(Area) The general CRP signup is open through April 7th.
The Conservation Reserve Program provides thousands of acres for Iowa’s hunters. Bryan Hayes with the Iowa DNR Office in Lewis explains how vital it is, specifically for pheasant habitat. “They are important to our upland bird populations and the recreation our pheasant population provides to the people of Iowa. I’d hate to think about where we would be without the Conservation Reserve Program. I don’t think we’d be hunting pheasants in the southwest part of the state without conservation reserve acres.”
The Conservation Reserve Program is administered by the Farm Service Agency. “You can’t have wildlife without habitat. That’s a pretty simple way to put it. The Conservation Reserve Program is one way to add habitat to the landscape while protecting soil and water quality. There’s more benefits than just providing those upland bird populations. There’s some benefits to water quality.”
111,414 CRP acres are set to expire this October.
