Funding to help implement new water quality practices in Iowa

Iowa farmers quickly snapped up the $1.4 million in cost share funds the state made available last week to help farmers install new nutrient reduction practices.

The funds were obligated in fewer than five business days after they were made available July 17.

The rapid response shows 'farmers are committed to using voluntary, science-based conservation practices to continue to improve water quality,” said Bill Northey, secretary of the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship.

With farmers matching the state funds, $2.8 million in new water quality practices will be implemented this fall.

'It would have been nice to have more money available,” Northey said.

More money would have been available had Gov. Terry Branstad not vetoed $11.2 million appropriated this spring by the Legislature for conservation practices, said David Osterberg, director of the Iowa Policy Project, which last week issued a report stating that Iowa's nutrient reduction strategy cannot succeed without more money and more commitment from farmers.

Osterberg said funding for conservation programs is consistently oversubscribed, 'which shows there are a lot of conscientious farmers out there who would use the money if it were available.”

'If you are serious about substantially reducing the volume of nitrogen and phosphorous washing off farm fields into public waters, you have to spend a lot of money,” Osterberg said.

The funding was awarded to 597 farmers for use on 59,883 acres.

About 98 percent of the funding ($1.37 million) went to farmers intending to plant cover crops this fall. About $27,000 went to farmers intending to initiate no-till or strip-till cultivation and about $7,600 went to farmers using a nitrification inhibitor when applying fall fertilizer.

Those were the only practices eligible for assistance, and only farmers not already employing those practices were eligible to apply.

The Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship received $4.4 million for the Iowa Water Quality Initiative in fiscal 2015. These funds will be used to encourage the broad adoption of water quality practices through statewide cost share assistance as well as more intensive work in targeted watersheds.

The planting of cover crops also was by far the most popular option last year, when in just two weeks, more than 1,000 farmers signed up for cost share funding to help implement new nutrient reduction practices on 100,000 acres. The state provided $2.8 million in cost share funding to help farmers try a water quality practice for the first time, and Iowa farmers provided at least another $2.8 million to support these water quality practices.