SALINA, KANSAS, October 27, 2023 ‒ Kris R. Ethridge, Acting State Conservationist, U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) in Kansas, has announced an initial funding opportunity available for landowners and operators in parts of Kansas.  This financial assistance is offered through  Regional Conservationist Partnership Program (RCPP) – a program in which NRCS partners with other conservation entities to deliver financial and technical assistance on agricultural working lands.  RCPP projects identify a geographic region and resource concerns to address to meet a common goal related to natural resource conservation.  The Nature Conservancy (TNC) is one such partner, who has been collaborating with numerous conservation and producer-led groups to develop the Southern High Plains Initiative (SHPI). This effort is part of and helps implement the Great Plains Grasslands Biome Framework, by defending and expanding grassland cores.  While RCPP-SHPI is a multi-state project, TNC has identified 33 counties in the west-central portion of Kansas that will be eligible for the program. 

“The Southern High Plains Initiative seeks to conserve a network of lands and waters across the region that support ecosystem services and communities” said Matt Bain of The Nature Conservancy.  Bain continued, “The plains cover a 71-million-acre region at the intersection of five states: Colorado, New Mexico, Texas, Oklahoma, and Kansas.  We are leveraging the expertise of a diverse set of partners to take advantage of the current window of opportunity to conserve this landscape for the future.”

Applications for RCPP-SHPI are accepted year-round.  The initial deadline to apply for fiscal year 2024 funding will be Friday, December 1, 2023.  Applicants will work with NRCS planners to assess the property for resource concerns that can be addressed through the project.  High priority will be given to those applications with property located in Logan, Gove, Scott, Clark, Comanche, Kiowa, and Barber County, Kansas, and Woods County, Oklahoma – those applicants will be ranked against each other using criteria established following the SHPI framework, and applications will be funded from the highest ranked down.  Applications received after this deadline will be batched and considered for funding during the next sign-up period. 

“Kansas NRCS is proud to assist The Nature Conservancy in working with producers to develop conservation plans that are consistent with the SHPI objectives,” said Ethridge. “Via long-term conservation contracts and increased payment rates for select conservation practices, NRCS and its’ partners in conservation can help increase grassland resiliency and reduce the threat to this critical ecosystem,” said Ethridge.

More information regarding SHPI can be found at https://www.nature.org/en-us/about-us/where-we-work/priority-landscapes…. Information regarding the RCPP Program in Kansas can be found at https://www.nrcs.usda.gov/programs-initiatives/rcpp-regional-conservation-partnership-program/kansas/regional-conservation. 

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