Conservation Planning

What are Conservation Plans?

Soil Conservation and Water Quality Plans (Conservation plans) – are flexible, farm-specific plans that set goals for protecting and enhancing the range of natural resources on a farm, and suggest best management practices to achieve those goals. Farmers and/or landowners initiate the conservation planning process by contacting their local Soil Conservation District (SCD). Conservation planners work together with farmers and landowners to develop conservation plans free of charge. 

Benefits of Conservation Plans

Conservation plans benefit both the farms on which they are implemented, as well as the wider region. On-farm benefits include protecting your farm’s topsoil and the minerals, nutrients and organic matter that the soil includes.  Protecting your soil also benefits the quality of waterways on your farm and beyond its boundaries.  When soils are well-managed, sediment and nutrients are kept on your land and out of streams, creeks and rivers.  Reducing the amount of sediment and nutrients in streams, creeks and rivers protects the quality of those waterways—and the water quality of the Chesapeake Bay.  

Conservation Planning and Farm Leases

Conservation planning can facilitate leasing communication and formation. The process of creating, reviewing, or updating a Conservation plan for your farm can be a good way to begin a conversation with your landowner/farmer about conservation practices.  Agreeing to follow a Conservation plan can establish stewardship standards. Further agreeing to meet annually or biannually to review the Conservation plan can provide an opportunity to discuss whether and how conservation goals are being met, and next steps to further enhance conservation practices. 

Lease provisions can also specify which party will be responsible for plan implementation and installation of specific management practices.  Working through these issues early on and putting them in a written lease can prevent future disputes based on misunderstandings of conservation priorities and preferences.