The Environmental Conservation Acreage Reserve Program (ECARP) was a United States umbrella program authorized by the

Food, Agriculture, Conservation, and Trade Act of 1990 The Food, Agriculture, Conservation, and Trade (FACT) Act of 1990 — P.L. 101-624 (November 28, 1990) was a 5-year omnibus farm bill that passed Congress and was signed into law. This bill, also known as the 1990 farm bill, continued to move agr ...

(P.L. 101–624) that includes the

Conservation Reserve Program The Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) is a cost-share and rental payment program of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). Under the program, the government pays farmers to take certain agriculturally used croplands out of produc ...

, and the Wetland Reserve Program. The

Federal Agriculture Improvement and Reform Act of 1996 The Federal Agriculture Improvement and Reform Act of 1996 (P.L. 104-127), known informally as the Freedom to Farm Act, the FAIR Act, or the 1996 U.S. Farm Bill, was the omnibus 1996 farm bill that, among other provisions, revises and simplifies ...

(P.L. 104–127) continued the CRP and WRP and created the

Environmental Quality Incentives Program The Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) is a United States government program designed to assist farmers in improving environmental quality, particularly water quality and soil conservation. Congress established the program in the 1996 ...

. The goal of the ECARP was to provide long-term protection of environmentally sensitive land. Contracts,

easement An easement is a nonpossessory right to use and/or enter onto the real property of another without possessing it. It is "best typified in the right of way which one landowner, A, may enjoy over the land of another, B". An easement is a property ...

s, and cost-share payments were used to assist landowners and operators of farms and ranches to conserve and enhance soil, water, and related natural resources, including grazing land,

wetland A wetland is a distinct ecosystem that is flooded or saturated by water, either permanently (for years or decades) or seasonally (for weeks or months). Flooding results in oxygen-free (anoxic) processes prevailing, especially in the soils. The ...

, and wildlife habitat. The

Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 The Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002, also known as the 2002 Farm Bill, includes ten titles, addressing a great variety of issues related to agriculture, ecology, energy, trade, and nutrition. This act has been superseded by the 200 ...

(P.L. 107–171, Sec. 2006) replaced ECARP with the

Comprehensive Conservation Enhancement Program Comprehensive Conservation Enhancement Program (CCHP): — The 2002 farm bill (P.L. 107-171, Sec. 2006) created CCHP, the new name for the Environmental Conservation Acreage Reserve Program (ECARP). Like ECARP, the CCHP is not a program, but an umb ...

(CCHP).

References

*{{CRS, article = Report for Congress: Agriculture: A Glossary of Terms, Programs, and Laws, 2005 Edition, url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110810044532/http://ncseonline.org/nle/crsreports/05jun/97-905.pdf, author= Jasper Womach United States federal agriculture legislation Nature conservation in the United States