BLOOMINGTON, Ill. – August 3, 2022 – The enrollment period is now open for farmers interested in participating in the Soil and Water Outcomes Fund.
Rather than provide farmers payment for practice implementation, the Soil and Water Outcomes Fund provides payment for the multiple environmental outcomes of new conservation practices. These outcomes include water quality improvements and carbon sequestration.
The Illinois Soybean Association (ISA) and other partners received an $8.5 million Regional Conservation Partnership Program Alternative Funding Arrangement (RCPP-AFA) award courtesy of USDA NRCS, one of 15 projects funded nationwide. The project is replicating and scaling up the ongoing Soil and Water Outcomes Fund approach to producing environmental outcomes. In 2021 the Soil and Water Outcomes Fund conducted a pilot project targeting 20,000 acres in Illinois. RCPP funding will be used to pay for the verified water quality outcomes while partner contributions from Nutrien Ag Solutions, Ingredion and PepsiCo will pay for the verified carbon reductions from enrolled cropland.
The eligible region for enrollment has expanded this year from 2021, opening to farmers in six additional counties. Farmers in the following Illinois counties are eligible to enroll: Boone, Bureau, Cook, DeKalb, DuPage, Grundy, Iroquois, Kane, Kankakee, Kendall, Lake, LaSalle, Lee, McHenry, Ogle, Will, and Winnebago.
For more information on the Soil and Water Outcomes Fund or to enroll, visit www.theoutcomesfund.com/enroll or contact Conservation Agronomist Kevin Schabacker at 779-861-2979. Applications for enrollment should be submitted by September 1st, 2022.
The Illinois Soybean Association (ISA) checkoff and membership programs represent more than 43,000 soybean farmers in Illinois. The checkoff funds market development and utilization efforts while the membership program supports the government relations interests of Illinois soybean farmers at the local, state, and national level, through the Illinois Soybean Growers (ISG). ISA upholds the interests of Illinois soybean producers through promotion, advocacy, and education with the vision of becoming a market leader in sustainable soybean production and profitability. For more information, visit the website www.ilsoy.org and www.ilsoygrowers.com.
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