CONSERVATION

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UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

FARM SERVICE AGENCY FACT SHEET September 2016

Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program – 

Pennsylvania Ohio River Basin

OVERVIEW

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

the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania are partners 

in implementing a voluntary Conservation Reserve 

Enhancement Program (CREP) to enroll up to 

40,000 acres in Allegheny, Armstrong, Beaver, 

Butler, Clarion, Crawford, Erie, Fayette, Forest, 

Greene, Lawrence, Mercer, Venango, Warren, 

Washington and Westmoreland counties to improve 

surface water quality, groundwater quality and 

wildlife habitat through establishment of riparian 

buffers, native and other grasses, shallow water 

areas for wildlife, grassed waterways and the 

restoration of wetlands. The Pennsylvania Ohio 

River Basin CREP will also contribute towards 

decreasing the Gulf of Mexico’s hypoxia zone 

through nutrient loading reduction.

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 used for conservation benefits. CRP 

participants establish permanent, resourceconserving plant 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 costshare 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 Pennsylvania Ohio River Basin 

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 

the amount of sediment, phosphorous, nutrients 

and other pollutants entering waterbodies, and 

improve wildlife habitat.

GOALS

The goals of the Pennsylvania Ohio River Basin 

CREP are to:

• Restore and protect wetlands;

• Reduce the amount of sediment, nutrients and 

other pollutants entering the Ohio River and 

other waterbodies;

• Establish riparian habitat corridors next to 

streams, estuaries and wetlands;

• Establish permanent cover on highly erodible 

land to reduce erosion, enhance water quality 

and create wildlife habitat; and

• Improve water quality to facilitate the health of 

fish and wildlife populations.

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;

• CP4D, Permanent Wildlife Habitat, NonEasement;

• CP8A, Grass Waterways;

• CP9, Shallow Water Areas for Wildlife;

• CP12, Wildlife Food Plot;

• CP15A, Establishment of Permanent 

Vegetative Cover (Contour Grass Strips);

• CP21, Filter Strips;

• CP22, Riparian Buffer;

• CP23, Wetland Restoration;
FACT SHEET

CREP - Pennsylvania Ohio River Basin September 2016

• CP29, Marginal Pastureland Wildlife Habitat 

Buffer;

• CP30, Marginal Pastureland Wetland Buffer; 

and

• CP33, Habitat Buffers for Upland Birds.

ENROLLMENT AND ELIGIBILITY

REQUIREMENTS

Signup for the Pennsylvania Ohio River Basin 

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 an eligible riparian buffer. 

Persons who have an existing CRP contract are 

not eligible for CREP on that land until the CRP 

contract expires.

PAYMENTS

Under the Pennsylvania Ohio River Basin CREP, 

eligible participants may receive the following 

payments:

• A one-time signing incentive payment (SIP) 

of $100 per acre for installing practices CP8A, 

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

for installing practice CP23 or CP33. Example: 

30 acres enrolled to be devoted to practice 

CP33 results in a $4,500 (30 acres times $150) 

SIP. This payment is made soon after the 

contract has been signed and approved.

• A one-time practice incentive payment 

(PIP) for installing practices CP8A, CP9, 

CP15A, CP21, CP22, CP23, CP29, CP30 and 

CP33. The PIP is equal to 40 percent of the 

total eligible cost of installing the practice. 

Example: Producer’s total eligible cost for 

installing the practice 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 the

 three predominant soils of the eligible land

 offered;

 o An incentive payment, as a percentage of

 the base soil rental rate, based on the practice

 and land offered; and

 o A maintenance payment, determined by the 

 practice offered.

• For practices CP1, CP2, CP4D and CP12, the 

incentive payment is based on the erodibility 

index (EI) of the land offered, as follows:

 o 0.75 times the base soil rental rate for land

 with 8 < EI < 12;

 o 1.5 times the base soil rental rate for land

 with 12 < EI < 20;

 o 1.75 times the base soil rental rate for land

 with 20 < EI < 25;

 o 2.0 times the base soil rental rate for land

 with 25 < EI < 30; and

 o 2.25 times the base soil rental rate for land

 with 30 < EI.

• For practices CP8A, CP9, CP15A, CP21, 

CP22, CP23, CP29, CP30 and CP33, the 

incentive payment is 1.5 times the base soil 

rental rate.

• A cost-share payment of up to 50 percent of 

the eligible reimbursable cost of installing the 

approved practice.

In addition, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania 

provides eligible participants a cost-share payment 

of up to 50 percent of the practice installation cost, 

subject to certain limits, for most of the eligible 

practices.

EXAMPLES

An Erie County producer elects to enroll 40 acres 

of highly erodible cropland to be devoted to 

permanent native grasses (practice CP2) in a 15-

year contract. The EI of the land is 22. The base 

soil rental rate for the land is $52 per acre. The 

incentive payment is $91 per acre ($52 times 1.75). 

The producer’s annual rental rate will be $143 per 

acre, for a total annual rental payment of $5,720 

($143 times 40 acres). The producer will receive 

a total of $85,800 in annual rental payments over 

the 15-year life of the contract. The producer 

will have no out-of-pocket costs for installing the 

practice because of the federal and state cost-share 

payments. In addition, the producer will receive 

$2,000 from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania 

for enrolling the land in the Pennsylvania Game 

Commission Program.

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A Mercer County producer elects to enroll 

10 acres of cropland to be devoted to a riparian 

buffer (practice CP22) in a 15-year contract. 

The base soil rental rate for the land is $51. The 

incentive payment is $77 per acre ($51 times 1.5). 

The annual maintenance rate is $10 per acre. The 

producer’s annual rental rate will be $138 per 

acre ($51 + $77 + 10) for a total annual rental rate 

of $1,380 ($138 times 10 acres). In addition, the 

producer will receive a one-time SIP of $1,000. 

The producer will have no out-of-pocket costs for 

installing the riparian buffer because of the federal 

and state cost-share payments.

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 Pennsylvania Ohio River Basin CREP 

provides additional benefits not available through 

general and/or continuous enrollment. Under the 

Pennsylvania Ohio River Basin 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.

_________________________________________

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 - Pennsylvania Ohio River Basin September 2016

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