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Macon County 2004 EQIP Program


Executive Summary

The Natural Resources Conservation Service of USDA in Macon County, Alabama, will hold a sign-up for the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) for the 2004 fiscal year. This signup will be held on a continuous basis. Any eligible landuser who has a resource concern or problem on pastureland, cropland, hayland, idle land, or, in some instances, cut-over timberland, may apply for assistance through this program. Applications may be made at the Natural Resources Conservation Service, Macon Soil & Water Conservation District, and Farm Service Agency offices co-located in the Macon County USDA Service Center in Tuskegee, Alabama. The address for the service center is 106 Torrence Road, Tuskegee, Alabama, 36083. Applications will be accepted Monday through Friday from 7:30 a.m. until 4:00 p.m. Special arrangements for taking applications on the farm can be made by making an appointment with the District Conservationist. The Tuskegee Field Office/USDA Service Center phone number is 334-727-3763 extension 3. Fax number is 334-727-7444.

The USDA work group has prioritized the resource concerns in Macon County as follows:

  1. Animals/Grazing Systems
  2. Soil Quality/Erosion on Cropland
  3. Water Quantity/Conservation
  4. Poultry Litter Distribution
  5. Species at Risk

All applications will be ranked using the Statewide EQIP Ranking Tool, and approvals will be given to those applications that will provide the greatest environmental benefits, i.e. those receiving the most environmental points. Practices that provide the greatest economical and environmental benefits will be emphasized. Contracts will be developed for approved applications in order of descending environmental points, until all funds are obligated. Applications will be "batched" and ranked. The first batching period for ranking and prioritizing applications will be April 16, 2004, and additional applications filed later than this date will be considered in the next pool of funding at 30 day intervals, if additional funds become available.

Eligible practices, restrictions and cost-share rates are the same as those adopted Statewide. An additional restriction in Macon County is that Practice Code 329, Residue Management - Reduced Tillage, will be limited to 75 acres per participant. Planned conservation practices used to address the priority resource concerns will come from the Statewide list. Limited resource farmers may be eligible for a 90 percent cost-share rate.

Note: This summary was prepared prior to release of finalized 2004 EQIP Manual. Program details such as program eligibility requirements and percent of cost-share may change.

Applications may also be taken on-line at: http://www.sc.egov.usda.gov. Additional information is available at: http://www.nrcs.usda.gov/programs/eqip/.  

 These documents require Adobe Acrobat.
Adobe Acrobat DocumentConservation Program Application - CCC1200 (330 KB)
Adobe Acrobat DocumentState Ranking Tool (76 KB)
Adobe Acrobat DocumentState Practices, Cost-Share Rates, and Restrictions (100 KB)

 

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