Sec. 22.03a. Illinois Healthy Soils Initiative.
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Sec. 22.03a. Illinois Healthy Soils Initiative.
(a)The Illinois Healthy Soils Initiative is created. It is the purpose of the Initiative to improve the health of soils through efforts that improve soil and water quality, increase the resilience of ecosystems to extreme weather events, protect and improve agricultural productivity, and support aquatic and wildlife habitat.
Subject to appropriation, the Initiative shall be administered by the Director of Agriculture with consultation from soil and water conservation districts, the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency, the Department of Natural Resources, and the University of Illinois Extension Program. The Department shall create guidelines and guidance to assist soil and water conservation districts in developing soil health assessments in order to identify desired capacity and funding levels and establish regular, measurable, cost-effective, and technically achievable goals to advance voluntary and incentive-based strategies that improve healthy soils.
These assessments shall be used to identify opportunities to access financial and technical assistance from local, State, and federal sources to guide resources to their best potential use.
The Initiative shall complement and improve coordination of existing resources and processes and shall not replace existing, local, State, or federal funding or technical assistance programs. The Department shall report on progress of the Initiative annually.
The Initiative shall promote voluntary and incentive-based soil health efforts. No part of this Section shall be used to impose mandates or require practice adoption.