FACT SHEET

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

FARM SERVICE AGENCY

Page 1

February 2011

 Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program - Ohio - Upper Big Walnut Creek

Overview

United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the state of 

Ohio have launched a $13.2 million 

Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program (CREP) to protect 

the Hoover Reservoir, the primary 

drinking water source for Columbus, Ohio’s 575,000 residents.

CREP is a federal and state natural 

resource conservation program 

targeted to address significant 

agricultural related environmental 

problems. Through CREP, program participants receive financial 

incentives to voluntarily enroll in 

the Conservation Reserve Program 

(CRP) in contracts of 14 to 15 years. 

Participants remove cropland from 

agricultural production and convert 

the land to native grasses, trees, and 

other vegetation. CRP is authorized 

by the Food Security Act of 1985, as 

amended.

Benefits

The Ohio Upper Big Walnut Creek 

(UBWC) CREP will help farmers improve the water quality of 

streams near the Hoover Reservoir 

by reducing field runoff of pollutants. Currently, much of the existing 

watershed has no vegetative buffers. 

Through CREP, Ohio farmers will 

be able to buffer approximately 

450 miles of watercourses. This 

will help lower water temperatures, 

increase dissolved oxygen, and provide additional wildlife habitat.

Eligible Areas

Producers can offer eligible cropland and marginal pastureland that 

drain from the Upper Big Walnut 

Creek watershed into the Hoover 

Reservoir above the dam. This 

includes Delaware, Franklin, Knox, 

Licking, and Morrow Counties. 

Contact your local USDA Service 

Center for specific information concerning your eligibility for CREP.

Goals

The goals of the Ohio UBWC CREP 

are to:

• Improve water quality for 

575,000 Columbus residents 

by installing 3,500 acres of 

filter strips, riparian buffers, 

hardwood trees, wetlands, and 

wildlife habitat practices.

• Reduce by 30 percent sediment, nutrients, and agricultural 

chemical runoff in the Hoover 

Reservoir.

• Increase terrestrial and aquatic 

wildlife habitat.

Throughout the project, Ohio and 

the city of Columbus will conduct 

water quality monitoring to evaluate and record progress in achieving 

these goals.

Approved Conservation Practices

To better serve program goals, 

specific CRP conservation practices 

have been identified for inclusion 

in the program. The practices and 

associated acreage goals are:

• CP3A - Hardwood Tree Planting, 200 acres

• CP4D - Permanent Wildlife 

Habitat, 100 acres

• CP21 - Grassed Filter Strips, 

2,300 acres

• CP22 - Riparian Forest Buffers, 

700 acres

• CP23 - Wetland Restoration, 

200 acres

Signup and Eligibility Requirements

Enrollment will be on a continuous basis. Cropland must have been 

cropped 4 out of the past 6 years 

(2002-2007) and be physically and 

legally capable of being cropped in 

a normal manner. Marginal pastureland is also eligible for enrollment 

provided it is suitable for use as a 

riparian buffer planted to trees. In 

addition, producers must generally 

have owned or operated the land for 

at least 12 months prior to enrollment. Persons who have an existing 

CRP contract or an approved offer 

with a contract pending are not 

eligible for CREP until that contract 

expires.

CREP Payments

Ohio UBWC CREP participants will 

be eligible for the following types of 

USDA payments:

• Signing Incentive Payment - A 

one-time payment consistent 

with Handbook 2-CRP for land 

enrolled in a riparian forest buffer or grass filter strip practice. 

This payment is made soon after the contract has been signed 

and approved.

• Practice Incentive Payment - 

A one-time payment equal to 

about 40 percent of the eligible 

cost for establishing the riparian buffer or filter strip. This 

payment is in addition to up to 

50 percent cost share assistance 

that USDA will provide for 

installing the selected practices.

• Annual Rental Payment for 

the Life of the Contract - An 

incentive of 200 percent of the 

calculated annual soil rental 

rate for installing riparian buffers, restoring wetlands, and 
FACT SHEET

CREP - Ohio - Hoover Reservoir February 2011

planting hardwood trees. An 

incentive of 175 percent of the 

calculated annual soil rental 

rate for installing grass filter 

strips and wildlife habitat is 

also available.

• Cost Share Assistance of up to 

50 percent for the installation of 

the eligible conservation practices on land that is retired.

In addition, Ohio will offer the following incentive payments: 

• A one-time incentive payment, 

through the local Soil and 

Water Conservation District 

and the city of Columbus, of 

$60 per acre for land devoted to 

filter strips and wildlife habitat 

for practices that are enrolled 

at greater than an average of 66 

feet in width.

• A one-time incentive payment, 

through the local Soil and 

Water Conservation District 

and the city of Columbus, of 

$60 per acre for land devoted 

to wetland restoration and for 

riparian buffers and hardwood 

tree plantings that are enrolled 

at greater than an average of 66 

feet in width.

• A direct payment, through the 

city of Columbus, to producers that sign up for a voluntary 

perpetual easement option. An 

appraisal process will determine 

easement payments and all 

costs associated with easement 

acquisition.

• A one-time incentive payment, 

through the Ohio Division of 

Wildlife, of up to $40 per acre 

for installing and seeding 100 

percent warm season grasses.

• A one-time incentive payment, 

through the Division of Wildlife 

and Ducks Unlimited, of up to 

$500 for wetland restoration in 

exchange for a 20- or 30-year 

contract.

Program Cost

Based on the initial implementation of the Ohio UBWC CREP, 

which projects an enrollment of 

3,500 acres, the expected combined 

financial federal and state obligation 

will be approximately $13.2 million. 

Of that amount, $8.4 million will 

come from USDA and $4.8 million 

from the state and local sources. 

This does not include any costs 

that may be assumed by producers. 

USDA’s share of the total program 

costs is approximately 64 percent 

and Ohio’s share is approximately 

36 percent.

Enrollment in Other Programs

CREP is another option under CRP 

that farmers may select to enhance 

their land; applicants may still enroll 

eligible land in the regular general 

CRP or continuous signup CRP. 

However, CREP provides additional 

benefits not available through the 

general and/or continuous signup. 

The CREP enrollment process is on 

a continuous basis and payments are 

at a higher effective rate.

Haying and Grazing

Haying and grazing are not permitted during the CRP contract period 

unless USDA permits it for emergency purposes under normal CRP 

rules.

For More Information

Contact the Farm Service Agency 

(FSA) or Natural Resources Conservation Service office within your 

local USDA Service Center; your 

local Soil and Water Conservation 

District office; or the Ohio Department of Natural Resources/Division 

of Soil and Water Conservation, 

(614) 265-6610, (http://www.dnr.

state.oh.us). Additional information 

is also available on FSA’s web site: 

www.fsa.usda.gov

The U.S. Department of Agriculture 

(USDA) prohibits discrimination in all 

of its programs and activities on the 

basis of race, color, national origin, age, 

disability, and where applicable, sex, 

marital status, familial status, parental 

status, religion, sexual orientation, 

political beliefs, genetic information, 

reprisal, or because all of part of an 

individual’s income is derived from any 

public assistance program. (Not all 

bases apply to all programs.) Persons 

with disabilities who require alternative 

means for communication of program 

information (Braille, large print, 

audiotape, etc.) should contact USDA’s 

TARGET Center at (202) 720-2600 

(voice and TDD). 

To file a complaint of discrimination, 

write to USDA, Assistant Secretary 

for Civil Rights, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights, 1400 

Independence Avenue, S.W., Stop 9410, 

Washington, DC 20250-9410, or call 

toll-free at (866) 632-9992 (English) or 

(800) 877-8339 (TDD) or (866) 377-

8642 (English Federal-relay) or (800) 

845-6136 (Spanish Federal-relay). 

USDA is an equal opportunity provider 

and employer.

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