MS Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP)

From USDA: Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS)

We deliver conservation solutions so agricultural producers can protect natural resources and feed a growing world.

Type of Support

Overview

The Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP) is designed to assist agricultural producers in maintaining and enhancing their existing conservation systems. By adopting additional conservation activities to confront priority resource concerns, participants can earn payments based on their conservation performance—meaning the higher the performance, the higher the payment. The program provides technical and financial assistance to address natural resource issues on operations, aimed at a range of objectives from improved grazing conditions and crop resiliency to the development of wildlife habitats. CSP emphasizes the importance of working lands, offering support to improve business operations while enhancing natural resources. Benefits cited include enhanced resilience to weather and market volatility, decreased need for agricultural inputs, improved wildlife habitat conditions, and increased crop yields, among others.

Eligibility

Organization's Location
USA
Program Location
MS
Organization Type
Individuals
Legal entities
Joint operations
Indian Tribes
Other
  • Eligible lands include private agricultural lands, agricultural Indian lands, nonindustrial private forest land, farmstead, associated agricultural lands, and public land under the control of the applicant
  • No minimum acreage requirement
  • Entire operation is enrolled in the program, not just specific fields or tracts
  • Must be in compliance with USDA highly erodible land and wetland conservation provisions
  • Land must be actively used for producing an agricultural or forest product
  • Applicant must have a social security number or employer identification number
  • Must maintain control of the land for the entire 5-year CSP contract span
  • Adjusted gross income of less than $900,000, except for Indian Tribes
  • Must meet stewardship threshold for at least two priority natural resources concerns and agree to meet or exceed one more by the end of the contract
  • Eligibility for CSP Grassland Conservation Initiative limited to producers with recorded grass on their FSA acreage report from 2009 through 2017

Ineligibility

Lands being cleared for future agricultural production
Lands not yet established as agricultural operations with successful crop, food, or fiber production
Those who violate highly erodible land conservation or wetland conservation requirements
Those who fail to have NRCS complete proper determinations before clearing land.
not specified

Submission

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