Landowner deadline nearing for Environmental Quality Incentives Program applications

POMEROY – Local farmers and ranchers who would like financial and technical assistance to install conservation practices on their land have until Nov. 18 to submit applications for the U.S. Department of Agriculture – Natural Resources Conservation Service’s Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) in Ohio.

EQIP is a voluntary conservation program that offers financial and technical assistance to applicants selected for funding who would like to apply conservation practices that benefit both the environment and their agricultural operation.

In Meigs County, producers select to submit an application under one of several different funding categories, including crop, forestry, livestock, pasture, high tunnel system, monarch butterfly project, oak management, organic farming (certified and transitioning), pollinator habitat and wildlife as listed on the Ohio NRCS website under “EQIP Application Deadlines.”

The ranking questions for each category, payment rates for conservation practices, and eligibility criteria are also available on-line.

Agricultural producers and non-industrial private forest land owners now have two options for submitting a signed EQIP application, either in person at their local NRCS office or electronically through the NRCS Conservation Client Gateway at www.nrcs.usda.gov/wps/portal/nrcs/main/national/cgate/

Applications signed and submitted to NRCS by the November 18 deadline will be evaluated for funding this fiscal year.

Applications for EQIP submitted by entities, such as agricultural producers applying as a corporation, must have a DUNS (Data Universal Numbering System) number and an active SAM (System for Award Management) registration status when applying, a process that may take several weeks. Applications cannot be processed without this information. Information on obtaining a DUNS number and registering with SAM is posted at www.nrcs.usda.gov/programs/farmbill.

Agricultural producers and forest owners may apply for EQIP at any time. Applications submitted after the Nov. 18 deadline will be considered with all other applications submitted by the next ranking deadline announced by NRCS.

Individuals in Meigs County interested in applying for EQIP should make an appointment with Carrie Crislip, District Conservationist with NRCS to begin the application and conservation planning process as soon as possible. Additional information is available on the Ohio NRCS websites at www.oh.nrcs.usda.gov.

The Meigs County USDA Service Center is located at 113 East Memorial Drive Suite D., Pomeroy and the phone number is 740-992-6646.