USDA announced $45.7 million for two Iowa conservation projects on October 23, 2024. The awards are $20.76 million for a cattle feed-management project and $25 million for floodplain restoration. The announcement describes planned funding and expected conservation benefits; it does not establish how much has since been disbursed or what results have been achieved.
Which Iowa projects were selected, and how much was announced?
The USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) named two projects selected through the Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP). The combined announced amount is $45.7 million.
| Project | Announced amount | Lead partner | Planned conservation approach |
|---|---|---|---|
| Climate-Smart Feed Management: Absolute Enteric Methane Reductions in Iowa via 3-NOP | $20.76 million | AgSpire Inc. | Work with Iowa beef feedlots to introduce 3-NOP in cattle diets, with the aim of reducing methane emissions. |
| Iowa Driftless Floodplain Resilience and Restoration Project | $25 million | Resource Conservation & Development for Northeast Iowa | Use floodplain easements to take vulnerable marginal floodplain agricultural land out of production and reduce sediment and nutrient loss. |
These are the amounts in NRCS’s October 23, 2024 announcement, which said the projects would receive funding. The announcement is not a payment ledger or confirmation that all funds have been disbursed. Read the USDA NRCS announcement.
What the feed-management project plans to do
AgSpire’s project plans to work with up to 75 Iowa beef feedlots and approximately 225,000 cattle. The intended intervention is to add 3-NOP to cattle diets, targeting enteric methane—the methane produced during digestion.
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USDA’s announcement estimates reductions of up to 25 percent in enteric methane and up to 72,000 metric tons of carbon-dioxide equivalent. Those are project expectations reported at selection, not independently verified or measured outcomes. “Up to” describes a ceiling in the announcement, not a guaranteed reduction at every participating feedlot.
What the Driftless floodplain project plans to do
The $25 million project, led by Resource Conservation & Development for Northeast Iowa, proposes floodplain easements to remove vulnerable marginal farmland from agricultural production. The stated conservation aims are to reduce sediment and nutrient loss. The announcement does not provide a completed acreage total or measured environmental results.
How RCPP funding works
RCPP is an NRCS partner-driven program for addressing natural-resource challenges on agricultural land. NRCS describes two project structures:
- RCPP Classic: NRCS uses contracts and easements with producers, landowners, and communities in collaboration with project partners.
- Alternative Funding Arrangements: NRCS funds partners to support eligible conservation activities with eligible producers and landowners.
Partners identify contributions and manage outreach and measurement of environmental outcomes, according to NRCS’s RCPP program overview. The Iowa award announcement does not, by itself, specify which structure applies to each project.
What the funding announcement does—and does not—confirm
The announcement establishes the selected projects, their stated award amounts, lead partners, and planned approaches. It also reports projected feed-management outcomes. It does not confirm later payment records, project completion, or measured results. Readers should therefore treat the $45.7 million as the combined amount announced for the two selections, rather than evidence that the entire sum has already been paid or that projected benefits have been achieved.
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