Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP)

Program Description

The Conservation Stewardship Program provides financial and technical assistance for eligible producers to conserve and enhance soil, water, air, and related natural resources on their land. Eligible lands include cropland, grassland, prairie land, improved pastureland, rangeland, non-industrial private forest lands, agricultural land under the jurisdiction of an Indian tribe, and other private agricultural land on which resource concerns related to agricultural production could be addressed. Participation in the program is voluntary.

CSP encourages land stewards to improve their conservation performance by installing and adopting additional activities, and improving, maintaining, and managing existing activities on agricultural land and non-industrial private forest land. The NRCS will make CSP available nationwide on a continuous application basis.

Michigan will focus program impacts on natural resources that are of specific concern for specific geographic areas within the state. Applications will be evaluated relative to other applications addressing similar priority resource concerns to facilitate a competitive ranking process among applicants within a state who face similar resource challenges.

The entire agricultural operation must be enrolled and must include all agricultural land that will be under the applicant’s control for the term of the proposed contract.

CSP offers participants two possible types of payments:

1. Annual payment for installing and adopting additional activities, and improving, maintaining, and managing existing activities

2. Supplemental payment for adoption of resource-conserving crop rotations

2012-1 Conservation Stewardship Program Sign-Up

The Cut-Off Date for the Current CSP Enrollment Period is Jan. 27, 2012.

Michigan CSP Resource Concerns

Related Web Pages

NRCS National CSP Website

CSP 2012 Enhancement Sheets

These documents require Adobe Acrobat Reader or Microsoft Excel
Conservation Stewardship Program Information Sheets
Conservation Stewardship Program Fact Sheet
Conservation Stewardship Self-Screening Checklist
Michigan Ranking Pools and Priority Resource Concerns
Michigan Ranking Pool Regions Map
Michigan Ranking Pool Regions - Text Version
The Organic Crosswalk
CSP Contribution to Organic Transitioning Fact Sheet
Sample Financial & Record Keeping Forms              
Financial & Legal Forms
Conservation Program Application NRCS-CPA-1200
Control of Land Certification
Power of Attorney (FSA form)
Direct Deposit Sign-up Form
Record Keeping Forms
Nutrient Management
Pest Management
Livestock Waste Management
Pasture Management Spreadsheet

Conservation Security Program and Conservation Stewardship Program Archive Page - This Web page contains links to documents from prior Conservation Security Program sign-ups and for the Conservation Security Program.

Contact

Abigail Smith , CSP Coordinator
Phone:  517-324-5275
E-mail:  abigail.smith@mi.usda.gov

Last Modified 01/24/2012