When added to soil, biochar can bring numerous benefits to your land. An organically produced amendment, biochar has been used for thousands of years to enhance soil and generate better crop yields. Its unique, porous texture provides abundant opportunities for enriching vulnerable soil and keeping it healthy over the long term. Today, as farmers look […]
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When you enroll in the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP), there is a long list of conservation practices, or CPs, that you can put into action to improve the condition of your land. One of the most common CPs is known as a conservation buffer. Conservation buffers, also called buffer strips, can not only enhance your
How Do Conservation Buffers Benefit Your Land? Read More »
Considering signing up for the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP)? You may notice there are other initiatives, like CREP or CCRP, that are also open for enrollment. These offshoots of the main CRP program typically focus on more specialized conservation goals. CREP, or the Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program, is an offshoot of CRP that takes a
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In 2022, the Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program (CREP) returned to the state of Illinois. As part of the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP), CREP identifies the highest-priority conservation goals in the state. From there, participants are provided with federal and non-federal funds to carry out Conservation Practices (CPs) to fulfill those goals. Since 2015, enrollment in
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With the goal of restoring wildlife habitat, the State Acres for Wildlife Enhancement (SAFE) Initiative is an integral facet of the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP). While CRP focuses on conservation efforts as a whole, SAFE aims specifically to protect vulnerable wildlife species from endangerment and extinction. To do so, it focuses on establishing robust, native
What is the State Acres for Wildlife Enhancement (SAFE) Initiative? Read More »
When entering a bid for General Conservation Reserve Program (CRP), eligible land is evaluated based on the Environmental Benefit Index (EBI). This comprehensive ranking system is used to measure the overall environmental benefits of your proposed CRP project. Each CRP submission is ranked with an EBI score by the FSA and compared to other applicants
What is an Environmental Benefit Index (EBI) Score? Read More »
On June 14, 2022, the Farm Service Agency (FSA) and the Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) announced the return of the Illinois Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program (CREP). The restoration of this incentive-based program provides an excellent opportunity for Illinois farmers to take advantage of the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) benefits on their land. While
What is the Illinois Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program (CREP)? Read More »
This week, June 20 through June 26, is National Pollinator Week! To celebrate, we’ve highlighted how you can not only help save pollinators from decline but also reap the benefits of attracting these vital creatures to your land. The importance of pollinators The value of pollinators to our ecosystem cannot be overstated. Almost 80% of
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The environmental benefits of the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) are vast, but one of the most impactful is the reduction of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Through CRP practices, 30 million metric tons of CO2 were removed from the atmosphere in 2020, the equivalent of removing 6 million cars from the road. While all CRP practices
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Chances are, if you’re a landowner participating in the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP), you don’t have much time to stay up to date on the most recent CRP news. Here, we’ve rounded up some of the latest updates, improvements, and initiatives of CRP to keep you in the loop. 2022 Enrollment As of May 13,
What’s New with CRP? Read More »
