USDA Offers Conservation Assistance to Landowners to Protect Wetlands, Agricultural Lands and Grasslands

NRCS plans to invest $450 million this year in conservation easements through the Agricultural Conservation Easement Program (ACEP). This program helps private landowners, tribes, land trusts and other groups wanting to restore and protect critical wetlands and protect agricultural lands and grasslands. NRCS accepts ACEP applications year-round, but applications are ranked and funded by enrollment period, which have application deadlines set by the states. Many states have upcoming deadlines this spring.