INDIANAPOLIS – A partnership between Indiana, Michigan and Ohio will receive $7.8 million from USDA over the next five years to improve soil health and water quality and protect natural resources in the Western Lake Erie Basin (WLEB).

The funding comes in the form of a grant from the USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS). The Lake Erie Conservation Partnership is a collaboration between the departments of agriculture in Indiana and Michigan and The Ohio State University.

The Western Lake Erie Basin covers nearly 7 million acres in northeast Indiana, southeast Michigan and northwest Ohio. More than half of the land in the basin is used for agriculture, according to the EPA. Nutrient runoff from farm fields has been cited as one factor in the presence of harmful algal blooms that have appeared in Lake Erie in recent years.

The grant focuses on the Maumee River Basin said Bruce Kettler, director of the Indiana State Department of Agriculture (ISDA). “Our belief is by focusing on a smaller area, the financial assistance, the technical assistance, will have a really large impact. That’s why this group is focusing on that. The focus will be on getting conservation programs on the ground to reduce phosphorous and sediment.”

Technical assistance will be provided to farmers and landowners who may not know how to put conservation practices, such as cover crops or grass waterways, into place, he noted. The educational component will share information on the benefits of conservation practices to soil health and to the goal of reducing nutrients and sediment going into the water.

The conservation practices promoted under the program will be ones the agencies know have worked in the past, Kettler explained. “We have found that a systemized approach really helps. Planting cover crops is one thing. But if you plant cover crops, you can add grass waterways or look at a different crop rotation system.”

The funding comes from the Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP). USDA will invest $23.2 million in three RCPP projects in the Western Lake Erie Basin, the agency said.

“One of the things we pride ourselves on as Hoosiers is our ability to collaborate and form partnerships,” Indiana Lt. Gov. Suzanne Crouch said. This project shows “the ability of Indiana, Michigan and Ohio to come together to partner to improve soil and conservation efforts. It’s really a collaborative regional effort that benefits the land and water and preserves them for future generations.”

In addition to the USDA funding, 37 partners in the project – including the Indiana Soybean Alliance, the Ohio Corn Marketing Program, Indiana Dairy Producers, Michigan Farm Bureau and Red Gold – have said they would commit $9.4 million to the effort, Kettler said.

The departments of agriculture and other agencies charged with promoting conservation practices have been encouraging farmers and landowners to use them for quite a few years, he stated.

“I think there have been some farmers who have been reluctant. Just like new technologies in tractors and equipment, not all jump on it right away. It never comes as quickly as any of us want. We are making progress.”

As an example, Kettler said cover crops are Indiana’s third largest crop based on acreage.

Human nature might be a reason some haven’t embraced conservation efforts, Crouch added. “We are always resistant to change. We’re always comfortable doing what we know.”

Dates for farmers and landowners to apply for funding have not been set. The information will be available on the websites of the 37 partners, ISDA, NRCS and local soil and water conservation districts.

As a part of the project, Ohio State will help monitor the effects of conservation practices on soil health and source water quality for Delphos in northwest Ohio, ISDA said. The community has been impacted by elevated nitrates and harmful algal blooms, the agency added.

USDA also announced funding for the Farmland & Water Quality Conservation Initiative in Michigan, which impacts the Macatawa, Lower Grand and Pigeon River watersheds. The Ohio Department of Agriculture said it has received a five-year, $8 million grant to assist in the state’s work to improve water quality in Lake Erie. Farmers in 10 counties – Crawford, Erie, Huron, Marion, Ottawa, Richland, Sandusky, Seneca, Shelby and Wyandot – will be eligible for funding to develop nutrient management plans and conservation practices.

USDA said last month it would invest $330 million in 85 “locally driven, public-private partnerships to address climate change, improve the nation’s water quality, combat drought, enhance soil health, support wildlife habitat and protect agricultural viability.”