RAPID CITY, S.D. – The USDA’s Farm Service Agency has announced a historic agreement with several tribes in South Dakota.
The Cheyenne River Sioux, Oglala Sioux, and Rosebud Sioux Tribes will work with the USDA to improve grassland productivity, reduce soil erosion, and enhance wildlife habitat on tribal land.
Through the Conservation Reservation Enhancement Program or CREP, the USDA will help people enroll in the program and help them throughout the process.
Scott Marlow, the deputy administrator for farm programs for USDA says the Grassland Conservation Reserve Program benefits farmers and ranchers who implement conservation practices on their land, while still maintaining their rights to the land.
”While these agreements that we’re engaging in now don’t specifically sign up any acres, don’t commit any acres, and don’t require signing up of any acres, what it does is it open up the opportunity for a facilitated process, an easier process,” added Marlow.
This partnership applies to lands owned by the tribes or their members.
