WASHINGTON – House Agriculture Committee Chairman David Scott issued the following statement in response to USDA awarding 85 new partnership projects through the Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP):

"I’m delighted to hear about the $330 million investment in public-private partnerships through our farm bill’s conservation title,” said Chairman Scott. “In particular, I would like to congratulate Emory University, The Conservation Fund, and their partners for leveraging a Conservation Innovation Grant into a multiyear RCPP award.  This award will help to permanently protect farmland in the greater Atlanta area, provide pathways for minority farmers to access that land, and discover new market opportunities for those farmers.”

Background:

A fact sheet on the RCPP can be found here (PDF download).

The latest RCPP grants are an example of farm bill programs at work.  The Working Farms Fund’s conversion of their initial Conservation Innovation Grant (CIG) into a larger RCPP award serves as an example of the farm bill’s role in facilitating innovation and scaling successful projects into more permanent solutions.

To date, more than $3 billion dollars in additional RCPP funding have been leveraged through partner contributions. Today’s announcement will generate at least $440 million in additional conservation funds through communities and other partners.