California farmers are eligible for federal funds under a U.S. Department of Agriculture program that could help improve air quality in non-attainment areas of the state.

The USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) is making the air quality funds available to help agricultural producers to improve and maintain air quality within designated areas of California.

Funding for the National Air Quality Initiative (NAQI) is available through the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP). Producers interested in participating in this initiative are encouraged to submit applications.

EQIP applications are accepted year-round, but interested producers need to be ready by July 29, 2016 to be considered for this year’s funding.

Interested applicants need to:

The time needed to complete a conservation plan and process eligibility can vary, from a few weeks to more than a month, depending on the complexity of the farming operation.

“We’ve had great success with this initiative in some of the high priority areas of the state,” said Assistant State Conservationist Alan Forkey.

“We entered into 606 contracts with farmers who are voluntarily undertaking this work. This new funding offers an opportunity for producers who have not yet participated.”

NAQI can help agricultural producers implement conservation practices that reduce air pollution from agricultural sources. Financial assistance is targeted to counties that have been identified as having significant air quality resource concerns by being designated as non-attainment for ozone or particulate matter.

These areas experience air pollution levels that persistently exceed the National Ambient Air Quality Standards established by the Clean Air Act.

For fiscal year 2016, interested owners or operators of land managed for agricultural production in the following counties may be eligible for the National Air Quality Initiative:

Alameda, Butte, Calaveras, Contra Costa, El Dorado, Fresno, Imperial, Inyo, Kern, Kings, Los Angeles, Madera, Marin, Mariposa, Merced, Mono, Napa, Nevada, Placer, Riverside, Sacramento, San Bernardino, San Diego, San Joaquin, San Luis Obispo, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Solano, Sonoma, Stanislaus, Sutter, Tulare, Ventura, Yolo, and Yuba.

Typical conservation treatments for this initiative include replacing old, high-polluting off-road mobile farm equipment with newer, cleaner models and transitioning to cleaner irrigation pump engines and electric motors.

More information is available in the program description on the NRCS website or by contacting the local USDA Service Center.

NRCS has provided leadership in a partnership effort to help America's private landowners and managers conserve their soil, water and other natural resources since 1935.