The Michigan Agriculture Environmental Assurance Program (MAEAP) is an innovative, proactive program that helps farms of all sizes and all commodities voluntarily prevent or minimize agricultural pollution risks. MAEAP‘s mission is to develop and implement a proactive environmental assurance program ensuring that Michigan farmers are engaging in cost-effective pollution prevention practices and working to comply with state and federal environmental regulations.
This comprehensive, voluntary, proactive program is designed to reduce farmers’ legal and environmental risks through a three-phase process: 1) education; 2) farm-specific risk assessment; and 3) on-farm verification that ensures the farmer has implemented environmentally sound practices. The program’s three systems — Farmstead, Cropping and Livestock — each examine different aspects of the farm. After becoming MAEAP verified, a farm can display a MAEAP sign signifying that MAEAP partners recognize the farm is environmentally assured.
With confidentiality guaranteed by law, MAEAP provides a structure under which Michigan farmers can be assured they are effectively following all current Right to Farm Generally Accepted Agricultural and Management Practices (GAAMPs) and are working to comply with state and federal environmental laws specific to each system of the program.
MAEAP was first developed in 1997 by a coalition of farmers, commodity groups, state and federal agencies, and conservation and environmental groups to provide a venue for farmers to become better educated about management options in order to help protect and enhance the quality of natural resources. Partners from these groups are still involved in MAEAP‘s work, serving on committees and spreading the word to farmers. On March 8, 2011, Governor Rick Snyder signed the first legislation of his new administration, establishing MAEAP in law. Read more about these legislative changes.
Michigan farms have achieved more than 1,000 MAEAP verifications across the state on farms of many different sizes, producing many different crops.