Via Amy Ivy, Executive Director/Horticulture Educator, Cornell Cooperative Extension Clinton County
January 7, 2010
Update on the USDA-NRCS High Tunnels Assistance
From Dianna Power, NY Program Manager – NRCS
New York Growers Do Not Have a January 15 Deadline
USDA-NRCS in New York State has agreed to be a pilot state for offering a new practice for financial assistance, “Seasonal Tunnel System for Crops”. Seasonal Tunnels Systems are also commonly known as “Hoop Houses” or “High Tunnels”.
NRCS National Headquarters has released a national press release regarding the new opportunity. The press release is available thru the national NRCS website at http://www.nrcs.usda.gov/ as well as the NY NRCS website http://www.ny.nrcs.usda.gov/. In addition, the USDA and the White House have also released a video regarding “Hoop Houses” that is available on the USDA YouTube website at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=07vtMJgp0no.
Program decisions for announcing this Seasonal Tunnel System pilot program in New York are not yet finalized and no deadlines have been set for NY farmers to enroll. NRCS is still finalizing the technical standards and criteria that the Season Tunnel Systems must meet to be eligible for funding. The NY Seasonal Tunnel System pilot program with NY NRCS is still under development. The Massachusetts NRCS has set January 15, 2010 as the deadline for Massachusetts farmers to signup for the Seasonal Tunnel Systems. Here is a link to the Massachusetts press release announcing the Massachusetts deadline: http://www.ma.nrcs.usda.gov/news/news_high_tunnel_pilot.html. Once NY deadlines are set for the Season Tunnel Systems, NRCS NY will be sending out a press release notification.
NRCS programs are continuous sign-up programs. As a result, interested applicants can sign-up at anytime at their local USDA Service Center. Here is a link for NY producers to find their local USDA Service Center: http://offices.sc.egov.usda.gov/locator/app. Local NY NRCS field staff can explain basic USDA program eligibility to interested producers so that applicants are eligible when the pilot program in NY is announced.
Additional Background Information regarding Seasonal Tunnels Systems:
A seasonal high tunnel is a greenhouse-like structure, at least 6 feet in height, which modifies the climate to create more favorable growing conditions for vegetable and other specialty crops grown in the natural soil beneath it. This pilot program will test the validity of potential conservation benefits.
Potential Resource Benefits of High Tunnels – Potential natural resource benefits from using tunnel structures include: (1) improve plant quality, (2) improve soil quality, and (3) improve water quality through methods such as reduced nutrient and pesticide transport.
Other NRCS Conservation Program Signup:
NY Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) has announced an application deadline for New York farmers and private forestland landowners to be considered for our “typical” Conservation Program funding for 2010. The deadline for other programs/focus areas not related to the Seasonal High Tunnel pilot program is January 22, 2010. This includes Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP), Chesapeake Bay Watershed Initiative (CBWI), Agricultural Management Assistance Program (AMA), and the Wildlife Habitat Incentives Program (WHIP). For more information see our NY press release at: http://www.ny.nrcs.usda.gov/news/stories/signup_2010.html.
For NRCS program questions for NY please contact Dianna Power at dianna.power@ny.usda.gov