NRCS approves $25M in ACE’s Regional Conservation Partnership Program

In Washington, the United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS) recently approved a $25 million investment in the American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE)-led Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP) expansion that builds on the successful South Dakota-based project announced in 2021 to unlock corn ethanol access to clean fuel markets and new tax incentives, such as the 45Z clean fuel production credit, based on the adoption of climate-smart agricultural practices which reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.

The new RCPP funding will help farmers adopt reduced tillage, nutrient management and cover crops on nearly 100,000 acres across 167 counties surrounding 13 ethanol facilities partnering with ACE to implement the project in the 10-state region of Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, Ohio, South Dakota and Wisconsin. The sites were strategically chosen to provide the project’s scientific team with statistically significant data regarding the GHG effect of conservation practices in different soil types and climates.