INDIANA – The Indiana Conservation Partnership (ICP) announced its 2025 conservation accomplishments. The ICP works with Hoosier landowners to provide technical or financial assistance for the implementation of conservation projects. In 2025, landowners supported by the ICP installed more than 44,800 new conservation practices.
The Indiana Conservation Partnership report showed that over the last year, landowners helped prevent over 2.1 million tons of sediment, over 4.5 million pounds of nitrogen, and over 2.2 million pounds of phosphorus from entering Indiana waterways.
In 2025, Hoosier farmers, with ICP assistance, planted more than 242,000 acres of cover crops and implemented over 217,000 acres of conservation tillage.
While the term conservation practices can mean many things, in Indiana, some of the most common conservation best management practices are cover crops, nutrient management, residue and tillage management, conservation cover, early successional habitat development/management, and grassed waterways.
“Conservation work isn’t easy, but it pays off,” said Lt. Governor Micah Beckwith, Indiana’s Secretary of Agriculture and Rural Development. “Every acre of cover crops planted and every ton of soil kept in place is a win for our farmers and for Indiana’s future. I’m proud of the work the Indiana Conservation Partnership and our farmers are doing together.”
As a farmer, Indiana State Department of Agriculture director Don Lamb recognizes the challenges that come with installing new conservation initiatives but sees the opportunities these practices can create.
“Change on the farm doesn’t happen overnight, and I know firsthand the challenges landowners face when adopting new conservation practices,” said Director Lamb. “But the numbers in this report tell a clear story — Hoosier farmers are putting in the work, and it’s paying off for their land, their bottom line and the water we all depend on. I’m proud of what our ICP partners and our producers accomplished in 2025, and I’m confident that momentum will only grow.”
The ICP is made up of public and non-profit groups, along with landowners, that work together for the betterment of soil health and water quality. ICP organizations include the Indiana Association of Soil and Water Conservation Districts, Indiana Department of Environmental Management, Indiana Department of Natural Resources, ISDA, Indiana State Soil Conservation Board, Purdue Extension, USDA-Farm Service Agency and USDA-Natural Resources Conservation Service.
The Indiana Conservation Partnership is a crucial part of Indiana’s Nutrient Reduction Strategy, which illustrates the continued success and challenges of conservation and serves as a tool to help set watershed priorities and reduction targets, manage conservation resources and to further stakeholder involvement across Indiana.
To view the full report and find more information on soil and water conservation in Indiana in 2025, click here or visit https://www.in.gov/isda/divisions/soil-conservation.
