CONSERVATION

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UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

FARM SERVICE AGENCY FACT SHEET September 2016

Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program –

New York – 12 Watersheds

OVERVIEW

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and 

the State of New York are partners in implementing 

a voluntary Conservation Reserve Enhancement 

Program (CREP) to enroll up to 40,000 acres of 

agricultural land in Albany, Allegany, Broome, 

Cattaraugus, Cayuga, Chautauqua, Chemung, 

Chenango, Clinton, Columbia, Cortland, Delaware, 

Dutchess, Erie, Essex, Franklin, Fulton, Genesee, 

Greene, Hamilton, Herkimer, Jefferson, Lewis, 

Livingston, Madison, Monroe, Montgomery, 

Niagara, Oneida, Onondaga, Ontario, Orange, 

Orleans, Oswego, Otsego, Putnam, Rensselaer, 

St. Lawrence, Saratoga, Schoharie, Schuyler, 

Seneca, Steuben, Suffolk, Sullivan, Tioga, 

Tompkins, Ulster, Warren, Washington, Wayne, 

Westchester, Wyoming and Yates counties. The 

New York 12 Watersheds CREP is intended to 

improve water quality, reduce soil erosion, reduce 

the amount of sediment, phosphorous and other 

pollutants entering waterbodies, improve wildlife 

habitat and restore wetlands.

BACKGROUND

CREP is a part of the USDA Conservation 

Reserve Program (CRP). CRP is a federally 

funded voluntary program that contracts with 

agricultural producers so that environmentally 

sensitive agricultural land is not farmed or ranched, 

but instead is used for conservation benefits. 

CRP participants establish permanent resource 

conserving plants species, such as approved 

grasses or trees (known as “covers”) to control 

soil erosion, improve water quality and develop 

wildlife habitat. In return, the Farm Service Agency 

(FSA) provides participants with rental payments 

and cost-share assistance. CRP is authorized by the 

Food Security Act of 1985 and was reauthorized by 

the Agricultural Act of 2014.

With CREP, high-priority conservation goals are 

identified by the state, and then federal funds are 

supplemented with non-federal funds to achieve 

those goals.

Through the New York 12 Watersheds CREP, 

federal and state resources are made available 

to program participants to voluntarily enroll in 

CRP for a minimum of 10-year, not to exceed 

15-year, contracts. Participants remove cropland 

and marginal pastureland from agricultural 

production and convert the land to grasses, trees 

and other vegetation or restore wetlands. This 

will improve water quality, reduce soil erosion, 

reduce the amount of sediment, phosphorous and 

other pollutants entering waterbodies, and improve 

wildlife habitat.

GOALS

The goals of the New York 12 Watersheds CREP 

are to:

• Reduce the amount of phosphorus, nitrogen, 

sediment and other pollutants entering 

waterbodies within the project area;

• Establish tree buffers adjacent to 4,598 stream 

miles and 473,457 acres of surface waters; and

• Establish approved covers on areas that 

recharge drinking water supplies for cities and 

towns.

ELIGIBLE CONSERVATION PRACTICES

The following specific CRP conservation practices 

are available:

• CP1, Establishment of Permanent Introduced 

Grasses and Legumes;

• CP2, Establishment of Permanent Native 

Grasses;

• CP3, Tree Planting;

• CP3A, Hardwood Tree Planting;

• CP4B, Permanent Wildlife Habitat (Corridors), 

Non-Easement;

• CP4D, Permanent Wildlife Habitat, NonEasement;

• CP8A, Grass Waterways;

• CP9, Shallow Water Areas for Wildlife;

• CP15A, Establishment of Permanent 

Vegetative Cover (Contour Grassed Strips);
FACT SHEET

CREP - New York - 12 Watersheds September 2016

• CP21, Filter Strips;

• CP22, Riparian Buffer;

• CP23, Wetland Restoration;

• CP23A, Wetland Restoration, Non-Floodplain;

• CP29, Marginal Pastureland Wildlife Habitat 

Buffer; and

• CP30, Marginal Pastureland Wetland Buffer.

ENROLLMENT AND ELIGIBILITY

REQUIREMENTS

Enrollment for the New York 12 Watersheds 

CREP is on a continuous basis. To be eligible, land 

must be located in the project area and be either 

cropland or marginal pastureland. Cropland must 

meet cropping history criteria and be physically 

and legally capable of being planted in a normal 

manner to an agricultural commodity. Marginal 

pastureland is also eligible for enrollment provided 

it is suitable for use as a buffer practice.

PAYMENTS

Under the New York 12 Watersheds CREP, eligible 

participants may receive the following payments:

• A one-time signing incentive payment (SIP) 

of $100 per acre for installing practice CP8A, 

CP21, CP22, CP29 and CP30; and $150 per 

acre for installing practice CP23 and CP23A. 

Example: 10 acres enrolled to be devoted to 

practice CP21 results in a $1,000 (10 acres 

times $100) SIP. This payment is made after 

the contract has been signed and approved.

• A one-time practice incentive payment 

(PIP) for installing practice CP8A, CP9, 

CP15A, CP21, CP22, CP23, CP23A, CP29 

and CP30. The PIP is equal to 40 percent 

of the total eligible cost of installing the 

practice. Example: Producer’s total eligible 

reimbursable cost for installing practice CP21 

is $2,000. The PIP would be $800 ($2,000 

times .40).

• An annual rental payment consisting of:

 o A base soil rental rate, determined by (1) for

 cropland, the three predominant soils of the

 land offered; or (2) for marginal pastureland,

 the posted marginal pastureland rate for the

 county;

 o An incentive payment, as a percentage of

 the base soil rental rate, of 145 percent; and

 o A maintenance payment, determined by the 

 practice offered.

• Cost-share payments of up to 50 percent of 

the eligible reimbursable cost of installing the 

approved practice.

• A one-time Chesapeake Bay incentive payment 

in an amount equal to $25 per acre times the 

number of acres enrolled times the number 

of full years of the CRP contract length. This 

one-time payment is available only for practice 

CP22 and only for land located within the 

Chesapeake Bay Watershed. Example: 10 acres 

of land within the Chesapeake Bay Watershed 

is enrolled in a 14-year and 7 month CRP 

contract to be devoted to practice CP22. The 

one-time Chesapeake Bay incentive payment is 

$3,500 ($25 times 10 acres times 14 years).

Note: Land enrolled under the infeasible to 

farm provisions is not eligible for any incentive 

payments.

In addition, the State of New York:

• May provide some cost-share payments for the 

installation of an approved practice; and

• Will provide a one-time incentive payment 

for enrollment of new land located in the 

Chesapeake Bay Watershed to be devoted to 

practice CP22. The one-time payment will be 

between five and 15 times the per-acre base 

soil rental rate, determined by the type of land 

enrolled and the width of the riparian buffer.

EXAMPLES

A Broome County producer elects to enroll 

10 acres of land to be devoted to a riparian buffer 

(practice CP22) in a 15-year contract. The riparian 

buffer will be an average width of 45 feet. The base 

soil rental rate for the land is $40 per acre. The 

incentive payment is $58 per acre ($40 times 1.45). 

The annual maintenance payment is $10 per acre. 

The producer’s annual rental rate will be $108 per 

acre ($40 + $58 + $10) for a total annual payment 

of $1,080 ($108 times 10 acres). The producer will 

receive $16,200 in annual rental payments over the

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15-year term of the CRP contract. In addition, the 

producer will receive the following payments:

• A one-time SIP of $1,000 (10 acres x $100);

• Cost-share payments from FSA equal to 

50 percent of the eligible reimbursable costs to 

install the riparian buffer;

• A one-time PIP equal to 40 percent of the 

eligible reimbursable costs to install the 

riparian buffer;

• Cost-share payments from the State of New 

York equal to 10 percent of the eligible 

reimbursable costs to install the riparian buffer;

• A one-time Chesapeake Bay incentive 

payment from FSA of $3,750 ($25 x 10 acres x 

15 years); and

• A one-time incentive payment from the State 

of New York of $400 (10 x $40).

An Ontario County producer elects to enroll 

20 acres of land located in an approved public 

wellhead area to be devoted to native grasses 

(practice CP2) in a 15-year contract. The base 

soil rental rate for the land is $71 per acre. The 

incentive payment is $103 per acre ($71 times 

1.45). The producer’s annual rental rate will be 

$174 per acre ($71 + $103) for a total annual 

payment of $3,480 ($174 times 20 acres). The 

producer will receive $52,200 in annual rental 

payments over the 15-year term of the CRP 

contract. The producer will receive cost-share 

payments equal to 50 percent of the eligible 

reimbursable costs to install the native grasses, plus 

a PIP equal to 40 percent of the cost of the eligible 

reimbursable costs to install the native grasses. 

In addition, the producer will receive cost-share 

payments equal to 10 percent of the cost to install 

the native grasses form the State of New York.

Note: The preceding are examples only.

ENROLLMENT OPTIONS

CREP is another option under CRP that farmers 

and ranchers may select to enhance their land. 

Eligible producers may still enroll eligible land 

in CRP through general or continuous signup; 

however, the New York 12 Watersheds CREP 

provides additional benefits not available through 

general and/or continuous enrollment. Under the 

New York 12 Watersheds CREP, producers receive 

higher incentive payments and have longer contract 

lengths that increase the total amount of rental 

payments received.

HAYING AND GRAZING

Haying and grazing are not allowed during the 

CRP contract period unless authorized by USDA. 

Contact your local FSA office for information 

about authorized haying and grazing activities.

FOR MORE INFORMATION

This fact sheet is provided for informational 

purposes only; other restrictions or requirements 

may apply. For more information on CREP, contact 

your local FSA office. To find your local FSA 

county office, visit http://offices.usda.gov. To 

learn more about FSA conservation programs, visit 

www.fsa.usda.gov/conservation.

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In accordance with Federal civil rights law and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) civil rights regulations and policies, 

the USDA, its Agencies, offices, and employees, and institutions 

participating in or administering USDA programs are prohibited 

from discriminating based on race, color, national origin, religion, 

sex, gender identity (including gender expression), sexual orientation, disability, age, marital status, family/parental status, income 

derived from a public assistance program, political beliefs, or reprisal or retaliation for prior civil rights activity, in any program 

or activity conducted or funded by USDA (not all bases apply to 

all programs). Remedies and complaint filing deadlines vary by 

program or incident.

Persons with disabilities who require alternative means of communication for program information (e.g., Braille, large print, 

audiotape, American Sign Language, etc.) should contact the 

responsible Agency or USDA’s TARGET Center at (202) 720-2600 

(voice and TTY) or contact USDA through the Federal Relay 

Service at (800) 877-8339. Additionally, program information may 

be made available in languages other than English.

To file a program discrimination complaint, complete the USDA 

Program Discrimination Complaint Form, AD-3027, found online 

at http://www.ascr.usda.gov/complaint_filing_cust.html and at any 

USDA office or write a letter addressed to USDA and provide in 

the letter all of the information requested in the form. To request 

a copy of the complaint form, call (866) 632-9992. Submit your 

completed form or letter to USDA by:

1) mail: U.S. Department of Agriculture Office of the Assistant

 Secretary for Civil Rights 1400 Independence Avenue, SW

 Washington, D.C. 20250-9410;

2) fax: (202) 690-7442; or

3) email: program.intake@usda.gov.

USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer, and lender.

FACT SHEET

CREP - New York - 12 Watersheds September 2016

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