The Ohio Department of Agriculture, in partnership with Wood Soil and Water Conservation District is providing funding for new assistance programs for farmers to help protect water quality in the western basin of Lake Erie.
The Ohio Working Lands program will encourage producers to establish year-round vegetative cover on eligible crop land. The program will promote conversion, establishment and maintenance of forage/hay land on certain cropland acres.
Local SWCD office staff will assist landowners on putting together a plan for installing these buffers. Landowners will be eligible to receive up to $120/acre for a five-year contract.
The goal of the program is to reduce nutrients entering Ohio waterways to lessen harmful algal blooms in Lake Erie. Funding is available to farmers installing conservation practices that benefit water quality in the Western Lake Erie Basin.
Program enrollment officially kicks off for Ohio farmers in the Western Lake Erie Basin on March 15 and runs through May 1. Farmers will be able to sign up for the program at their local soil and water conservation district.
For more information, contact Wood Soil and Water Conservation District at 419-354-5517.
