The Conservation Effects Assessment Project (CEAP) began in 2003 as a multi-agency effort to quantify the environmental benefits of conservation practices used by private landowners participating in U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) conservation programs. Project findings and results will be used to report progress on the environmental effects of these programs, aid discussions on conservation policy development, guide conservation program implementation, and ultimately, help farmers and ranchers make informed conservation choices. CEAP will focus on developing approaches, methodologies, and databases to produce scientifically credible estimates of environmental benefits of conservation. CEAP will assess benefits to water quality, soil quality, water conservation and wildlife habitat on grazing lands (including pastureland, rangeland and grazed forest). A national assessment is underway, including a focus on watershed studies, bibliographies, and literature reviews. A new pastureland protocol for the NRCS Natural Resources Inventory (NRI) is being initiated in 2007 in five pilot states (PA, KY, CO, FL, MO) that should provide information on the effects of conservation practices, and will help with modeling of pastureland erosion. A state of the art synthesis on the beneficial effects of pastureland conservation practices will be a CEAP goal for the next three years.