(KMA Land) — Landowners in Iowa who want to help repair natural habitat on their land and get help doing it are being sought by Practical Farmers of Iowa.
It’s part of a bigger plan to help farmers care for the environment better.
Farmers can get money from PFI’s Habitat Incentive program to plant grassland strips on their land, for example.
Grace Yi, PFI’s Senior Habitat Viability Coordinator, said that these strips protect local species and restore habitat at the same time.
“All of these practices are going to have multiple benefits,” Yi said. “So they are going to be good for soil health, good for water-quality improvement, and also provide habitat for wildlife.”
Along with the prairie strip part of the Habitat Incentive Program, PFI is also giving farmers incentives to do precision conservation research on their land. This helps them make use of acres that aren’t being used for farming.
In his speech, Yi said that the program’s end goal is different for each farmer who applies.
Some people may see it as stopping dirt from washing away and running off into nearby waterways. For some, it might mean finding a useful way to utilize extra land.
“For some farmers it might be that corner of the farm is low yielding,” he said, “it’s difficult to farm with because it’s steep in slope or it has weird turnarounds, so they can’t easily round out the field.”
For the farmer to be able to use the program, at least half of the land they want to change must not make any money. The reward is worth up to $10,000 and is paid for by the federal government and the states.