CREP Conservation Practice Fact Sheet

Pennsylvania's CREP - Ohio River Watershed Region Website

PENNSYLVANIA'S CREP LEADS THE NATION

More than 150,000 acres enrolled in state to improve watershed quality and wildlife habitat by March 3, 2006

Time is Running Out!

The Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program or CREP for short is a federal program administered by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Farm Service Agency (FSA) and implemented by the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) in partnership with a host of local and regional partners including Ducks Unlimited, Inc. (DU), the Pennsylvania Game Commission (PGC), and Western Pennsylvania Conservancy (WPC), to name just a few.  Currently, PA has the nations largest CREP program, covering 265,000 acres in 59 of 67 counties, most of which is in the Susquehanna Watershed.  CREP in western PA covers 16 counties and has plans to enlist 65,000 acres of environmentally sensitive agricultural land. CREP represents one of the largest agricultural conservation efforts in PA’s history.

Time, however is running out! Sign ups for enrollment in this historic program will end December 31, 2007.

There is a specific CREP conservation practice designed to re-establish permanent and seasonal wetlands on agricultural land from where they may have been drained in the past.  An increase in wetland acres will provide critical habitat for native PA waterfowl species, such as the wood duck, mallard and American black duck. Not only do wetlands support a wide variety of waterfowl and other wildlife, they perform valuable hydrological functions, contribute to groundwater recharge, improve water quality and offer recreational and economic benefits. 

Pennsylvania farmers realize the importance of the program, as they should considering agriculture remains one of the most important land uses in PA.  Without the landowner’s voluntary commitment, CREP would not get past the drawing board.  CREP’s straightforward land improvements and monetary payments make applying an easy decision.  Who wouldn’t want to be able to enjoy waterfowl on their once marginal agricultural land, turned wetland.  "If it wants to be a wetland, let it be a wetland and get paid for it!"Enroll Today!

Call  1-800-941-CREP or for more information visit:  

www.creppa.org

Signs Of Possible Wetlands On Your Property

The ground is often soggy.

• There are areas I avoid with heavy equipment because I know I will get stuck.
  
  
• There are depressions where water collects during wet periods.
  
  
• The depressions have different vegetation than the kind growing on the higher ground.
  
  
• There are springs on my property.
   
  
• Soil is gray, or has red or orange splotches against a gray background.
  
  
• There are signs of crop stress related to excess moisture in areas where I farm.
   
  
• NRCS County Soil Survey shows soil on my property as being hydric, poorly drained, or very poorly drained.

Big Money for Conservation Starts with CREP!!

• Up to 100% Cost-share for installing conservation on your farm.
  
  
• Annual per acre rental payments from 75% to 225% above the base soil rental rate.
  
  
• Annual per acre practice maintenance payments from $5 to $10 per acre
  
  
• One-time-only incentive payments:
  
  
• Some practices are eligible for a 25% to 40% payment on the cost of construction
  
  
• Some practices are eligible for a $10 per acre per contract year payment

Farm the Best - CREP the Rest!

“Federal funds available to create waterfowl habitat on Pennsylvania farmlands.”

Most farmers have an area on their property, which lies wet during a majority of the year.  You know the spot; the area where the tractor gets stuck even when the other fields are dry.  Most farmers have names for these areas like; muck hole, low area, bottomlands, and swamp.  The area of the field where the corn is a stunted on wet years and grows taller than the rest on extremely dry years.  These areas, which are typically poor crop producers could provide excellent waterfowl habitat if given the chance.  But how can I afford to take any of my areas out of production?  I am glad you asked.  CREP can provide a solution.

The Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program or CREP for short is a federal program administered by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Farm Service Agency (FSA) and implemented by the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) in partnership with a host of local and regional partners including Ducks Unlimited, Inc. (DU), the Pennsylvania Game Commission (PGC), and Western Pennsylvania Conservancy (WPC), to name just a few.  CREP is an enhancement of the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) developed in the 1985 Farm Bill. 

CRP has been supported by DU for many years.  Jeff Nelson, director of DU’s Great Plains regional office stated at a congressional meeting in July 2005, “No program in history has done more for providing landowners with stable and diversified income while providing an incredible amount of landscape level conservation of wildlife habitat, soil and water”.  CREP offers one of the biggest conservation payoffs in Pennsylvania’s agriculture conservation history by offering to pay for 100% of the cost of installing many conservation practices and piling increased annual rental payments, annual maintenance payments, and one-time only incentive payments on top of it all.  What’s more, CREP is one of the most flexible programs of its kind.  You don’t have to enroll an entire field, just the part where resource conservation issues are most important, you can enroll for either 10 or 15 years, and enrolling in CREP doesn’t force you into granting public access to your land…under CREP your land stays your land in every way.  Better yet, CREP is geared toward paying the most money for a producer’s worst land and is 100% voluntary! 

Take, for example, a 2-acre low end of the field that you hassle with each and every year.  You could enroll just the low end of your field into CREP (and keep the productive parts of the field in production) and get reimbursed for 100% of the cost of building that wetland.  This could be as much as $3,000 in construction that you don’t have to pay a dime of.  Additionally, you will get a $5/per acre annual payment for keeping the wetland in good shape by controlling invasive weeds and an annual rental payment that could be as high as $100 per acre per year depending on your soil type.  On top of all this you are also eligible to receive a one-time-only payment of 25% of the cost for restoring a wetland on your property through CREP.  If your wetland cost $3,000 to install you would get a check for $750 to invest where ever you see fit on your farm.  So, what would all this add up to?  Lets assume you enrolled that 2-acre piece for 15 years, you could earn $3,825 over the next 15 years, or $255 per acre, all for letting that piece of low-quality agricultural land do what it does best: grow wetland plants and provide vital waterfowl habitat and clean water for generations to come.

People are starting to realize the importance of the program, as they should considering agriculture remains one of the most important land uses in PA.  Washington County, for example, still has one third of its total area in farmland.  Covering such a dominant part of the landscape, agriculture is a major source of water pollution.  Livestock deposit nutrients such as nitrogen and phosphorous, while fertilizers and pesticides flow directly over the eroding land and into the waterways.  The U.S. has already lost half of its original wetlands, nature’s most productive ecosystem, to make room for development and agriculture.  Now, with CREP’s assistance, the same landowners instructed years ago to drain those ‘swamps’ are discovering their benefits.  Old land management practices degrade water quality and choke the life from our regions streams and the estuaries and bays that lie downstream.  CREP is a new take on an old tradition.      

Currently, PA has the nations largest CREP program, covering 265,000 acres in 59 of 67 counties, most of which is in the Susquehanna Watershed.  CREP in western PA covers 16 counties and has plans to enlist 65,000 acres of environmentally sensitive agricultural land.  By fencing stream banks and restricting livestock access to natural water sources, these sensitive riparian areas are able to thrive.  Riparian buffers act to prevent stream bank erosion, sedimentation and filter nitrates and phosphates from the cow waste.  Native trees and shrubs will provide streams with plant cover and added shade. This will result in reduced water temperature, and better stream habitat.  Some areas of marginal cropland will be devoted to grassland restoration.  Native grasses will be encouraged for their longevity, wildlife habitat and food source.  Summer foraging, spring ground nesting and winter cover habitat will encourage song and ground nesting birds such as the eastern meadowlark to these areas of recovery.

There is a specific CREP conservation practice designed to re-establish permanent and seasonal wetlands on agricultural land from where they may have been drained in the past.  An increase in wetland habitat should lead to a rise in the numbers of native PA waterfowl species, such as the mallard and black duck. Not only do wetlands support a wide variety of birds and other wildlife, they perform valuable hydrological functions, contribute to groundwater recharge, improve water quality and offer recreational and economic benefits.  Often called the "kidneys" of the environment, wetlands act as buffer zones between land and waterways. They also act as sinks – wetlands filter out chemicals in water that runs off from farm fields, roads, parking lots and other surfaces, and hold on to them for years to come.  Phosphorus and nitrates are prime ingredients in both fertilizers and in water pollution.  High levels of these nutrients can cause algae to flourish, often to the detriment of fish and other animals that depend on waterways for survival. Algae essentially rob oxygen from water in a pond, lake and even the ocean.  Over time landowners notice the benefits of wetland restoration.  Improved flood control and groundwater recharge lead to reduced wear and tear on equipment through avoidance of wet and swampy areas.  Livestock farms, dairy in particular, become more productive and profitable with the availability of clean water.

CREP represents one of the largest agricultural conservation efforts in western PA’s history and will improve the biodiversity rich Ohio River Basin, where known conservation targets surpass any other PA drainage. Wetlands are coming back to life, streams are clearing up to allow for diverse wildlife populations and landowners are gladly managing more productive farms and healthier livestock. 

Without the landowner’s voluntary commitment, CREP would not get past the drawing board.  CREP’s straightforward land improvements and monetary payments make applying an easy decision.  Who wouldn’t want to be able to hunt on their once marginal agricultural land, turned wetland.  “If it wants to be a wetland, let it be a wetland and get paid for it!”

There a many details involved in implementing CREP so the first thing you need to do is call or stop by your local Farm Service Agency office and tell them you are interested, then sit back and let the FSA, NRCS, or other partners inform you what your options are.  Asking questions doesn’t mean you are enrolling, just getting the details you need to take advantage of this limited-time program that will pay you big money for conserving and protecting Pennsylvania’s soil, water, and wildlife.  Just remember; Farm the Best, CREP the Rest!

Get Informed and Get Involved

If you are within one of these 16 western PA counties and have owned and operated agricultural land for at least one year, you may be eligible for CREP; Erie, Crawford, Warren, Mercer, Venango, Forest, Clarion, Lawrence, Butler, Armstrong, Beaver, Alleghany, Westmoreland, Washington, Greene, Fayette.

Call or visit your local Farm Service Agency office for participant and land eligibility info.  Sign up ends when acreage enrollment goals are reached, or December 31, 2007, whichever comes first.

Signs Of Possible Wetlands On Your Property

• The ground is often soggy.
  
  
• There are areas I avoid with heavy equipment because I know I will get stuck.
  
  
• There are depressions where water collects during wet periods.
  
  
• The depressions have different vegetation than the kind growing on the higher ground.
  
  
• There are springs on my property.
  
  
• Soil is gray, or has red or orange splotches against a gray background.
  
  
• There are signs of crop stress related to excess moisture in areas where I farm.
  
  
• NRCS County Soil Survey shows soil on my property as being hydric, poorly drained, or very poorly drained.

Big Money for Conservation Starts with CREP!

• Up to 100% Cost-share for installing conservation on your farm.
• Annual per acre rental payments from 75% to 225% above the base soil rental rate.
• Annual per acre practice maintenance payments from $5 to $10 per acre
• One-time-only incentive payments:
• Some practices are eligible for a 25% to 40% payment on the cost of construction
• Some practices are eligible for a $10 per acre per contract year payment