Overview
The Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP) promotes coordination of NRCS conservation activities with partners that offer value-added contributions to expand our collective ability to address on-farm, watershed, and regional natural resource concerns. Through RCPP, NRCS seeks to co-invest with partners to implement projects that demonstrate innovative solutions to conservation challenges and provide measurable improvements and outcomes tied to the resource concerns they seek to address. Read the RCPP Fact Sheet (PDF, 542 KB).
RCPP Projects in Montana
Projects included in the November 17, 2020, program application cut-off period:
Projects selected in 2020, more information coming soon:
Projects renewed in 2020, more information coming soon:
Completed projects (archival purposes only):
The New RCPP
The 2018 Farm Bill made a number of substantial changes to RCPP:
- RCPP is now a standalone program with its own funding--$300 million annually. Moving forward, landowners and ag producers will enter into RCPP contracts and RCPP easements.
- Enhanced Alternative Funding Arrangement (AFA) provision—NRCS may award up to 15 AFA projects, which are more grant-like and rely more on partner capacity to implement conservation activities.
- Three funding pools reduced to two—the National pool was eliminated. Partners must apply to either the Critical Conservation Area (CCA) or State/Multistate funding pool.
- Emphasis on project outcomes—all RCPP projects must now develop and report on their environmental outcomes.
Successful RCPP projects embody the following core principles:
- Impact—RCPP applications must propose effective and compelling solutions that address one or more natural resource priorities to help solve natural resource challenges. Partners are responsible for evaluating a project’s impact and results.
- Partner Contributions—Partners are responsible for identifying any combination of cash and in-kind value-added contributions to leverage NRCS’s RCPP investments. It is NRCS’s goal that partner contributions at least equal the NRCS investment in an RCPP project. Substantive partner contributions are given priority consideration as part of the RCPP application evaluation criteria.
- Innovation—NRCS seeks projects that integrate multiple conservation approaches, implement innovative conservation approaches or technologies, build new partnerships, and effectively take advantage of program flexibilities to deliver conservation solutions.
- Partnerships and Management—Partners must have experience, expertise, and capacity to manage the partnership and project, provide outreach to producers, and quantify the environmental outcomes of an RCPP project. RCPP ranking criteria give preference to applicants that meaningfully engage historically underserved farmers and ranchers.
RCPP Regulation
The 2018 Farm Bill requires NRCS to develop a regulation for RCPP. NRCS publishes the RCPP interim final rule on the Federal Register in late fall or early winter. Upon release of the interim final rule, NRCS accepts public comments on the contents of the rule. The RCPP final rule was published on the Federal Register January 15, 2021.
Funding
Funding for RCPP is divided evenly between two funding pools.
- State/Multistate. For projects in a single state or across several states. These receive 50 percent of funding.
- Critical Conservation Areas. For projects in eight geographic areas chosen by Secretary. These receive 50 percent of funding. Parts of Eastern and Central Montana are included in the Prairie Grasslands Region.
Who is Eligible
Partner Eligibility
Eligible organizations interested in partnering with NRCS on conservation projects can develop applications for the RCPP competition. The lead partner for an RCPP project is the entity that submits an application, and if selected for an award is ultimately responsible for collaborating with NRCS to successfully complete an RCPP project.
Producer and Landowner Eligibility
Once NRCS selects a project and executes an RCPP agreement with a lead partner, agricultural producers may participate in an RCPP project in one of two ways. First, producers may engage with project partners and delegate a willing partner to act as their representative in working with NRCS. Second, producers seeking to carry out conservation activities consistent with a RCPP project in the project’s geographic area can apply directly to NRCS.
Land Eligibility
RCPP projects must be carried out on agricultural or nonindustrial private forest land or associated land on which NRCS determines an eligible activity would help achieve conservation benefits (i.e., improved condition of natural resources resulting from implementation of conservation activities).
Eligible conservation activities may be implemented on public lands when those activities will benefit eligible lands as determined by NRCS and are included in the scope of an approved RCPP project.
RCPP Conservation Activities
RCPP projects may include a range of on-the-ground conservation activities implemented by farmers, ranchers and forest landowners. These activities include:
- Land management/land improvement/restoration practices
- Land rentals
- Entity-held easements
- United States-held easements
- Public works/watersheds
A single RCPP project application can propose to employ any combination of these eligible activity types as part of an RCPP project. For more details about eligible RCPP conservation activities, please see the RCPP funding announcement.
How to Apply to RCPP
Eligible partners interested in applying should consult the announcement for program funding, which outlines requirements for proposal applications. NRCS reviews partnership proposals according to the priorities identified in the announcement and makes project selections. Upon selection of a partnership proposal, NRCS and the partner enter into a partnership agreement through which they will coordinate to provide producers in the project area assistance. Partnership agreements may be for a period of up to five years. NRCS may extend an agreement one time for an additional 12 months if needed to meet the objectives of the program. More information on this process is available on the RCPP - How to Apply webpage.
NRCS is accepting Alternative Funding Proposals (AFA) project proposals from eligible partners through May 28, 2021. Proposals must be submitted through the RCPP portal at https://nrcs-sites.secure.force.com/. Information about this request for proposals is available on grants.gov.
If you are a producer and/or landowner interested in existing RCPP projects, please contact your local USDA service center 
Prior-Year RCPP (Archives)
More Information
Contacts
Jerry Shows, Assistant State Conservationist for Programs
Phone: 406-587-6967
Email: Jerry Shows
