Additional $s Available for Farmers & Ranchers

Phoenix More money is now available to farmers and ranchers who qualify for the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP), a voluntary conservation program administered by the National Resources Conservation Service. Awards in 2008 will be increased to 75 percent of their project costs, up from 50 percent in 2007. EQIP was developed to help farmers and ranchers achieve both agricultural production and environmental quality in a successful operation. In addition to the 75 percent cost-share available, beginning and limited resource farmers can get up to 90 percent of their projects funded. Agricultural producers can apply for EQIP at any time. Applications received by Oct. 1 will be reviewed and ranked by Nov. 30. Additional ranking periods will be announced at a later date. The program has been remarkably successful for producers who have already taken advantage of the assistance. Fred Zamora farms 1,600 acres in the arid land south of Willcox. He figures he has saved about 40 percent on both his water costs and ground water use since first becoming involved with the program more than eight years ago. "Financially, it has helped me quite a bit," said Zamora. "I'd highly recommend EQIP to others. In this part of the state, we're all worried about ground water, and they helped me be much more efficient." "Financially, it has helped me quite a bit," said Zamora. "I'd highly recommend EQIP to others. In this part of the state, we're all worried about ground water, and they helped me be much more efficient." EQIP includes an environmental quality incentives program plan developed with each producer, addressing that operation's specific needs. Incentive payments may be made to encourage a farmer to adopt land management practices, such as nutrient management, manure management, integrated pest management and wildlife habitat management. Applications for the program are available online. Contact the USDA Service Center in your area, or call Magdalena Moreno at 520-670-6602 ext. 245 (Tucson); or Art Meen at 520-364-2001 (Douglas) for help in getting started.