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Montgomery County EQIP

The Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) is a voluntary conservation program of the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) that promotes agricultural production and environmental quality. This program is available to farmers and offers financial and technical assistance to install or implement structural and management practices on eligible agricultural land.

The following are Montgomery County Resource Concerns to be addressed by EQIP:

Soil Erosion

  • Streambank
  • Sheet and Rill
  • Ephemeral Gully
  • Classic Gully

Water Quality

  • Harmful levels of pathogens in surface water
  • Excessive nutrients and organics in surface water
  • Excessive suspended sediment and turbidity in surface water

Plant Condition

  • Noxious and invasive plants
  • Forage quality and palatability
  • Productivity, health, and vigor

Soil Condition

  • Organic Matter Depletion

Domestic Animals

  • Inadequate stock water
  • Inadequate quantities and quality of feed and forage
  • Inadequate stock water

These resource concerns address the following National EQIP priorities:

  1. Reduction of non-point source pollution, such as nutrients, sediment, pesticides, or excess salinity in impaired watersheds consistent with Total Daily Maximum Loads (TMDL’s), where available, as well as the reduction of groundwater contamination and the conservation of ground and surface water resources.               
  2. Reduction in soil erosion and sedimentation from unacceptable high levels on agricultural lands.    

The goal of the locally led group was to recommend a ranking system that rewarded and gave priority to those producers that help most to address the above resource concerns. The ranking will be completed for the specific practices to be applied through the EQIP contract. Sign-up is continuous at the NRCS field office. Application ranking will be done periodically as funding allocations become available, will be announced through the NRCS State Office, and will be publicized by all levels of NRCS.  The NRCS may establish local, minimum ranking cut-off levels for funding selections.

In Montgomery County five separate accounts will be maintained for the following resource concerns. These pots will be soil erosion, gully erosion, summer 2010 projects, water quality, and plant condition.

The local work group also listed priority watersheds in Montgomery County for the 2009 EQIP Program.

  1. Sevenmile Creek Watershed
  • Impairment:  Sedimentation
  1. Middle Tarkio River Watershed
  • Impairment:  Sedimentation      
  1. West Nodaway River Watershed (excluding Hacklebarney Watershed)
  • Impairment:  Sedimentation
  1. Indian Creek Watershed          
  • Impairment:  Sedimentation

The local work group also recommended a list of conservation practices that are the most cost-effective, longest duration, and help most to address these priority resource concerns in the District.

For more information on EQIP and other NRCS administrated programs contact the Montgomery County USDA Service Center located at 2505 N Broadway, Ste 2, Red Oak, IA  51566. Phone (712) 623-9680. Fax  (712) 623-4318.

The following files require Acrobat Reader.

EQIP Practice List - 2009
EQIP Application Ranking - 2009   

EQIP Practice List - 2008    For Archival Purposes Only
EQIP Application Ranking - 2008    For Archival Purposes Only

 EQIP Practice List - 2007    For Archival Purposes Only
EQIP Application Ranking - 2007    For Archival Purposes Only

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