View source for Environmental Quality Incentives Program

{{Short description|United States government program}}
[[File:EQIP AM1 (38856750971).jpg|thumb|An organic vegetable farm in [[Montana]] participating in EQIP]]
The '''Environmental Quality Incentives Program''' ('''EQIP''') is a United States government program designed to assist farmers in improving environmental quality, particularly water quality and soil conservation. [[United States Congress|Congress]] established the program in the 1996 farm bill to provide primarily cost-sharing assistance, but also technical and educational assistance, aimed at promoting production and environmental quality, and optimizing environmental benefits.<ref>United States. Federal Agriculture Improvement and Reform Act of 1996. {{uspl|104|127}} Approved April 4, 1996.</ref>

The program replaced the Agricultural Conservation Program, the Water Quality Incentives Program, the Great Plains Conservation Program, and the Colorado River Basin Salinity Control Program. EQIP was reauthorized in the 2002 farm bill at $0.4 billion in mandatory spending in FY2002 and rising to $1.3 billion in FY2007.<ref>United States. Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002. {{uspl|107|171}}. Approved May 13, 2002. Sec. 1241.</ref> The funding each year is to be divided, with 60% targeted to environmental concerns associated with livestock production and the remainder to crop production. Producers enter into contracts of 1 to 10 years. Participants can receive no more than $450,000 between FY2002 and FY2007. Two new sub-programs were created. One provides matching grants for innovative conservation efforts, such as using market systems to reduce pollution and promoting carbon sequestration in soil. The second is the [[Ground and Surface Water Conservation Program]] (GSWP). 

The program's financial aid to farmers in purchasing more efficient irrigation equipment was intended to conserve water. The assistance has had the [[unintended consequences|unintended consequence]] of increasing water use and lowering water tables in the Great Plains as additional land was brought into cultivation to use the water that was "saved".<ref name=NYT6613>{{cite news|title=Farm Subsidies Leading to More Water Use|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/07/us/irrigation-subsidies-leading-to-more-water-use.html|accessdate=June 7, 2013|newspaper=The New York Times|date=June 6, 2013|author=Ron Nixon}}</ref> 

Congress added features to the program in the 2018 Farm Bill.<ref name="NRCS-EQIP">{{cite web |title=Environmental Quality Incentives Program |url=https://www.nrcs.usda.gov/programs-initiatives/eqip-environmental-quality-incentives |date=2023-03-27 |publisher=U.S. Natural Resources Conservation Service |location=Washington, D.C.}}</ref><ref>United States. Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018. {{uspl|115|334}} Approved 2018-12-20.</ref>

EQIP is administered by the [[Natural Resources Conservation Service]] in the [[United States Department of Agriculture|Department of Agriculture]].<ref name="NRCS-EQIP"/>

== Practices Eligible for Funding ==
The EQIP covers up to 75 percent of costs incurred and 100 percent of income foregone for implementing eligible conservation practices for awardees.<ref>Environmental Quality Incentives Program. 16 U.S.C. § 3839aa-2(d)(2)(B)–(C) (2006) (noting how for “historically underserved producers,” the costs covered for eligible EQIP practices are up to 90 percent.)</ref> There are a variety of conservation practices that are eligible for funding under EQIP.

=== Grazing ===
Managed [[rotational grazing]], a method of livestock production in which animals are moved between pastures in order to let pastureland rest, is included as an eligible practice under EQIP.<ref>{{cite report |last=Harris |first=Jenileigh |title=Managed Rotational Grazing Policies. An Overview of Farm Bill Programs to Support Regenerative Agriculture |url=https://www.vermontlaw.edu/sites/default/files/2023-01/Managed-Rotational-Grazing.pdf |date=January 2023 |publisher=Center for Agriculture and Food Systems; Vermont Law and Graduate School |location=South Royalton, VT}}</ref> Specifically, the most common managed grazing practices that may receive funding include: design plans and identification of infrastructure and materials needs such as fencing, planting, and water systems;<ref>{{cite web |title=Livestock and Pasture Management |url=https://www.nrcs.usda.gov/getting-assistance/other-topics/organic/nrcs-assistance-for-organic-farmers/livestock-and-pasture-management |access-date=2023-03-27 |publisher=NRCS}}</ref> prescribed grazing systems that improve or maintain water quality, plant communities, watersheds, or wildlife cover;<ref>{{cite web |title=Prescribed Grazing. Conservation Practice Standard, Code 528 |url=https://www.nrcs.usda.gov/sites/default/files/2022-09/Prescribed_Grazing_528_CPS.pdf |date=March 2017 |publisher=NRCS |id=528-CPS-1}}</ref> and mechanical treatment to improve soil and plant conditions.<ref>{{cite web |title=Grazing Land Mechanical Treatment. Conservation Practice Standard, Code 548 |url=https://www.nrcs.usda.gov/resources/guides-and-instructions/grazing-land-mechanical-treatment-ac-548-conservation-practice |date=July 2022 |publisher=NRCS |id=548-CPS-1}}</ref> At the national level, 50 percent of EQIP funding is reserved for livestock operations.<ref>Environmental Quality Incentives Program. 16 U.S.C. § 3839aa-2(f)(1) (2006).</ref>

== References ==
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{{Reflist}}
*{{CRS|article = Report for Congress: Agriculture: A Glossary of Terms, Programs, and Laws, 2005 Edition|url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110810044532/http://ncseonline.org/nle/crsreports/05jun/97-905.pdf|author= Jasper Womach}}

[[Category:Agricultural soil science]]
[[Category:United States Department of Agriculture programs]]
[[Category:Water conservation]]
[[Category:Water pollution in the United States]]
[[Category:Federal assistance in the United States]]
[[Category:Programs and initiatives]]