NATURAL RESOURCES CONSERVATION
SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
AUTHORIZATION:
Colorado River Basin Salinity Control Act of 1974, as
amended, Section 202c of Title II, 43 U.S.C. 1592c; Section 201, Public Law
93-320, 88 Stat. 271; Section 2, Public Law 98-569, 98 Stat. 2933, 43 U.S.C.
1592(c).
To provide financial and technical assistance to: (1)
Identify salt source areas; (2) develop project plans to carry out
conservation practices to reduce salt loads; (3) install conservation
practices to reduce salinity levels; (4) carry out research, education, and
demonstration activities; (5) carry out monitoring and evaluation activities;
and (6) to decrease salt concentration and salt loading which causes increased
salinity levels within in the Colorado River and to enhance the supply and
quality of water available for use in the United States and the Republic of
Mexico.
TYPES OF ASSISTANCE:
Direct Payments for Specified Use. Place Cursor Here for Definition
USES AND USE RESTRICTIONS:
Eligible owners or operators in approved project areas
may receive cost-share assistance to treat salinity problems caused by
agricultural irrigation activities.
ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS:
Applicant Eligibility: A
participant may be any of the following: an owner, landlord, operator, or
tenant of eligible lands: Individual, Indian tribe, partnership, firm,
association, corporation, joint stock company, conservation district, estate,
trust, irrigation district or company, and State or local public or nonpublic
entity not described above.
Beneficiary Eligibility:
Any person in the Colorado River basin will benefit who uses or reuses water
for irrigation, domestic, municipal or industrial water supply or for fish and
wildlife habitat.
Credentials/Documentation:
Any eligible landowner or operator who controls land in an identified salt
source area is eligible to apply for cost-share assistance. This program is
currently available in Mesa, Delta, Montezuma, and Montrose counties,
Colorado; Duchesne and Uintah counties, Utah; Sweetwater county, Wyoming. This
program is excluded from coverage under OMB Circular No. A-87.
Pre-application Coordination:
This program is excluded from coverage under OMB Circular No. A-102. This
program is eligible for coverage under E.O. 12372, "Intergovernmental
Review of Federal Programs." An applicant should consult the office or
official designated as the single point of contact in his or her State for
more information on the process the State requires to be followed in applying
for assistance, if the State has selected the program for review.
Application Procedure:
Eligible persons may make application on Form SCS-LTP-001. CRSC contracts may
be requested during sign-up periods throughout the year at the local NRCS
office in the county where the land is located. This program is excluded from
coverage under OMB Circular No. A-110.
Award Procedure: The
designated project Contracting officer may approve applications within the
project allocation of Federal funds for cost-share assistance.
Deadlines: None.
Range of Approval/Disapproval Time:
None.
Appeals: Participants may
appeal any determination to the National Appeals Division, Washington, DC.
Renewals: Certain practice
approvals may be extended by the contracting Offices.
ASSISTANCE CONSIDERATIONS:
Formula and Matching Requirements:
Cost-share assistance levels may be funded up to 70 percent of total cost.
Length and Time Phasing of Assistance:
Long-term contracts of 3 to 10 years. Cost-share assistance is paid when the
practice is performed.
POST ASSISTANCE REQUIREMENTS:
Reports: None.
Audits: Subject to audit by
Office of the Inspector General, USDA.
Records: Records are
maintained in the NRCS office and Federal record centers for a specified
number of years.
FINANCIAL INFORMATION:
Account Identification:
12-3318-0-1-304.
Obligations: (Direct
payments) FY 01 $649,873; FY 02 est $832,145; and FY 03 est $0.
Range and Average of Financial Assistance:
The range has not been identified. Average: $20,000.
At the end of FY 2001, there were 118 remaining active
contracts with cost share practices valued in excess of $875,000 remaining to
be implemented on over 6,370 acres. This program is operated in 6 project
areas in 3 States (Colorado, Utah and Wyoming).
REGULATIONS, GUIDELINES, AND LITERATURE:
Guidelines are announced through the news media and in
letters to agricultural producers in the county.
INFORMATION CONTACTS:
Regional or Local Office:
Consult the local telephone directory for location of the local NRCS field
office. If there is no listing, get in touch with the appropriate State NRCS
office listed in the NRCS section of Appendix IV of the Catalog.
Headquarters Office:
Natural Resources Conservation Service, Department of Agriculture, P.O. Box
2890, Washington, DC 20013. Telephone: (202) 720-1873. Use the same number for
FTS.
Web Site Address: http://www.nrsc.usda.gov
EXAMPLES OF FUNDED PROJECTS:
For the past several fiscal years, salinity control
activities were funded under the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP).
CRITERIA FOR SELECTING PROPOSALS:
The type and severity of salinity problems; the need to
correlate on the farm conservation treatment with canal and lateral
improvement; estimated cost; extent of the salinity problem; proximity to
water bodies; land use charges; offsite effects; onsite environmental effects;
other resource problems; seasonal nature of salinity reduction practices to be
installed; applicants' ability to complete practices in the shortest time
practical; and positive or negative effects on wildlife.
