Colorado Republican River

Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program (CREP)

Overview

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) 

and the State of Colorado are partners in 

implementing a voluntary Conservation 

Reserve Enhancement Program (CREP) to 

enroll up to 60,000 acres of agricultural 

land within the State of Colorado. The 

Colorado Republican River CREP is intended 

to reduce the amount of irrigation water 

consumptive use, conserve energy, and 

reduce the amount of agricultural chemicals 

and sediment entering Colorado waters from 

agricultural lands.

Background

CREP is 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, resource-conserving 

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 cost-share assistance.

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 Colorado Republican River 

CREP, federal and state resources are 

made available to program participants to 

voluntarily enroll in CRP for 14- to 15-year 

contracts. Participants remove cropland 

from agricultural production and convert 

the land to grasses, trees, or other approved 

vegetation. This will improve water quality 

by reducing sediment, nutrients, nitrogen 

and other pollutants from entering streams 

and rivers, and enhance wildlife habitat in 

the area.

Goals

The goals of the Colorado Republican River 

CREP include the reduction of:

 Irrigation water use for agriculture 

from the Ogallala Aquifer by 6.5 

percent from 2004 levels;

 Irrigation water consumption by up to 

69,200 acre-feet per year;

 Soil erosion by 490,000 tons per year;

 Annual fertilizer and pesticide 

application by at least 3,865 tons per 

year; and

 Annual electricity use by 2.27 million 

kilowatt hours.

 Enroll up to 2,500 eligible cropland 

acres in CP100, Annual Crop 

Production, Non-Irrigated.

Eligible Conservation 

Practices

The following specific CRP conservation 

practices are available:

 CP2, Establishment of Permanent 

Native Grasses

 CP4D, Permanent Wildlife Habitat

 CP23, Wetland Restoration

 CP23A, Wetland Restoration, NonFloodplain

 CP100, Annual Crop Production, NonIrrigated

For More 

Information

Contact your local service 

center and USDA Farm 

Service Agency office: 

farmers.gov/servicelocator. 

Colorado State Farm 

Service Agency

PO Box 25426

Denver Federal Center, 

695 Kipling St.

BLDG. 56, RM. 2760

Denver, CO 80225-0426

Phone: (720) 544-2876

Fax: (844) 860-8238

This fact sheet is provided 

for informational purposes 

only; other restrictions or 

requirements may apply. 

Consult your local FSA office 

for details. 

JUNE 2023
CREP – COLORADO REPUBLICAN RIVER 2

 Only available in combination 

with CP100:

y CP33, Habitat Buffers for 

Upland Birds

y CP43, Prairie Strips 

Enrollment 

and Eligibility 

Requirements

Enrollment in CRP through the 

Colorado Republican River CREP is 

on a continuous basis. To be eligible, 

land must be located within the State 

of Colorado and at least 51% of the 

acres per contract must be located 

within the project area. Only cropland 

is eligible, and it must meet cropping 

history criteria and be physically and 

legally capable of being planted in 

a normal manner to an agricultural 

commodity. Eligible irrigated cropland 

must have been irrigated at not less 

than 1⁄2 acre-foot per year for four of 

the last six years. Eligible non-irrigated 

cropland must be a center-pivot corner 

immediately adjacent to enrolled 

irrigated cropland.

Payments

Under the Colorado Republican River 

CREP, eligible participants may receive 

the following payments:

 A one-time sign-up incentive 

payment (SIP) in accordance with 

FSA National CRP Directives.

 A one-time practice incentive 

payment (PIP) in accordance with 

FSA National CRP Directives. The 

PIP is equal to up to 40 percent 

of eligible cost of installing the 

practice. 

 An annual rental payment 

consisting of:

y When only irrigated cropland 

is enrolled, the county peracre irrigated rental rates as 

determined by CCC.

y When a combination of 

irrigated and non-irrigated 

cropland is enrolled, the 

weighted average of the nonirrigated rental rates for the 

two predominant soil types 

and the irrigated county rental 

rate.

y An additional incentive will 

apply to acres enrolled in 

CP100 and the associated 

CP33 and/or CP43.

y A cost-share payment of 

up to 50 percent of eligible 

reimbursable costs.

y In addition, the State of 

Colorado may provide 

additional annual payments 

for irrigated cropland acres.

Enrollment Options

CREP is another option under CRP 

that farmers and ranchers may 

select to enhance their land. Eligible 

producers may still enroll land in CRP 

through general or continuous signup; 

however, the Colorado Republican 

River CREP provides additional 

benefits not available through general 

and/or continuous signup. Under the 

Colorado Republican River CREP, 

producers receive higher incentive 

payments and longer contract lengths 

that increase the total amount of 

rental payments received.

Haying and Grazing

Contact your local FSA office for more 

information about authorized haying 

and grazing activities.

USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer, and lender. fsa.usda.gov

Eligible Conservation 

Practices (continued)