CREP is an offspring of the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) that was authorized in the 1996 Farm Bill. This program works to enhance the Illinois River Watershed by improving water quality in the river while enhancing wildlife habitat. Landowners who take environmentally sensitive land out of agricultural production in the Illinois River Watershed will receive financial incentives, cost-share incentives and technical assistance for establishing long-term, resource-conserving covers.

Landowners decide if participation in this voluntary federal-state and local conservation program would be beneficial based upon environmental, production and financial factors. CREP is a two-sided program with a 14-15 year Federal contract and a voluntary 15 or 35-year State contract extension or a State permanent conservation easement.

Illinois River Program goals include; 20% reduction in sedimentation, 10% reduction in nutrients, 15% increase in populations of waterfowl, shorebirds, and nongame grassland birds, and a 10% increase in native fish and mussel stocks in the lower reaches. 

 

The eligible area is the Illinois River Basin which includes all or part of 53 counties. Private landowners with cropland in the 100-year floodplain, highly erodible land (with an EI ? 12) adjacent to a riparian area, or land that qualifies as wetlands, wetlands farmed under natural conditions, or prior converted wetlands, are eligible to enroll.

CREP is a program that utilizes Federal, State, and local resources to retire frequently flooded and environmentally sensitive cropland to achieve restoration and long-term protection in the Illinois River Basin. The Federal side is a 15-year Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) contract, and the State side offers 3 different options: a 15-year or 35-year contract extension, or a permanent conservation easement. Enrollment is voluntary, and both sides of the program offer many different financial incentives.

The local USDA Service Center is the place to inquire about eligibility and all of the financial incentives. The Farm Service Agency (FSA) administers the Federal side, and the local Soil and Water Conservation Districts administer the State side of CREP with the Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) administering the fiscal portion. The Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) and IDNR provide technical assistance for the development and implementation of conservation plans.

By applying conservation practices, landowners reduce sedimentation and nutrients going into the Illinois River and its tributaries, while creating and enhancing habitat for fish and wildlife populations. Landowners who have been enrolled for several years are already seeing some benefits, and are proud to have established these benefits for future generations. Illinois' program has made tremendous progress in restoring corridors of critical habitat, and these restored corridors are securing a great amount of protection and benefit to the water quality and beauty of the Illinois River Watershed.

Illinois has one of the most successful CREP programs in the nation, and by voluntarily enrolling in the Federal side and long-term conservation easements on the State side, landowners have shown a strong commitment to preserving and protecting the environment. Since its beginning in May of 1998, CREP has restored or is in the process of restoring over 140,000 acres of floodplain and environmentally sensitive lands, and will provide permanent protection for more than 90,000 acres of key habitat.

CREP presents a great opportunity for Illinois landowners to become part of this success story. For more information, contact the local USDA Service Center, the FSA website at http://www.fsa.usda.gov/il  or the IDNR website at http://dnr.state.il.us/orc/conservation_programs