USDA Awards $160 Million to Deploy Precision Irrigation and Drought-Resistant Cropping in Ten States

LINCOLN, Neb. — The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) announced on Monday the distribution of $160 million in Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP) grants to support water-efficiency retrofits across 8,000 family farms in ten Western and High Plains states.

The grants, matched by $180 million in private agricultural sector and state conservation funding, provide direct cost-share assistance for farmers installing variable-rate pivot irrigation, subsurface drip systems, and real-time soil moisture sensor telemetry over the Ogallala and Central Valley aquifers.

Conserving Groundwater and Maximizing Crop Yields Agriculture officials estimate that precision telemetry systems reduce agricultural groundwater withdrawals by 25 to 35 percent while sustaining or increasing per-acre yields for corn, soybeans, wheat, and cotton.

"Water is the lifeblood of rural America and global food security," USDA officials said in Lincoln. "Facing historic climatic variability and declining groundwater levels across our primary agricultural basins, this $160 million investment equips producers with cutting-edge digital farming tools that conserve precious water resources while keeping family farm operations profitable."

Statewide Distribution Across Major Farming Basins Participating agricultural districts include:

• Nebraska and Kansas (Upper Republican & Platte Basins): $45 million for variable-rate irrigation controllers across 250,000 acres.
• Texas and Oklahoma Panhandle: $35 million for deep-well flow meters and drought-tolerant cover crop seed programs.
• Colorado and New Mexico (Arkansas & Rio Grande Basins): $30 million for canal lining and closed-pipe delivery retrofits.
• California Central Valley: $30 million for high-efficiency vineyard and almond orchard micro-drip conversions.
• Iowa and Minnesota: $20 million for tile drainage water management systems that capture seasonal runoff for mid-summer reuse.

State agricultural extension directors noted that participating producers will also receive technical assistance from university agronomists to optimize fertilizer placement and reduce nitrogen runoff into municipal watersheds.