Climate Agricultural Conservation Practices Act

This bill tells the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) to factor in climate benefits when it reviews or updates its conservation practice standards. In simple terms, when NRCS sets the rules for soil, water, and habitat projects that get federal support, it must weigh how these practices cut farm emissions, store more carbon in soil and plants, and help farms handle more extreme weather. The bill also defines “climate benefit” so there’s a clear target for what counts.

Key points:

• Who is affected: Farmers, ranchers, and landowners who use NRCS conservation programs.
• What changes: NRCS must evaluate climate benefits when setting and updating practice standards and consider climate benefits alongside conservation innovations. “Climate benefit” means lowering greenhouse gases, increasing carbon storage, or helping prepare for and cope with more volatile weather.
• When: During NRCS reviews or revisions of its conservation practice standards going forward.

What this could mean for communities: more support for practices like cover crops, improved grazing, tree planting, and other on-farm steps that reduce emissions, build soil health, and make farms more resilient to storms and drought.