Special to
L’Observateur

Alexandria — Par-ticipants who enrolled in the Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP) during 2010 have from July 11 until September 12th to renew their contracts and make decisions on additional conservation activities that will benefit priority natural resource issues.

CSP is offered by the Natural Resources Conservation Service and is the Farm Bill program that helps farmers and ranchers take conservation investments to the next level.

About 300 CSP contracts in Louisiana are reaching the end of their initial five-year contract period and may be renewed for an additional five years where participants agree to take additional conservation measures.

The program provides opportunities for farmers and ranchers who are already established conservation stewards, helping them improve water quality, soil health and wildlife habitat.

“CSP farmers are conservation leaders and go the extra mile to conserve our nation’s resources,” said Kevin Norton, Louisiana NRCS State Conservationist.

“The 2014 Farm Bill continued that strong commitment and heightened the program’s focus on generating conservation benefits.”

Since CSP began in 2010, Louisiana has partnered with producers to enroll over 900,000 acres of cropland, pastureland, and nonindustrial forestland across the state in the program.  CSP participants boost their operations’ conservation benefits by installing new conservation activities that make positive changes in soil, water, air and wildlife habitat.

“This program allows landowners to reach the next level of conservation and opens the door to trying new conservation activities,” Kevin Norton said.

To learn about technical and financial assistance available through CSP, visit nrcs.usda.gov/GetStarted, the Conservation Stewardship webpage or local USDA service center. For more on the 2014 Farm Bill, visit www.nrcs.usda.gov/FarmBill.