FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: March 9, 2009
For More Information Contact: Paige Buck, State Public Affairs Specialist, (217) 353.6606

NRCS Announces Sign-up for Floodplain Easements

Champaign, IL—Based on the announcement by U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) will hold a signup for floodplain easements, a component of the Emergency Watershed Protection (EWP) Program. Use of this easement option will support areas damaged by last year’s floods. Sign-up begins Monday, March 9 and runs through March 27, 2009. Funding comes from the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act of 2009, part of the economic stimulus, and will cover both technical and financial assistance.

The process for sign-up in Illinois has been streamlined to be more efficient in getting applications completed. The State has been divided into three regions, each with a specific payment rate cap. Applicants will know immediately what payment they would receive if accepted; and they will receive extra points if they agree to a lower rate. NRCS’ goal is to have all floodplain easements acquired and restored within 12-18 months.

“This is a great opportunity,” says Ivan Dozier, USDA-NRCS Assistant Sate Conservationist for Programs, “to enroll those areas that flood regularly. It’s time to quit fighting the river and take those areas out of production.” The areas eligible must have been flooded two of the past ten years. Last year, most of the state of Illinois experienced two major flooding events from heavy spring rains and Hurricane Ike aftermath. “We had three major rain events that affected most of the state,” said Dozier. “Those affected areas will no doubt be eligible for the program.”

These easements will convert environmentally sensitive lands into riparian corridors and wooded bottomlands that are so vital for fish and wildlife habitat and to mitigate downstream flooding.

The EWP Program’s floodplain easement component allows USDA-NRCS to purchase easements on lands damaged by flooding. Restored floodplains generate many public benefits, such as increased flood protection, enhanced fish and wildlife habitat, improved water quality, and a reduced need for future public disaster assistance. Other benefits include reduced energy consumption when certain agricultural activities and practices are eliminated and increased carbon sequestration as permanent vegetative cover is re-established.

Contact your local USDA Service Center, NRCS Office to learn more about the floodplain easement signup or visit the web site: http://www.nrcs.usda.gov/programs/ewp/Floodplain/index.html.

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