CONSERVATION STEWARDSHIP PROGRAM CSP Continuous SignUp KickOff

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CONSERVATION STEWARDSHIP PROGRAM
(CSP)Continuous Sign-Up Kick-Off

• Steve Parkin
• Stewardship Program Team
• August 10, 2009

2
CSP Features and Outreach

• Objectives
• Overview
• Enlist Support
• Spread the Word

3
Secretary Vilsack Priority

• Youll see an aggressive effort and a continued
  effort at promoting our Conservation Stewardship
  Program.
• Why?
• Because its good for the environment its good
  to preserve the soil its good to protect the
  water.
• - Secretary Vilsack
• February 26, 2009

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Continuous Sign-Up Announced

• Target Dates
• Begin Sign-Up.... August 10
• First Cutoff....September 30
• Pre-Approve Apps.November 16
• Verify ApproveNovember 30

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Stewardship Program Purpose

• Encourage producers to address resource
  concerns in a comprehensive manner by
• Installing and adopting new conservation
  activities
• Improving, maintaining, and managing existing
  activities

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Created by 2008 Farm Bill

• Replaces the Conservation Security Program of
  Prior Years
• Authorizes 12,796,000 Acres/Year Enrollment
  Through 2017
• Expands Program Availability

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Security Program

• Effect on Conservation Security Program
• Prohibits new or renewed Security contracts after
  09/30/08
• Provides funds as necessary to administer
  existing contracts
• Honors payment commitments

8
Stewardship Program Features

• Broadens Program Availability
• Available nationwide
• Continuous sign-up with periodic cut-offs for
  ranking
• Adds nonindustrial private forest lands as
  eligible land

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Stewardship Program Features

• Shifts Decision-Making to States
• Allocates acres to States to manage
• Focuses on resource concerns identified as a
  priority for a State or areas of a state
• Competitively ranks peers who face similar
  resource challenges

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CSP Benefits - Participants

• Recognition for Excellent Land Stewardship
• Payment for Performance 2 types
• Annual payment for installing additional
  conservation activities as scheduled and
  maintaining existing activities
• Supplemental payment available for participant
  receiving annual payment who also adopts a
  resource-conserving crop rotation

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Benefits - Natural Resources and Public

• Delivers valuable new conservation
• Expands ag and forestry producers ability to
  produce greater environmental benefits
• Improves air, soil, and water quality
• Creates and enhances wildlife habitat
• Assists address global climate change
• Encourages energy conservation and production

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Program Design Emphasis

• Critical Management Controls
• Conservation Planning Process
• Payment for Conservation Performance

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Critical Management Controls

• Program Design Participation Extent
• Participation based on how producer represents
  their operation for other USDA programs
• Applicant must be operator in FSA farm records
  management system
• Operation includes all agricultural or forestry
  land operated substantially separate where the
  operator has control for the contract term
• Owners can be participants

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Critical Management Controls

• Program Design Participation Extent
• Payment limitation monitored by direct
  attribution
• Allows participation in multiple contracts

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Critical Management Controls

• Program Design Servicing Model
• Payment for previous FY activities allows field
  verification prior to obligation and payment
• Servicing model becomes
• Screen Resource Inventory Schedule Activities
  
• Rank Pre-approve Field Verify Obligate
  
• Install and Maintain Activities Pay

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Critical Management Controls

• On-Site Field Verification for All Pre-approved
  Applications
• Request applicants records
• Conduct on-site field verification
• Substantiate resource inventory information was
  accurate prior to contract approval

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Conservation Planning Process

• Conservation Measurement Tool Builds On Existing
  Technology
• Conservation planning tool
• Combines functions of past eligibility tools
• Considers physical effects of existing and new
  conservation activities on eligible land

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Conservation Planning Process

• Conservation Measurement Tool
• Functions to
• Inventory resources to estimate existing
  conservation performance level
• Schedule new conservation activities and estimate
  conservation performance improvement

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Conservation Planning Process

• Conservation Measurement Tool
• Functions to
• Determine stewardship threshold requirement
• Land treatment eligibility
• Determine ranking score
• Establish annual payment

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Lets Get Started

• Step 1 Producer Self-Screening Checklist
• Completed by potential applicant to independently
  identify if CSP is right program for them and
  their operation
• Available at NRCS field offices and on NRCS Web
  sites
• www.nrcs.usda.gov/programs/new_csp/csp.html

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CSP Summary

• Recognize Existing Stewardship Deliver New
  Conservation
• Revamped and Ready to Roll-Out
• Help Spread the Word

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• The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)
  prohibits discrimination in all its programs and
  activities on the basis of race, color, national
  origin, age, disability, and where applicable,
  sex, marital status, familial status, parental
  status, religion, sexual orientation, genetic
  information, political beliefs, reprisal, or
  because all or a part of an individual's income
  is derived from any public assistance program.
  (Not all prohibited bases apply to all programs.)
  Persons with disabilities who require alternative
  means for communication of program information
  (Braille, large print, audiotape, etc.) should
  contact USDA's TARGET Center at [phone]
  (voice and TDD). To file a complaint of
  discrimination write to USDA, Director, Office of
  Civil Rights, 1400 Independence Avenue, S.W.,
  Washington, D.C. 20250-9410 or call (800)
  795-3272 (voice) or [phone] (TDD). USDA is
  an equal opportunity provider and employer.