Little Rock, March 30, 2022 – The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) encourages producers and
landowners to enroll in the Grassland Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) starting next week
through May 13, 2022. Grassland CRP provides a unique opportunity for farmers, ranchers, and
agricultural landowners to keep land in agricultural production and supplement their income while
improving their soils and permanent grass cover. The program had its highest enrollment in history in
2021 and is part of the Biden-Harris Administration’s broader effort to equip producers with the tools
they need to help address climate change and invest in the long-term health of our natural resources.
Grassland CRP is a federally funded voluntary working lands program. Through the program, USDA’s
Farm Service Agency (FSA) provides annual rental payments to landowners to maintain and conserve
grasslands while allowing producers to graze, hay, and produce seed on that land. Maintaining the
existing permanent cover provides several benefits, including reducing erosion, providing wildlife
habitat and migration corridors, and capturing and maintaining carbon in the soil and cover.
“Grassland CRP is an important working lands conservation tool that offers a win-win to both our
country’s producers and the environment by supporting and enabling grazing activities, while at the
same time promoting plant and animal biodiversity and stemming rangeland conversion,” said Doris
Washington, FSA State Executive Director in Arkansas. “We had a successful signup last year, and we
look forward to broadening our base and working with new producers, particularly our historically
underserved producers, to ensure they can access the program and its many benefits.”
FSA provides participants with annual rental payments and cost-share assistance. The annual rental rate
varies by county with a national minimum rental rate of $13 per acre for this signup. Contract duration is10 or 15 years.
Grassland CRP National Priority Zones
Because Grassland CRP supports not only grazing operations but also biodiversity and conserving
environmentally sensitive land such as that prone to wind erosion, FSA created two National Priority
Zones in 2021: the Greater Yellowstone Migration Corridor and Dust Bowl Zone. As part of the Biden-
Harris Administration’s focus on conservation in important wildlife corridors and key seasonal ranges,
for this year’s signup, FSA is expanding the Greater Yellowstone Wildlife Migration Corridor Priority
Zone to include seven additional counties across Montana, Wyoming, and Utah, to help protect the big-
game animal migration corridor associated with Wyoming elk, mule deer, and antelope.
“Over the past year, we have continued to make improvements to Grassland CRP to improve its
effectiveness and help local communities meet their conservation goals, including preserving critical
wildlife habitat. The addition of seven counties to the Greater Yellowstone Wildlife Migration Corridor
Priority Zone will help us do just that,” Ms. Washington added.
Offers within one of these National Priority Zones will receive an additional 15 ranking points and $5
per acre if at least 50% of the offer is located in the zone.
Alongside Grassland CRP, producers and landowners can also enroll acres in Continuous CRP under the ongoing sign up, which includes projects available through the Conservation Reserve Enhancement
Program (CREP) and State Acres for Wildlife Enhancement (SAFE).
