In November of 2023, the Leesport Field Office for the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) and the Berks County Conservation District (BCCD) completed their first joint NRCS Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP)/BCDD Agriculture Conservation Assistance Program (ACAP) project on the Nelson Troutman Farm. The project involved installing a 60x80' roofed stack pad for manure and animal mortality. The stack pad will provide six months of manure storage for the operation’s two broiler houses. As part of the project, NRCS also developed a nutrient management plan that provides application timings and rates for 329.6 acres of cropland.

This project was the first completed of what is expected to be 19 joint NRCS EQIP/BCCD ACAP-funded projects. NRCS has committed $3.1 million in financial assistance through EQIP, and BCCD has committed $2.6 million in financial assistance through ACAP for these 19 projects. NRCS will complete all engineering design for the projects, while NRCS and the BCCD will share conservation planning and implementation responsibilities during construction.

The Troutman Farm signed their NRCS EQIP contract in August 2022 and their BCCD ACAP agreement in May 2023. Construction and completion of the project ended in November 2023. NRCS provided $140,000 toward this project through EQIP, and BCCD provided $91,000 through ACAP. The landowner provided approximately $50,000 toward the project. 

The BCCD bid out the project following ACAP bidding requirements, and construction was completed using prevailing wage rates. 

The Troutman Farm was highlighted and visited during a tour of sites utilizing EQIP and ACAP funding by representatives of BCCD, NRCS, the State Conservation Commission, and the Department of Environmental Protection in September 2023.