Wetland Restoration Applications Being Accepted to Improve the Great Lakes Basin

Indiana farmers in the St. Joseph, Upper Maumee, Auglaize and St. Mary’s watersheds may be eligible for a special conservation initiative to restore wetlands and help protect the Great Lakes.  Indiana is one of eight states that has received federal funding through the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI), a partnership between the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS).  Indiana NRCS will make available $350,000 to help agricultural producers and landowners who want to improve and protect the waters and resources in the Great Lakes Basin, more specifically, the Western Lake Erie Basin.

America’s Great Lakes — Lake Superior, Lake Michigan, Lake Huron, Lake Erie and Lake Ontario — provide habitat for a variety of fish and other wildlife and drinking water for more than 40 million people. EPA partners with several federal agencies, including NRCS, to strategically target the biggest threats to the Great Lakes ecosystem and to progress toward achieving long-term restoration goals. Through GLRI, NRCS accelerates conservation efforts on private lands in targeted watersheds throughout the region, working with farmers and landowners to restore wetlands and other habitat areas, protect surface waters from runoff carrying excess sediment and nutrients, and to combat invasive species.

“Since 2010, GLRI has served as a catalyst for unprecedented federal agency coordination to protect and restore the largest system of fresh surface water in the world,” said Indiana NRCS Acting State Conservationist, Curtis Knueven.  “NRCS is proud to be able to work with our partners, farmers and landowners on private lands who are doing their part to improve these natural resources.”

In order to accelerate Great Lakes protection and restoration, GLRI funding is added to the regular funding that NRCS gets each year for its Farm Bill conservation programs. Today’s funding announcement is a component of the Agricultural Conservation Easements Program (ACEP). Through ACEP, NRCS provides technical and financial assistance to landowners, enabling them to successfully restore, enhance and protect habitat for wildlife on their lands, reduce damage from flooding, recharge groundwater and provide outdoor recreational and educational opportunities. Eligible landowners can choose to enroll in a permanent or 30-year easement. 

ACEP-GLRI applications may be submitted at any time to NRCS; however, applications for the current funding round must be submitted on or before the closing date of November 17.  Applications that are submitted after November 17 will automatically be considered in the following funding period.

For more information about ACEP in Indiana, visit https://www.nrcs.usda.gov/programs-initiatives/acep-agricultural-conservation-easement-program/indiana/ACEP or contact your county’s district conservationist by visiting https://www.farmers.gov/working-with-us/service-center-locator.  For additional information about GLRI, visit https://www.nrcs.usda.gov/programs-initiatives/great-lakes-restoration-initiative