and Federal conservation programs.
“NRCS is pleased to be a part of this partnership
effort to get more technical boots on the ground in Illinois,” said
Ivan Dozier USDA-NRCS State Conservationist. “We’ve recently
experienced staff shortages on both the State and federal side while
our natural resource concerns continue to elevate. It’s great to be
able to work together on strategic solutions that better prepare
Illinois farmers to address these increasing resource concerns and
take advantage of conservation practice implementation funding that
will be coming our way.”
“The Association of Illinois Soil and water
Conservation Districts commends Governor Pritzker and the Illinois
Department of agriculture for taking the initiative to use existing
state funding resources to leverage additional federal funding
resources,” said Association of Illinois Soil and Water Conservation
Districts Executive Director Grant Hammer. “This effort will support
climate-smart agricultural practices, as well as helping to improve
water quality across the state of Illinois.”
Through this partnership with the USDA NRCS conservation programs,
Illinois producers and landowners will have increased opportunities
to improve their nutrient management planning, advance soil health
and contribute to the reduction in nutrient losses to Illinois
streams, rivers and lakes.
[Illinois Office of Communication and
Information]
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