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Summary of 2008 Farm Bill Opportunities for Family Forest Owners
USDA is currently developing rules to guide implementation of each of these programs. Enrollment deadlines for these programs have not been established yet. To stay up to date on Farm Bill programs visit http://www.usda.gov/wps/portal/!ut/p/_s.7_0_A/7_0_2KD?navid=FARMBILL2008 To view the American Forest Foundation’s initial comments on 2008 Farm Bill implementation, visit http://www.forestfoundation.org/public.html. AFF will continue to provide comments as individual program rules are released. Natural Resources Conservation Service Programs For more information visit http://www.nrcs.usda.gov/programs/farmbill/2008/index.html Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP): offers financial and technical help to assist eligible participants with management practices on their lands. The 2008 Farm Bill modified the Program to include family forest land as eligible and forest management as an eligible management practice. Funding: $7.1 billion over 5 years. Wildlife Habitat Incentives Program (WHIP): offers technical and cost-share assistance for landowners to establish and improve fish and wildlife habitat. The 2008 Farm Bill modified the Program to include family forest land as eligible. Funding: $85 million per year over 5 years. Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP): offers stewardship contracts to landowners who are already meeting a certain stewardship threshold and who agree to maintain and improve their land. The 2008 Farm Bill changed the program’s name (was previously called the Conservation Security Program) and updated the program, including family forest land in the program. Acreage: 12 million acres per year, only 10% of which can be family forest land. Healthy Forest Reserve Program (HFRP): offers either cost-share agreements or conservation easements to family forest owners to promote the recovery of threatened and endangered species, improve biodiversity, and enhance carbon sequestration. Landowners who enroll receive “safe harbor” assurances to protect them from the liability of having endangered species on their property. The 2008 Farm Bill modified the program to allow permanent easements. Funding: $9.75 million for fiscal years 2009 through 2012. Farm Service Agency Programs For more information visit http://www.fsa.usda.gov/FSA/fbapp?area=home&subject=landing&topic=landing Conservation Reserve Program (CRP): offers annual rental payments and cost-share assistance to establish long-term, resource conserving covers, including trees, on eligible lands. The 2008 Farm Bill modified the Program to allow 50% cost-share payments for thinning and other forest maintenance activities. Acreage cap: 32 million acres. Emergency Forest Restoration Program (EFRP): new authority to help family forest owners with forest restoration following disasters such as hurricanes and wildfires. Funding: subject to appropriations Biomass Crop Assistance Program: offers family forest owners establishment and production payments for growing and selling biomass for energy. Also offers harvest, transportation, and storage payments, matching $1 for every $1 paid by an energy facility for biomass, up to $45 per ton. This is a new program established in the 2008 Farm Bill. Funding: mandatory funding in amounts necessary to implement the program Direct questions regarding this information to Rita Neznek, (202) 463-2594, rneznek@forestfoundation.org.
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