Soil Health in Saginaw Valley

With Michigan Sugar Company, Environmental Tillage Systems and Blue Water Conservation District, TNC is piloting a program to help farmers access the equipment and the financial and technical support necessary to transition sugar beet acres to strip tillage. This program is supported by a USDA Regional Conservation Partnership Program grant. TNC aims to enroll 10 farms over the next five years (2022-2026). 

For County Drain Commissioners and Public Works Departments!

With support from the Cook Family Foundation and a USDA research grant, TNC in Michigan partnered with Michigan Farm Bureau, Spicer Group, Fahley Schultz Burzych & Rhodes PLC, and several Drain Commissioners to pilot a new BMP pilot project along county drains in Michigan. The project, called Drain Infrastructure Transactions for Clean H₂0—or, DITCH—seeks to increase the use of soil-saving practices by property owners to reduce sediment delivery into drainage ways and improve water quality. The project assists with the costs of setting up the program framework in a county so that certain agricultural conservation practices within drainage districts (such as filter strips or water infiltration practices) can be considered when a county assesses landowners for drain projects.

The Nature Conservancy is currently enrolling a limited number of farms for a new enhanced farmer incentives program, called the Saginaw Bay Conservation Partnership, Phase II. Based on farmer feedback we acquired during phase one of the Saginaw Bay Conservation Partnership, this new and enhanced farmer incentives program allows for greater flexibility of contract terms, common sense outcome-based payment rates, and additional (free) technical support for new adopters. Program enrollment is currently available to growers within the Saginaw Bay Watershed on a first-come, first-serve basis now through December 2023 (or until funding has been depleted, whichever comes first).

The Nature Conservancy thanks our visionary funding partner for this program, Erb Family Foundation, for making this farmer-friendly programming opportunity, and all the great conservation work it will achieve, possible. For a list of eligible conservation practices, and to get started on seeing whether Saginaw Bay Conservation Partnership Phase II funding is right for your farm, please contact TNC today.

With the Michigan Milk Producers Association, TNC is offering a three-year feed supply incentives program for up to 30 Michigan dairies. Incentives are offered to implement new feed management strategies and feed crop production practices to reduce dairy cattle methane emissions and support soil health. This program is being piloted in Michigan and Wisconsin, in partnership with the U.S. dairy industry, as part of their Net Zero Initiative. 

With Star of the West Milling Company, TNC is piloting a new initiative to improve resilience, biodiversity and soil health on wheat ground located within the Saginaw Bay Watershed. This sustainable growing program, and its associated “nature-based bonuses,” will be available on a first-come, first-serve basis to 5-15 farmers for the next two years (2023-2024). 

To learn more, contact Joel Leland, TNC, 989-277-4697, or Lisa Woodke, Star of the West, 517-648-9166.