Landowners enrolled in the Conservation Reserve Program are encouraged by the Minnesota Farm Service Agency to manage their lands according to the contract to ensure program integrity.

FSA is broadening its quality assurance measures to ensure that participants maintain approved vegetative cover, control weeds and follow all contract requirements.

“Most Minnesota CRP land owners adhere to their contract and follow conservation compliance regulations,” says Joe Martin, state executive director. “However, increasing spot checks across the state will allow us to ensure that we are doing what we can to help farmers succeed and maintain their CRP contract acreage beyond primary nesting season.”

In Minnesota, Aug. 1 marked the end of the primary nesting and brood-rearing season for wildlife. CRP maintenance activities such as mowing, burning, disking and spraying may now be conducted statewide.

CRP is a land conservation program administered by FSA. In exchange for a yearly rental payment, farmers enrolled in the program agree to remove environmentally sensitive land from agricultural production, and plant species that will improve environmental health and quality. Contracts for land enrolled in CRP are 10 to 15 years in length.

The long-term goal of the program is to re-establish valuable land cover to help improve water quality, prevent soil erosion, and reduce loss of wildlife habitat.

CRP contract holders with questions about management responsibilities should contact their local USDA service center. Find a service center near you at farmers.gov.

To anonymously notify USDA of possible CRP compliance issues, go to usda.gov/oig/hotline.htm.

Source: Minnesota Farm Service Agency