Continuous Cover System

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) launched its Partnerships for Climate Smart Commodities program in 2023 to increase adoption of climate smart practices on farms across the country and to work to develop markets that could lead to premiums for commodities grown using these practices.

Fox-Wolf Watershed Alliance secured Climate Smart funding because many of the same practices that USDA supports for carbon capture also build soil health and reduce runoff resulting in improved water quality.

Agriculture is a vital part of Northeast Wisconsin’s landscape. To ensure NE Wisconsin farmer’s remain competitive in a changing market, this program is offering technical assistance and cost share to help farmers work toward adoption of climate smart practices.

 

Cost Share & Incentive Rates

  • Cover Crop and No-Till System $78/acre x 2 years
  • 2-Year Practice Implementation Incentive +$40/acre one time incentive payment

  • Accurate Whole Farm SnapPlus $5/acre (max of $1500)

  • Farm Progress Report Meetings +$625 one time incentive payment

  • Low Disturbance Manure Application (Optional) $28.11

Practice Implementation Cycle

Enrollment

Ready to start farming Climate Smart? To begin enrollment, review the Continuous Cover System program requirements. When you are ready to enroll, complete and submit the required application documents. Simply download, fill out, and scan and email or mail to Fox-Wolf. Fox-Wolf Watershed Alliance will respond within 2 weeks upon receipt of application. Timeline is dependent upon verifying eligibility through USDA-FSA.

Step 1: Review Practice Requirements and Eligibility

Before filling out the required enrollment paperwork, please review the Farm Climate Smart program requirements and eligibility to determine if you qualify.

Program requirements and eligibility can be found in the Requirements and Eligibility document. If you have questions regarding eligibility, contact your County Land Conservation Department Climate Smart staff.

Step 2: Download and Fill Out Documents

To begin enrollment, download and fill out the Producer Application packet. To download, click the image and follow the download instructions prompted by your browser.

All documents may be filled out online or by hand. Either way you decide to complete the application, the documents must be signed and dated by hand or as an encrypted digital signature.

Practice Requirements and Eligibility

Click to View or Download

Producer Application Packet

Click to View or Download

Practice Requirements

Cover Crop Requirements

  • Cover crops must be no-till planted.
  • Field rotation must be annual crops for the two years of the contract.
  • Crops grown as commodities will not be considered cover crops.
  • Wheat grown as a commodity does not qualify as a cover crop but is eligible for a one-time no-till payment.
  • Cover crops may be harvested as forage before termination.
  • Managed grazing of cover crops must receive prior approval by Climate Smart staff.
  • Cover crop mixes must include at least 1 over-wintering species at a pre-approved rate.
  • Cover crop planting timing and rates will follow page 12 of NRCS Tech Note 7.
    • Any deviations to timing and rates must be pre-approved.
  • Cover crop establishment requires a minimum of 8 live plants per square foot representing all species planted by freeze up or Dec. 1st.

Tillage Requirements

  • No-till allows only in-row soil disturbance during the contract period.
  • Removing residue from directly within the row (i.e. strip-till or row cleaners) is acceptable, but may only be done at the time of spring planting.
  • Vertical tillage may not be used.

Planning & Additional Requirements

  • Participation in semi-annual (winter and summer) planning meetings with County Land Conservation Climate Smart staff to prepare for upcoming conservation work
  • Provide an accurate and complete whole farm SnapPlus database to Fox-Wolf Watershed Alliance to generate a Farm Progress Report. Participate in a minimum of one Farm Progress Report meeting.
  • Work with Climate Smart staff to ensure proper documentation of implemented practices is complete, providing the following information: Crop and cover crop species, population, planting dates, equipment used for planting or other use, row spacing or drilled depth, seed cost, herbicide cost, type, and rate for cover crops, historical (3 previous years) tillage and conservation practices.
  • Install Project Signage at the field’s edge closest to the road on at least one enrolled field.

Farms that are located within the 21 counties of the Fox-Wolf Basin (see map) are considered eligible. Farms located within the watershed boundaries will receive priority. Fox-Wolf will evaluate applications based on suitability and availability of technical assistance and reserves the right to decline enrollment from farms in counties outside the core (Brown, Calumet, Fond du Lac, Outagamie, Shawano, Waupaca, Waushara, and Winnebago) watershed boundaries.

Additional requirements apply, as outlined in the Requirements for Enrollment section above.  For scenario-specific questions, please contact Fox-Wolf at climatesmart@fwwa.org or your County Land Conservation Climate Smart staff listed below.

Partnerships for Climate Smart Commodities is a USDA program “committed to supporting a diverse range of farmers, ranchers, and private forest landowners through Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities. This effort will expand markets for America’s climate-smart commodities, leverage the greenhouse gas benefits of climate-smart commodity production, and provide direct, meaningful benefits to production agriculture, including for small and underserved producers.  USDA is investing more than $3.1 billion for 141 projects through this effort and all the projects require meaningful involvement of small and underserved producers.”

For more information, please visit USDA’s Partnership for Climate Smart Commodities website.

No, farms of all sizes are eligible to apply. Farms that are able to enroll 100+ acres will have priority for the Continuous Cover System, but funding is also available for smaller farms.

Producers who are already utilizing cover crops and/or no-till on their farms are eligible, but only on fields that are not currently being managed with cover crops/no-till. Fields must be moving from a conventional system to a soil health system.

Producers who are already implementing cover crops and/or no-till on large portions of their farms are not considered eligible for the Continuous Cover System.

No, fields receiving cost share must be moving from conventional management to soil health systems.

Fields that are managed with cover crops or no-till on an inconsistent basis may be eligible to receive cost-share funding.

Producers must be enrolled with FSA (have a Farm ID) before signing a contract. If a producer is not currently enrolled, they can become enrolled and then participate in the project.

Technical support to assist with FSA enrollment is available, through this program, by Wisconsin Farmers Union.  Please see the Contact Information section below to be connected with Wisconsin Farmers Union directly.

No, LDMA is currently available for cost share only as part of the Continuous Cover System (cover crops and no-till).

Field eligibility will be determined by the County Land Conservation Climate Smart staff. We are looking to choose producers who will continue implementing practices long term.

Yes, a variety of practices that have been defined by USDA NRCS as Climate Smart (providing a climate benefit) are eligible through Farm Climate Smart.

In partnership with Pheasants Forever, cost-share funds for Wildlife Planting and Precision Agriculture Analysis farm planning are available.

Funding is available for additional conservation practices that primarily address the needs of small or underserved producers. This list of practices is under development and will be included in the Climate Smart Practice list as details are finalized.

For more details on practice standards and cost share, please see the full list of additional practices here.

Underserved Producers are defined by USDA FSA and USDA NRCS guidelines.  Detailed resources can be found on their website and are summarized below.

  • Small Producers: Those making less than $350,000 in gross annual income
  • Limited Resource Farmer: Those with direct or indirect gross farm sales not more than the current indexed value in each of the previous two years, and who have a total household income at or below the national poverty level for a family of four, or less than that of 50% of the county median household income in each of the previous two years. Self-Determination tool found here.
  • Beginning Farmer: Producers who: 1) have not operated a farm or ranch, or who have operated a farm or ranch for not more than 10 consecutive years, and 2) those who will materially and substantially participate in the operation of the farm or ranch. In the case of a contract with an individual or with the immediate family, material and substantial participation requires that the individual provide substantial day-to-day labor and management of the farm or ranch, consistent with the practices in the county where the farm is located. In the case of a contract made with a legal entity, all members must meet these requirements.
  • Socially Disadvantaged Farmer: A producer who is a member of a socially disadvantaged group. A socially disadvantaged group is a group whose members have been subject to racial or ethnic prejudice because of their identity as members of a group without regard to their individual qualities. Socially disadvantaged groups consist of the following:
    • American Indian or Alaskan Native
    • Asian
    • Black or African-American
    • Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander
    • Hispanic
  • Veteran Farmer: A producer who served in the U.S. Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, or Coast Guard, including the reserve component thereof; was released from service under conditions other than dishonorable; and has not operated a farm or ranch, or has operated a farm or ranch for not more than 10 years; or who first obtained status as a veteran during the most recent 10-year period. A legal entity or joint operation can be a Veteran Producer only if all individual members independently qualify.
  • Women Farmer: For an entity, at least 50% ownership in the farm business must be held by women.
  • Specialty Crop Grower: A producer who grows fruits & vegetables, tree nuts, dried fruits, and/or horticultural and nursery crops; including but not limited to floriculture crops, Christmas Trees, and plants grown for medicinal purposes (see full list here). *While all Specialty Crop Growers qualify for cost-share, Growers must be able to demonstrate the ability to implement cost-share practices (ex. aquaponic growers would be disqualified as they cannot implement cost-shareable practices).

One initial meeting is required for enrollment producers with County staff and Fox-Wolf Watershed Alliance. Additional meetings may be required or requested depending upon producer’s interest and/or circumstances. Contact County Land Conservation Department or Fox-Wolf Climate Smart staff to determine requirements for your situation.

For producers enrolled in the Continuous Cover System, meetings will occur following year 1 (two cropping seasons).

The contracted fields cannot be changed during the contract period. Producers that are interested in enrolling in additional fields should contact Fox-Wolf and a new contract for those acres will be drafted. New acres enrolled will be subject to the two-year contract from the time of signature of the new contract.

Contact Information

Fox-Wolf Watershed Alliance

Project Management

Tim Burns
(920) 841-0104
┃tim@fwwa.org

Dedicated County Land Conservation Climate Smart staff are located in 8 counties throughout the Fox-Wolf Basin. Contact the staff person in the county nearest to you to determine program eligibility and to begin enrollment.

Brown County

Brent Levash
(920) 391-4620
┃brent.levash@browncountywi.gov

Calumet County

Autumn Gomez-Tagle
(920) 849-1493
┃autumn.gomeztagle@calumetcounty.org

Fond du Lac County

Justin Loehrke
(920) 414-0096
┃justin.loehrke@fdlco.wi.gov

Outagamie County

Jeremy Freund
(920) 832-5073
┃jeremy.freund@outagamie.org

Shawano County

Bill Koepke
(715) 526-4620
┃bill.koepke@shawanocountywi.gov

Waupaca County

Stefan Stults
(715) 258-6245
┃stefan.stults@co.waupaca.wi.us

Waushara County

Kaylee Overby
(920) 787-0443
┃kaylee.overby@wausharacountywi.gov

Winnebago County

Eric Bertram
(920) 232-1958
┃ebertram@winnebagocountywi.gov

Have a question?

Need help enrolling? Maybe a question about eligibility? Confused about program requirements?

Fill out the Contact Us form and we will get back to you as soon as we can!