The National Wildlife Federation, Sustainable Agriculture Coalition,
and Izaak Walton League of America jointly released a report January
17 analyzing the wildlife benefits of the Farm Bill's Conservation
Security Program (CSP). The report, Hidden Treasures: The
Conservation Security Program and Wildlife, says 1) the CSP provides
substantial wildlife benefits, 2) those wildlife benefits vary
considerably from state to state, and 3) with some changes in the
next farm bill and in the Department of Agriculture's implementation
of the program, the CSP could provide even greater wildlife benefits.

The report urges Congress to substantially increase funding for the
Conservation Security Program, require that USDA provide cost-share
under the program for new practices, and require that all Tier II and
Tier III contracts under the program address wildlife habitat.

The report's analysis of data provided by the US Department of
Agriculture finds that roughly one-half of CSP payments in contracts
signed by farmers during the 2006 CSP sign-up either support direct
wildlife habitat benefits, or promote pesticide use reduction
practices that will likely benefit some wildlife.

Wildlife habitat management is one of eleven CSP resource management
categories, and currently less than 10 percent of CSP payments are
for Habitat Management. However, wildlife benefits are also gained
from practices that provide multiple benefits, especially grazing,
pest and nutrient management.

The report includes case studies of wildlife benefits provided by the
Conservation Security Program in the Chesapeake Bay region and six
states (California, Georgia, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, and
Texas). In some states, like Missouri, payments for direct wildlife
benefits plus pesticide use reduction practices exceed 85 percent of
total CSP payments. However, some states were far lower (in Nebraska,
26 percent of payments resulting from 2006 CSP contracts are for
practices that provide wildlife benefits).

The report also gives five recommendations for the US Department of
Agriculture that would improve the program, including giving farmers
more and better wildlife habitat options, and involving state and non-
profit wildlife professionals early in the process.

The Conservation Security Program is a comprehensive stewardship
incentives program created by Congress in the 2002 Farm Bill that
provides financial and technical assistance to farmers and ranchers
who develop and maintain conservation systems that solve critical
natural resource and environmental concerns on their land.

A copy of the full report is available at www.msawg.org, and we will
try to post a copy on our Farming for Wildlife USDA site.

Duane Hovorka
Farm Bill Outreach Coordinator
National Wildlife Federation