Visit Your County Office
Walk into your county NRCS / conservation district office and say what you want the water for — livestock, erosion, wildlife. They'll tell you what's open. Costs nothing.
Landowner's Guide · EQIP & Conservation-District Cost-Share · Arkansas
NRCS pond cost-share, explained.
You've heard it at the feed store: "the government helped pay for my pond." It's true — the program is called EQIP, it runs through your county NRCS office, and most landowners never use it because nobody explains where to start. This page is the plain-words version, from a crew that's built ponds to NRCS spec for fifty years. And when you call, a Cox answers.
The ProgramEQIP — via your county NRCS office
The StandardNRCS practice code 378 (ponds)
The RuleApproval before dirt moves
The Contractor HalfBuilt to spec since 1972
What EQIP is
The government doesn't buy you a pond.
It cost-shares a conservation practice.
EQIP — the Environmental Quality Incentives Program — is the USDA's main cost-share program, run by the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS). For eligible agricultural land, it can pay a share of building a pond that serves a conservation purpose: livestock water, erosion control, wildlife habitat. The landowner applies, the pond gets designed to a federal practice standard (ponds are code 378), and the cost-share pays out when the finished pond passes inspection.
How much does it cover? Rates change by county, by year, and by signup — so we won't quote a number, and you should be suspicious of any website that does. Historically it's been a substantial share of the construction cost. Your county NRCS office quotes the current rate — that's the only number that counts.
The one rule that catches people: approval comes before construction. Move dirt early — even clearing the site — and you can disqualify the project. Patience first, dozers second.
Our part is the contractor half: we've built Arkansas ponds the NRCS way — core trench, keyed dam, compaction lifts — since 1972, and we do the forestry site prep that cost-share plans often pair with them. Bring us the approved design and we put it in the ground to the standard.
★ Statewide from Heber Springs
Greers FerryQuitmanDrascoClintonFairfield BaySearcyMountain ViewBatesvilleConway
378NRCS practice code for ponds — the standard we build to
1st stopYour county NRCS / conservation district office
$10KSmall ponds start — dirt work only, clearing extra
0+ yrsBuilding Arkansas ponds — est. 1972
The path, start to finish
Five steps from the county office
to a full pond.
Eligibility Check
The office confirms your land and purpose qualify. Generally agricultural ground with a conservation purpose — but their call, their rules, their current signup.
The Conservation Plan
NRCS works up a plan and a pond design to practice standard 378 — where the dam sits, how the spillway's sized, what the core requires. This design is what we build from.
Approval — BEFORE Dirt Moves
Wait for the contract. Clearing or cutting early can disqualify the whole project. When it's signed, then you call the dirt crew.
Build to Spec & Inspect
We build the pond to the standard — core trench, keyed dam, lifts — and coordinate with the office so inspection passes and your cost-share pays out.
Got an approved plan?
Bring us the NRCS design and we'll walk the site, price it straight, and build it to the standard. Ponds from $10,000, dirt work only — full pricing on our price sheet.
Call the shopWe're the dirt contractor in this story, not the government. Program details, rates and eligibility come from your county NRCS office — they're the authority, and they're helpful folks.
The contractor half, on the phone
Talk to a Cox
about your cost-share pond.
Call the shop — a Cox answers501.250.4490
Email[email protected]
Shop50 Fort Cox Rd, Heber Springs, AR 72543
ServingAll of Arkansas — Ozarks to the Delta
Best first stepVisit your county NRCS office — then call us with the plan
Book a site walk
Step 1 of 3 — where are you in the process?
Where & when
Step 2 of 3 — so the right machine shows up.
Timeline
Who do we call back?
Step 3 of 3 — we'll call you back to set up the walk.
Cost-share questions, straight answers
What Arkansas landowners
ask about NRCS ponds.
Do I qualify for NRCS pond cost-share?
That's your county NRCS office's call, not ours — eligibility runs through them and generally involves agricultural land and a conservation purpose (livestock water, erosion control, wildlife). The only way to know is to walk into the office and ask. It costs nothing.
How much of the pond does cost-share cover?
Rates change by county, by year and by signup — so we don't quote them, and you shouldn't trust a website that does. Historically EQIP has covered a substantial share of qualifying pond construction. Your county office quotes the current rate for your ground.
Can Cox handle the NRCS paperwork for me?
No — and be wary of anyone who says they can. The landowner applies; that's how the program works. What we do is the contractor half: build the pond to the practice standard in your approved plan and coordinate with the office on inspections so your cost-share pays out.
What does the pond itself cost?
Small ponds start at $10,000 — the dirt work on open ground; clearing added on top if timber has to come off. Size, depth, clay on site, rock and access move it from there. Straight pricing lives on our pond page and the Arkansas dirt work price sheet. Call 501-250-4490.
When should I build a cost-share pond?
Dry season — late summer through fall — same as any pond. But the NRCS process takes time, so start at the county office months ahead. And remember the rule: approval before construction — dirt moved early can disqualify the project.