Greenhouse Gas Reduction Incentive Program

Using incentives and technical assistance, this project would help farmers adopt climate-smart practices to improve soil health and water quality, reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, and promote wildlife habitat, connecting climate-smart commodity production with climate adaptation and GHG benefits. The farmers enrolled every year in the project are eligible to receive sufficient and compelling incentive payments for their participation and for verified climate-smart practice implementation.

The project plans to draw on Organic Association of Kentucky, Inc. (OAK) and partner networks to engage small farms and underserved farmers.

OAK anticipates half of the farms enrolled annually would be underserved farmers, including limited resource, beginning, socially disadvantaged and veteran farmers, and many more would be small farms, operations with gross annual farm income under $250,000.

Project Goals

The project supports Kentucky farmers in telling the full story of farming systems and the environmental benefits of climate-smart practices, while working to grow regional market demand for climate-smart commodities. The project will provide direct technical assistance, educational programming, financial incentives and market development support for participating Kentucky farmers. This project supports farmers who want to implement climate-smart practices (e.g. cover cropping, perennial planting, rotational grazing), collect data on outcomes and engage with emerging markets seeking positive environmental and climate impacts. 

• Enrolled farmers will receive financial incentives for implemented practices and free on-farm technical assistance for implementing climate smart practices on their operations.

• Practices eligible for incentives could include conservation cover, conservation crop rotation, cover crop, residue and tillage management - reduced till, mulching, prescribed grazing, stripcropping, nutrient management, contour orchard and other perennial crops, forest farming, windbreak or shelterbelt establishment or renovation, silvopasture, field border, wildlife habitat planting, hedgerow planting, pasture and hay planting, vegetative barrier, herbaceous wind barriers, tree or shrub establishment. 

Enrolled acreage may not be enrolled in other NRCS cost-share programs for the same practices.

Farm partners will:

• Participate in a farmer-led annual farm sustainability assessment, receiving $500 each year upon completion

• Have access to technical assistance for developing climate-smart farming plans

• Receive financial incentives up to $2,500 annually for implementing climate-smart practices

• Receive $180 in soil testing annually for enrolled fields

• Have the opportunity to participate in educational events

• Learn from other farmers through a climate-smart peer network

• Benefit from market development and marketing support

• Allow project team scheduled access to enrolled farmland for data collection

• Gain yearly insights from trends on the farm's soil heath, biodiversity, water quality, crop quality, and other indicators

Apply for year two of the program