The Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) in Utah is accepting applications to conserve eligible land through the Agricultural Conservation Easement Program (ACEP) and the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA).
NRCS Utah has announced the second application batching dates for ACEP-IRA:
- December 20, 2024 – second batching period
NRCS Utah is also accepting ACEP applications for FY 2025 through the 2018 Farm Bill until November 1, 2024.
ACEP provides financial assistance to help private and tribal landowners, land trusts, state and local governments, and other entities protect eligible lands through conservation easements. NRCS offers two types of ACEP easements:
“Supporting locally led conservation is at the heart of our work at NRCS,” said Emily Fife, State Conservationist for NRCS Utah, “By protecting these agricultural lands that provide food and fiber while also protecting important wetlands, grasslands and prime soils, we help safeguard them for future generations.”
More about ACEP and the Inflation Reduction Act
A total of $19.5 billion in additional funding from the Inflation Reduction Act, including $1.4 billion for ACEP, is currently available over several years for climate-smart agriculture and forestry mitigation activities through NRCS conservation programs.
On March 13, 2024, NRCS announced it will invest about $138 million of financial assistance from the Inflation Reduction Act in 138 new climate-smart conservation easements, through which farmers and ranchers are conserving wetlands, grasslands and prime farmlands.
For more information, please contact NRCS Utah Easements Coordinator Keila Ortiz by phone at (435) 557-1380 or email at keila.ortiz@usda.gov. Find more resources online at NRCS Utah’s ACEP webpage.
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