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U.S. Dept. of Agriculture
Assistance Available
to Protect Wetlands, Agriculture & Grasslands
Sign-up Deadline is January 19, 2018
COLUMBUS, OH, OH, Dec. 18, 2017 – The U.S. Department of Agriculture
(USDA) encourages people and groups wanting to protect critical
wetlands, agricultural lands and grasslands to consider enrolling their
property into conservation easements. This year, USDA’s Natural
Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) plans to invest $250 million
nationally in technical and financial assistance to help private
landowners, tribes, land trusts, and other groups protect these
valuable lands.
The Agricultural Conservation Easement Program (ACEP) focuses on
restoring and protecting wetlands as well as conserving productive
agricultural lands and grasslands. Landowners are compensated for
enrolling their land in easements.
“Protecting these lands preserves Ohio’s heritage, natural resources
and open space, said Terry Cosby, NRCS State Conservationist in
Ohio. Easements are an important tool for people who are trying
to improve the management of their land.”
Applications for ACEP are taken on a continuous basis, and they are
ranked and considered for funding several times per year. The next Ohio
deadline is January 19, 2018.
The 2014 Farm Bill created ACEP, merging together several easement
programs into one. In the last year, easements have protected 5,132
acres in Ohio and nearly 300,000 acres nationwide.
Wetland Reserve Easements
Through ACEP wetland reserve easements, NRCS helps landowners restore
and protect wetland ecosystems. Wetlands are one of nature’s most
productive ecosystems providing many ecological, societal and economic
benefits.
In the 1700s, wetlands covered 5 million acres of Ohio, primarily in
the northwestern part of the State, referred to as the “Great Black
Swamp.” Competing land uses resulted in a 90 percent loss of wetlands
by the late 1900s. Since 2005, NRCS has assisted landowners in
restoring more than 25,000 acres of wetlands in Ohio.
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“Wetlands provide many benefits, including critical habitat for a wide
array of wildlife species. They also store floodwaters, clean and
recharge groundwater, sequester carbon, trap sediment, and filter
pollutants for clean water,” said Cosby.
“Seventy-five percent of the nation's wetlands are situated on private
and tribal lands,” Cosby added. Last year, Ohio landowners
restored 2,985 acres of wetlands through ACEP. Landowners can
choose either a permanent or 30-year wetland conservation easement.
Eligible lands include farmed or converted wetlands that can
successfully be restored, croplands or grasslands subject to flooding,
and riparian areas that link protected wetland areas. As part of the
easement, NRCS and the landowner work together to develop a plan for
the restoration and maintenance of the wetland.
Agricultural Land Easements
Through ACEP agricultural land easements, NRCS provides funds to
conservation partners to purchase conservation easements on private
working lands. This program helps keep working lands working,
especially in areas experiencing development pressure.
Partners include State or local agencies, non-profits and tribes.
Landowners continue to own their property, but voluntarily enter into a
legal agreement with a cooperating entity to purchase an easement. The
cooperating entity applies for matching funds from NRCS for the
purchase of an easement from the landowner, permanently protecting its
agricultural use and conservation values. Landowners do not apply
directly to NRCS for funding under this program.
Easements are permanent. Eligible lands include privately owned
cropland, rangeland, grassland, pastureland, and forestlands.
More Information
Ohio landowners interested in wetland reserve easements and partners
interested in agricultural easements should contact their local USDA
Service Center.
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