The State of Maryland has committed approximately $16 million for the 2011-2012 Cover Crop Program, which provides grants to farmers who plant cover crops in the fall to conserve nutrients, reduce soil erosion and protect water quality in the Chesapeake Bay and its tributaries.

As increased levels of dissolved phosphorus in farm fields are identified as a major factor in the number of algal blooms in Lake Erie, some are pointing to no-till planting as one of the primary causes of the phosphorus run-off.

A recently completed five-year study of conservation tillage practices in the 4.9 million acre Western Lake Erie Basin watershed reveals that most fields in the watersheds are either tilled conventionally or stirred with mulch tillage at least once every three to five years.

The total value of bats to U.S. agriculture, and the potential loss from white-nose syndrome, ranges from a low of $3.7 billion to a high of $53 billion a year.

American Farmland Trust says conservation and farmland protection are at a crossroads.

Steve Groff's No-Till, Cover-Crop Operation Featured In IMAX Production About Chesepeake Bay

To preserve long-term carbon balances and soil productivity, the goal of maintaining 2,500 to 3,000 pounds of organic matter, on average, after each crop should be the goal.

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced that the next general signup for the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) will begin on March 14, 2011, and continue through April 15, 2011.

USDA's National Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) recently announced that the deadline for producer applications for the Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP) has been extended to January 21, 2011