NRCS Participates in an Environmental Benefits Analysis

October 3, 2003

The 2002 Farm Bill substantially increased funding levels for numerous conservation programs. The increase was so noteworthy that it resulted in the single most significant commitment of resources toward conservation on private lands in the Nation’s history. The 2002 Bill saw an 80 percent increase over the 1996 Bill, totaling some $38 billion for conservation programs designed to reduce soil erosion, preserve and restore wetlands, enhance water and air quality, and promote wildlife habitat restoration. As a result of the substantial increase in funding, NRCS is implementing a new system aimed at tracking environmental benefits derived directly from those programs.

The Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002, or "Farm Bill" is the legislation which governs Federal farm programs and is reviewed by Congress and the House of Representatives for re-authorization every six years. It is widely known that conservation programs will protect millions of acres and improve the conservation of agricultural water use; however, the environmental benefits have not been previously quantified and reported on a national level.

"It’s important to work with landowners in order to determine the local environmental benefits of these programs," says Cameron Loerch, NRCS State Soil Scientist and National Resources Inventory (NRI) Program Manager, Colorado. "Tracking the environmental benefits of these programs will allow policy makers and program managers to implement and modify existing programs, and to design new programs to more effectively meet the goals of Congress and the Department of Agriculture."

The study, called the National Resources Inventory- Conservation Effects Assessment Project (NRI-CEAP), will be conducted by the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS). In October 2003, NASS will contact some 10,500 farmers in 2,150 counties across the U.S. to obtain information for the Study. "This kind of personal contact is vital to the accuracy of the study," Loerch goes on to say. "Only farmers and ranchers can supply the kind of information we need."

NRI is a statistical survey designed to help gauge natural resource status, conditions, and trends on the nation’s non-Federal land. The NRI is currently in transition from a 5-year cycle to an annual cycle of data collection. As a part of the transition, the NRI will be structured to capture environmental information on all conservation programs within USDA. NRI-Conservation Effects Assessment Project (NRI-CEAP) will provide the farming community, the general public, the Office of Management and Budget, legislators, and others involved with environmental policy issues an accounting of the environmental benefits obtained from USDA conservation program expenditures.

In the course of conducting the pre-test of the questionnaire, NRCS field offices will assist NASS by completing the questions regarding conservation practices and program participation contained within the NRI CEAP survey questionnaire. NASS staff will be visiting with NRCS staff to obtain specific information about: 1) whether or not the selected NRI point/field has a conservation plan; 2) what programs are associated with the conservation plan; 3) what year the conservation plan was originally approved; 4) what is the year of the most recent update to the plan; 5) what resource concerns are addressed by the plan; and 6) what structural practices are included in the plan. NASS visits to NRCS field offices will occur concurrently with farmers’ interviews.

The scope of the project covers most of the conservation practices implemented through EQIP, CRP, WRP, WHIP, and NRCS conservation technical assistance. Conservation practices (or best management practices, BMPs) that will be emphasized include the NRCS Core 4 practices (conservation buffers, nutrient management, pest management and tillage management) plus irrigation management practices, drainage management practices, manure management practices, establishment of wildlife habitat, and wetland protection and restoration.

The project is a multi-agency effort led by NRCS. Collaborators include the Farm Service Agency (FSA), the Agricultural Research Service (ARS), Cooperative State Research Education and Extension Service (CSREES), the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), and the Office of Risk Assessment and Cost Benefit Analysis (ORACBA).