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Press Release

Cecil and Kent County Landowners Encouraged to Apply for Conservation Assistance to Protect Working Lands and Wildlife Habitat

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The U.S. Department of Agriculture selected three watershed areas, Conewago Creek in Pennsylvania (pictured), Smith Creek in Virginia, and Upper Chester River in Maryland as part of the Chesapeake Showcase Watershed Project. The watershed project will utilize the collective energies of Federal, State, and local partners to help landowners and communities use their land in sustainable ways that do not harm water quality. If these watersheds are successfully restored they may become models for the six states

Landowners in Maryland’s Cecil and Kent counties that are interested in protecting their land are encouraged to apply for funding through the Eastern Shore Land Conservancy (ESLC) Land Protection Initiative. 

Beltsville, Maryland November 15, 2024 – Landowners in Maryland’s Cecil and Kent counties that are interested in protecting their land are encouraged to apply for funding through the Eastern Shore Land Conservancy (ESLC) Land Protection Initiative. The Land Protection Initiative is a joint effort between ESLC and USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) to increase land protection in the Delmarva region through conservation easements.

The project focuses on both working lands preservation and habitat preservation to enhance the health of the Chesapeake Bay watershed. A key element of the project includes the requirement for 100-foot naturally vegetated buffers along all tidal waterways to support water quality improvement.

Landowners in Kent and Cecil counties who are interested in participating are encouraged to contact Autumn Conley (aconley@eslc.org) for more information and to submit an RCPP application. Priority will be given to properties located along the Sassafras River and the Chesapeake Bay. Applications are due January 10, 2025.

The ESLC Land Protection Initiative is one of 10 projects currently available in Maryland through the Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP). RCPP is a partner-driven approach to conservation that funds solutions to natural resource challenges on agricultural land. 

Since its inception in 1935, NRCS has worked in partnership with private landowners and a variety of local, state, and federal conservation partners to deliver conservation based on specific, local needs. Please visit www.md.nrcs.usda.gov for more information about NRCS.