Fiscal Year 2003: Performance Report U.S. Department of Agricultire Natural Resources Conservation Service

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Many farmers and ranchers plan and apply conservation in progressive steps, applying practices that benefit the land by addressing the most serious resource con- cerns first. Financial as well as technical assistance for adopting capital- intensive conservation measures in this incremental approach is provided through the Environmental Quality Incentives Program. Producers' decisions to adopt conserva- tion are influenced by the weather; the economy, which affects producers' ability to invest in conservation; the financial assistance available through public pro- grams; and the availability of technical assistance to help producers assess resource problems and implement solu- tions. Figure 3 shows the acreage treated with NRCS assistance in each of the years 2000 -2003. NRCS has been increasing its assis- tance to managers of grazed land for a number of years; the increase of grazing land treated to the RMS level reflects that continuing trend. The sharp increase in grazing land treated to less than the RMS level is a response to the severe and pro- longed drought that many rangeland areas are experiencing. NRCS accelerated assis- tance to range managers who needed to apply the practices that would provide the most urgently needed protection to pre- vent serious damage to those lands. The decrease in cropland treated shown in the figure reflects a decrease in land treated that is enrolled in the Conservation Reserve Program. The acreage of working land treated has increased slightly. Funding for Goal 1 Conservation goals are achieved through a portfolio of NRCS programs. The sci- ence -based assistance provided through the Conservation Technical Assistance program is the basis for all the agency's conservation efforts. The incentive -based programs authorized by the 2002 Farm Bill are tools to accelerate application of conservation. Figure 4 shows the relative contribution NRCS programs make to the funds expended on Goal 1 activities. See "FY2003 Performance Measures" for addi- tional data and maps relating to the perform- ance measures that support this strategic goal. Figure 4. Relative contribution of NRCS programs to the funds expended on Goal 1 activities. CTA 52% RC &D —_ 2% Source: FY 2005 Budget Explanatory Notes Fiscal Year 2003 Performance Report Farm Bill financial assistance 30% Farm Bill technical assistance 16%