(Moscow, ID) The University of Idaho is offering grants to farmers who adopt climate-smart agricultural practices.
On Wednesday, the university announced it was accepting applications to its “Innovative Agricultural and Marketing Partnership” until Feb. 21.
The partnership is a statewide project focused on reducing climate impact within Idaho’s top commodities including potatoes, sugar beets, wheat, barley, hops, chickpeas and beef. It aims to prevent 31,000 to 70,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalents from entering the atmosphere annually while replenishing cropland soil carbon.
The program will enroll more than 200 farms, with at least 30% of participants representing underserved populations. Grants range from $38 to $74 per acre, or $1 per head per day for grazing cover crops on enrolled acreage, the university said in a press release.
“I’m optimistic we can make a big impact on changing agriculture in Idaho,” Erin Brooks, the co-director of the program and professor in the Department of Soil and Water Systems, said in the release. “I see a potential transformation that could happen over the next five years, and IAMP could be the key catalyst.”
How Idaho producers can apply
To apply, producers should visit the program’s webpage on the University of Idaho website and click on the “producer application” link. The process is estimated to take 10 to 25 minutes, and a Youtube video with instructions is available on the page.
The application asks producers to identify their preferences among a list of partner organizations to advise and guide them throughout the program, including county soil conservation districts, The Nature Conservancy, Desert Mountain Grass-Fed Beef and the Nez Perce and Coeur d’Alene tribes.
This application round, program officials are prioritizing enrollment from southern and eastern Idaho projects involving potatoes and sugar beets after last year’s round primarily received interest from North Idaho wheat farmers.
The first large-scale enrollment of producers implementing climate-smart practices will begin this spring. Producers who registered during the initial signup round do not need to take any action during the current round.
The program represents the largest grant award in the University of Idaho’s history.
This story first appeared on Idaho Capital Sun.
