Missouri Wildlife Habitat Incentives Program (WHIP)

The Wildlife Habitat Incentives Program (WHIP) was reauthorized in the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 (2008 Farm Bill).  WHIP is a voluntary program for private landowners to develop fish and wildlife habitat on private agricultural land, nonindustrial private forest land, and Indian land.  Through WHIP, eligible participants may receive financial and technical assistance to develop upland, wetland, riparian, and aquatic habitat areas on their property, by implementing conservation practices that establish, improve, protect, enhance or restore conditions for fish and wildlife.  To learn more about WHIP in Missouri, see the Missouri WHIP State Plan.

Current Program Information

Eligibility Criteria

In order to be eligible to apply for WHIP, the applicant must be an eligible producer with an interest in the agricultural operation requesting financial assistance on eligible land. Generally, any person or entity engaged in livestock or crop or forestry production on eligible land may apply for WHIP. Eligible land includes privately owned cropland, grassland, pastureland, nonindustrial private forest land, or other agricultural lands, as determined by the Secretary of Agriculture. Eligible land must have a resource concern identified by a certified conservation planner that the financially assisted practice will address. Activities are carried out according to a WHIP Plan of Operations (WPO) developed with the producer that identifies the appropriate conservation practice(s) needed to address the identified resource concerns. Federal, State, county and local governments, political subdivisions of state governments, State agencies, State universities, organizations funded by any of these groups, or entities containing any of these groups are not eligible for WHIP, nor is the land they own.   

While all conservation practices are subject to compliance with NRCS technical standards, NRCS is not required to provide financial assistance for all activities required to meet the applicable NRCS technical standard.  WHIP payment for specific conservation practices is contingent on the producer not starting the practice prior to having an approved WHIP contract signed by the appropriate Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC) representative. Any practice(s) started before the CCC representative signature is not eligible for financial assistance. 

How to Apply for FY2010 WHIP

WHIP applications are accepted year round.  Interested parties may apply for WHIP at their local NRCS office in their USDA Service Centers.  Your local USDA Service Center agencies are also listed in the telephone book under United States Government, Department of Agriculture. 

Missouri NRCS FY2010 eligible WHIP applications submitted to NRCS through close of business January 29, 2010, will be considered for WHIP funding during this evaluation period.

To apply for WHIP, applicants must first submit a recently-signed Conservation Program Application:

The following document requires Acrobat Reader.

WHIP Application: NRCS-CPA-1200 with Appendix (PDF, 42 KB)
 

NRCS personnel will assist each applicant to complete their Conservation Program Application. A certified planner will assist the applicant(s) to develop a WHIP Plan of Operations (WPO) to identify planned conservation practices to be implemented through WHIP.  This WPO will be the basis used by NRCS to complete the appropriate FY10 WHIP Area Application Data Form (available in the near future).

A certified planner will assist you to develop a wildlife habitat development plan and complete all required information for your WHIP application.  Applications that provide the most wildlife habitat benefit are the most competitive for WHIP funding. 

Specific details about current WHIP conservation practices available for financial assistance will be available in the near future, as will be funding pools and application selection information.

Missouri WHIP State Plan

Missouri WHIP Contact Information

National NRCS WHIP Information

Missouri WHIP Archives