During the 2021 Minnesota legislative session, Land Stewardship Project farmer-members wrote and championed a comprehensive soil health bill that led to the establishment of a Soil Health Cost-Share Program.
Through this program, $1.3 million will be available through the Board of Water and Soil Resources (BWSR). The program will provide payments to farmers for implementing soil-healthy practices such as cover cropping, perennial cropping, and managed rotational grazing. We also won an additional $4 million for farmers to implement cover crops on the land.
BWSR is working to launch the program this coming spring, and we need to demonstrate the need to expand funding for this program. With approximately 23 million acres of farmland and pastureland in Minnesota, and with our farmers facing extreme weather, financial stress, and degraded topsoil, we need to demonstrate to the Minnesota Legislature that we need more than a $1.3 million investment in the countryside.
Add your name to the list and we will let you know right away when these funds are available for you to access.