Projects
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CTIC serves as a trusted catalyst to lead and collaborate on projects that address conservation agriculture's most important topics: soil health, water quality, adaptation, and resiliency of the country’s producers. We are grateful for the support and cooperation of our dedicated partners who are actively investing in more sustainable production systems throughout the full food and agriculture value chain.
Current Projects
Farmers for Soil Health
Enrolling Farmers in Early 2026! More than $3.5 million in direct payments to farmers is available in Minnesota, South Dakota, and Wisconsin. Need more information? Contact our Soil Health Specialists for guidance on stacking, timing, and more details about the program. Meet our Farmers for Soil Health team: Minnesota South…
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Diverse Corn Belt
In biological systems — and economic and social ones — resilience is rooted in diversity. The Diverse Corn Belt project (DCB) set a goal to expand diversification opportunities that benefit farmers, communities, the regional economy, and the environment.
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Conservation Starts Here!
Connecting Producers with Incentive Programs and Technical Assistance
National Cover Crop Survey
CTIC partners with the USDA-NIFA Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education program and the American Seed Trade Association to benchmark farmer and adviser attitudes on cover crops. The data has been used in academic research, educational programs, policy planning, and Congressional testimony.
Legacy Data National Survey
Since 1982, the Conservation Technology Information Center’s (CTIC) National Crop Residue Management Survey (CRM) is the only survey in the U.S. designed to measure and track the type of tillage used by crop at the county level through personal observation of field conditions at mile or half mile intervals.
Past Projects
Let’s Do the Math on Cover Crops
CTIC’s Economic, Agronomic and Environmental Benefits of Cover Crops project, usually called "Cover Crop Math," will pencil out the full range of benefits that cover crops bring to the farm and surrounding areas.
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Know Your Watershed
Know Your Watershed is a coordinated national effort to encourage the formation of local, voluntary watershed partnerships and help assure that these partnerships successfully attain their goals. The initiative is sponsored by more than 70 diverse National Partners representing private and public corporations, government agencies, and non-profit organizations. Each National Partner…
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Indian Creek Watershed
Over the course of six years, the Indian Creek Watershed Project proved to be a significant model for voluntary water quality improvement efforts — not just in Livingston County, Illinois, but across the country. Project organizers talked to every single producer in the watershed about conservation practices and water quality, and by…
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Bee Integrated Demonstration Project
CTIC is supporting this Honey Bee Health Coalition led effort to bring together beekeepers and farmers to demonstrate how a suite of best practices can be implemented on agricultural landscapes to support honey bee health. This innovative strategy provides a blueprint for supporting pollinator health across North America.
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PLUS-UP Water Quality Initiative
Phosphorus Load-Reduction Stimulus Program: PLUS-UP Background The Conservation Technology Information Center (CTIC) is leading a new effort to pilot a phosphorus load reduction market in the Western Lake Erie Basin (Maumee, Sandusky, and Cedar-Portage watersheds, see map). Growers within the indicated watersheds are now being sought to participate in this…
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Agricultural Drainage Management Education Series
Stuttgart, AR August 2017 CTIC brought together farmers; researchers from USDA-Agricultural Research Service, University of Arkansas and Arkansas State University; and conservationists from USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service and the Arkansas Natural Resources Commission for a deep dive into how crop consultants can help their clients benefit from conservation practices.…
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National Aquatic Resource Survey
The National Aquatic Resource Surveys (NARS) are collaborative programs between the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), states and tribes that assess the quality of the nation’s inland and coastal waters, providing vital data that can help guide conservation efforts on the landscape. CTIC works with EPA and its partners on…
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