New EQIP Practices Available
Sign Up Now
Contact Debbie Bullock at the Warsaw USDA Service Center Debbie.Bullock@va.usda.gov
804-333-3525 EXT 101
Applications due on or before February 28, 2020
Sign up for traditional conservation practices or some of the new initiatives. The following are special new initiatives available in VA:
• American Black Duck Initiative – Focused conservation practices to restore wintering habitat in the Delaware Bay and Chesapeake Bay watersheds;
• Conservation Activity Plans – Development of site-specific plans to recommend conservation practices that will address an identified natural resource need.
• Eastern Hellbender – Targeted conservation practices to reduce sediment and nutrient inputs for improved habitat and water quality.
• Golden-winged Warbler – Young forest habitat restoration in Appalachian breeding territory;
• High Tunnel System – Steel-framed, polyethylene-covered structures to extend the growing season
• in an environmentally safe manner;
• Longleaf Pine – Stand establishment and management in the Southeastern Virginia historical range;
• National Water Quality Initiative (NWQI) – Targeted practices to clean up impaired streams and improve aquatic habitats in the War Branch and Mountain Run watersheds in Rockingham County and Gap Creek in Rockingham and Shenandoah County;
• Northern Bobwhite in Pine Savannahs – Management strategies to convert commercial loblolly and shortleaf pine plantings to highly valuable pine savannah habitats;
• Northern Bobwhite in Working Grasslands – Native grass restoration to address habitat loss while maintaining or improving cattle production on the land;
• On-Farm Energy – Agricultural Energy Management Plans (AgEMP) or farm energy audits to assess energy use and recommend ways to reduce it;
• Organic – Practices to help certified organic growers, those working to achieve organic certification, and specialty crop producers address resource concerns on their operations;
• StrikeForce – Priority ranking for cropland, high tunnel, and livestock practices to support program participation among underserved producers in rural communities.