For Immediate Release: Wednesday, July 18, 2018
Assistance
available through Iowa Water Quality Initiative
DES MOINES – Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig today reminded
Iowa farmers that funds are available to help install practices focused on
protecting water quality. Practices eligible for this funding are cover
crops, no-till or strip till, or using a nitrification inhibitor when applying
fertilizer.
The cost share rate for first-time users of cover crops
is $25 per acre, no-till or strip till are eligible for $10 per acre and
farmers using a nitrapyrin nitrification inhibitor when applying fall
fertilizer can receive $3 per acre. Farmers are eligible for cost share on up
to 160 acres.
First-time users that apply by July 27 will be the first
applications funded. First-time users that apply after July 27 will still
receive priority consideration, but funds will also be made available to
farmers that have used cover crops in the past for cost share assistance at $15
per acre.
“We already have $1.3 million in applications from more
than 600 new farmers interested in trying a practice for the first time to
better protect water quality. We encourage farmers that are interested to
contact their local Soil and Water Conservation District office as soon as
possible to learn more about the assistance that is available,” Naig said.
The 100 Soil and Water Conservation District offices
located in each county across the state have information about this program and
other opportunities for cost share funding.
Background on Iowa Water Quality Initiative
The Iowa Water
Quality Initiative was established in 2013 to help implement the Nutrient
Reduction Strategy, which is a science and technology based approach to
achieving a 45 percent reduction in nitrogen and phosphorus losses to our
waters. The strategy brings together both point sources, such as
municipal wastewater treatment plants and industrial facilities, and nonpoint
sources, including farm fields and urban stormwater runoff, to address these
issues.
The Initiative
seeks to harness the collective ability of both private and public resources
and organizations to deliver a clear and consistent message to stakeholders to
reduce nutrient loss and improve water quality.
The initiative is
seeing some exciting results. Last fall, 2,600 farmers invested an estimated
$8.7 million in funding to match $4.8 million in state cost share funds to
adopt cover crops, no-till or strip till, or use a nitrification inhibitor when
applying fall fertilizer. Participants include 1,000 farmers using a practice
for the first time and more than 1,600 past users who are trying cover crops again
and are receiving a reduced rate of cost share.
A total of 65
demonstration projects are currently located across the state to help implement
and demonstrate water quality practices. This includes 14 targeted watershed
projects, 7 projects focused on expanding the use and innovative delivery of
water quality practices and 44 urban water quality demonstration projects. More than 250 organizations are
participating in these projects. These partners will provide $37.7 million
to go with the $23.4 million in state funding going to these projects.
More than $420
million in funding has been documented for efforts in support of the Iowa
Nutrient Reduction Strategy last year. This represents a $32 million increase
of funding in support of Iowa water quality programs and conservation efforts
over the previous year.
More information
about the initiative can be found at www.CleanWaterIowa.org.
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For more information, contact Dustin Vande Hoef, (515) 281-3375 or (515) 326-1616 (cell) or Dustin.VandeHoef@IowaAgriculture.gov
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