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Source verified September 11, 2026
Upper Thames River Phosphorus Reduction Program
Funding for phosphorus reduction practices
Latest source updateLast Update: October 11, 2026Latest change: Several program category pages now spell out the application and review steps more clearly, including when site visits, inspections, claims, and payment occur.View change
Latest source update
Last Update: October 11, 2026
Latest change: Several program category pages now spell out the application and review steps more clearly, including when site visits, inspections, claims, and payment occur.
Application steps clarified
The Erosion Control Structures, Livestock Access Restriction to Watercourses, Clean Water Diversion, and Variable Rate Phosphorus Application pages were updated to present the application and review process as explicit numbered steps. The revised wording clarifies when the site visit, project completion, final inspection, expense claim, and payment occur, and one page now shows the claims step with supporting documents more clearly. No eligibility, funding, scope, or program timeline changes are shown in these updates. Contact details remain the same aside from the underlying email link formatting on the pages.
Funding available
$ 75,000
Deadline
Open continuously
Location
Ontario, Canada
Overview
The Upper Thames River Phosphorus Reduction Program supports phosphorus reduction projects in the Upper Thames watershed with incentives from $15/acre to 80% of eligible project costs to reduce runoff and improve water quality. Eligible work includes cover crops, reduced tillage, and 4R phosphorus management.
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Opportunity Score
Moderate potential, but conditions must align.
At a glance
Funding available
Financing goals
- Implement environmental initiatives
- Optimize production processes
- Reduce environmental footprint
Eligible Funding
- Maximum amount : 75,000 $
- Up to 70% of project cost
Funds Providers
Eligible candidates
Eligible Industries
- All industries
Location
- Ontario
Legal structures
- For-profit business
Annual revenue
- All revenue ranges
Organisation size
- All organization sizes
Audience
- Canadians
Next Steps
1
Determine your project
2
Validate your eligibility
Availability timeline
2026
Periods: 1
Activities funded
- Cover crops and reduced tillage.
- 4R phosphorus management, crop fertility planning, and soil testing.
- Manure management, subsurface P placement, and variable rate phosphorus application.
- Clean water diversion, erosion control structures, and livestock access restriction to watercourses and wetlands.
- Forestry and tree planting, and innovative actions.
Documents Needed
- Field maps showing the field boundaries of all fields included in the application.
- Soil sample results and crop fertility plans for each field.
- Variable Rate Prescription maps accompanied by a full soil test report no older than 3 years.
- Planting location, description of the tree planting project, and before and after photos.
- Georeferenced photos and proof of payment where required for claims.
Official resources
Eligibility
Who is eligible?
- Ontario residents.
- Landowners planting 50 trees or more on their own for forestry and tree planting funding.
Eligible expenses
- Materials and labour, other than the applicant’s, associated with an approved project.
- Professional services and consulting fees; contracted labour costs; purchase of materials for eligible projects.
- Purchase of native trees and shrubs; contracted labour and planting costs; tree protection systems and maintenance agreement costs obtained through the UTRCA or planting contractor.
- Establishment of cover crop used in conjunction with a tree planting project; engineering fees; labour other than applicant or applicant’s dependent family.
- Permanent and temporary fencing; alternative water devices such as nose pumps, spring boxes, wind and solar powered pumping units.
Ineligible Costs and Activities
- Applicant labour and machinery use, permits and fees, and HST where the applicant is entitled to an HST rebate.
- Paving or hardening exercise yards, laneways, travel routes, building floors, or other surfaces; covers on liquid storages; and eavestroughs on new structures.
- Farmstead shelterbelts, landscaping for aesthetic or privacy purposes, primary hydro lines, cost of drilling new wells, new tile drainage not part of the project, and engineer reports for municipal drainage projects.
- Projects that are legislative or legal requirements, invoices not issued in the application name or farm business, and commercial stock, fruit trees, or Christmas tree species that are commercially marketable in less than 15 years.
- Ineligible cover crop, reduced tillage, manure management, and phosphorus application practices, including marketable grain crops the next year, alfalfa, canola, triticale as a single species, invasive species, disk rippers or chisel plows, soybean/bean stubble left untouched, silage corn stubble without a cover crop, no-till planting of winter wheat or other cereals or forages, unharvested corn or bean fields, surface application of solid manure after August 31 unless incorporated within 24 hours and a cover crop is planted, surface application of liquid manure after August 15 unless incorporated within 24 hours, nitrogen applications, applications of <20 lbs/acre P2O5, surface broadcast applications not incorporated, fields with average soil P higher than 30 ppm Bicarb P, manure sourced from outside the Upper Thames watershed, fields where manure applications have previously been funded unless P has been fully utilized, and fields with fewer than 1 composite sample per 25 acres.
Eligible geographic areas
- Upper Thames watershed and UTRCA watershed, excluding fields within the Municipality of South Huron.
Selection criteria
- Priority is given to projects in designated subwatersheds, areas prone to erosion, fields with high soil P levels, and fields being managed to draw down zones of high P.
- Priority is given to practices that are new to the operation and to applicants new to the program.
- Funding priority is given to operations adopting new practices and those new to the Phosphorus Program.
- Operations adding any new eligible practice, such as 4Rs, tree planting, or erosion control structures, are exempt from the waitlist, subject to available program funds.
- For Year 1 or 2 participants, funding for practices that are not new to the operation is limited to 50% of total eligible acres per applicant, and remaining acres are placed on a waitlist.
How to apply
- Review Project Guidelines.
- Submit an application.
- If you are using cover crops on some fields and reduced tillage on others, include all fields in one submission.
- For Forestry and Tree Planting, contact Rob Davies for application and submit appropriate design and drawing information.
Processing and Agreement
- UTRCA will review applications and follow up with applicants.
- Approved work must be completed as described on the application.
- Expense claims must include the Expense Claim Form and supporting documentation, and UTRCA will inspect the final project before payment is issued.
- By applying, you consent to UTRCA collecting, managing, and sharing project cost and crop management data with public and government partners in aggregate form, and you agree to inspections during normal business hours with reasonable notice.
- UTRCA may collect photos and videos for social media or print use.
Additional information
- Applications are reviewed as they are received.
- Funding is not guaranteed until a Letter of Funding Approval is issued.
- Projects may be placed on a waitlist depending on funding availability.
- Applicants consent to project inspections and data sharing in aggregate form.
Contacts
Frequently Asked Questions about the Upper Thames River Phosphorus Reduction Program Program
What is the Upper Thames River Phosphorus Reduction Program?
The Upper Thames River Phosphorus Reduction Program supports phosphorus reduction projects in the Upper Thames watershed with incentives from $15/acre to 80% of eligible project costs to reduce runoff and improve water quality. Eligible work includes cover crops, reduced tillage, and 4R phosphorus management.
How much funding can be received?
Upper Thames River Phosphorus Reduction Program Funds up to 70% of admissible expenses, capped at $75,000 per project.
What is the deadline to apply?
The program is accepting continuous intake
Who is eligible for the Upper Thames River Phosphorus Reduction Program program?
To be eligible for the Upper Thames River Phosphorus Reduction Program program, you must:
Projects must be within the Upper Thames watershed or UTRCA watershed.
Projects must meet all municipal, provincial, and federal regulations.
Applicants are responsible for obtaining all necessary approvals and permits.
What expenses are eligible under Upper Thames River Phosphorus Reduction Program?
Cover crops and reduced tillage.
4R phosphorus management, crop fertility planning, and soil testing.
Manure management, subsurface P placement, and variable rate phosphorus application.
Clean water diversion, erosion control structures, and livestock access restriction to watercourses and wetlands.
Forestry and tree planting, and innovative actions.
Who can I contact for more information about the Upper Thames River Phosphorus Reduction Program?
You can contact Watershed Conservation Centre (UTRCA) by email at vanesbroeckc@thamesriver.ca or by phone at 519-451-2800 ext.272.
Where is the Upper Thames River Phosphorus Reduction Program available?
The Upper Thames River Phosphorus Reduction Program program is available the province of Ontario.