The Illinois Soil Health Incentive Program (SHIP) is a new program concept to provide financial incentives to Champaign County Illinois producers to implement conservation management practices that sequester carbon, reduce atmospheric greenhouse gases (GHGs), and improve soil health. The incentives are based on greenhouse gas reductions using modeled county-level quantification methods.
In 2021, farmers in Champaign County have the opportunity to participate in a Limited Pilot of the SHIP with the Champaign County Soil and Water Conservation District. Applications may be submitted starting June 15, 2021, and will be selected for funding in October, 2021. All SHIP Applicants must also complete a STAR Field Form for each Field to be enrolled in SHIP.
The goals of SHIP are to:
- Provide a simple and transparent program framework to increase adoption of soil health practices on Illinois farmland
- Offer financial support for farmers based on anticipated results rather than payment for practices
- Ensure local technical assistance capacity by partnering with SWCDs
This page hosts a slide deck about the SHIP project; the SHIP Application Spreadsheet; a flyer about the SHIP 2021 Limited Pilot; and a questionnaire where you can ask questions and provide some feedback about SHIP. Thank you for your interest, and please do let us know what you think!
Contacts:
Emy Brawley, The Conservation Fund
Olga Lyandres, Delta Institute
Erin Gundy, CCSWCD
