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Golden Wing Warbler

Working Lands for Wildlife - Maryland

Through Working Lands for Wildlife (WLFW), NRCS works with partners and private landowners to focus voluntary conservation on working landscapes.

On This Page

NRCS provides technical and financial assistance to agricultural producers, helping them plan and implement conservation practices that benefit target species and priority landscapes.

WLFW projects focus on declining species that have needs compatible with agricultural practices and rural land management and that can benefit from conservation on private lands. The habitat needs of these species are representative of healthy, functioning ecosystems where conservation efforts benefit a much broader suite of species. Maryland has identified four target species.

Target Species in Maryland

  • Golden Winged Warbler
  • American Black Duck
  • Bog Turtle
  • Northern Bobwhite

Working Lands for Wildlife provides financial and technical support to increase conservation efforts and share the cost of conservation practices with landowners in the areas known to support one or more of the selected  species.  Producers and landowners can enroll in WLFW on a continuous basis at their local NRCS office. Funding assistance for WLFW projects is available through the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) and the Agricultural Conservation Easement Program (ACEP). The NRCS conservation professional you work with can help you determine which Farm Bill program can help support your proposed project.

To learn more about assistance available through WLFW, contact your local USDA service center.

Technical Contact

Julie Devers
State Biologist
julie.devers@usda.gov

Program Contact

Mikel Williams Hawkins
Farm Bill Specialist
Phone: 443.482.2923
Email: mikel.williams@md.usda.gov

Ready to get started?

Contact your local service center to start your application.

Find Your Local Service Center

USDA Service Centers are locations where you can connect with Farm Service Agency, Natural Resources Conservation Service, or Rural Development employees for your business needs. Enter your state and county below to find your local service center and agency offices. If this locator does not work in your browser, please visit offices.usda.gov.

How to Get Assistance

Do you farm or ranch and want to make improvements to the land that you own or lease?

Natural Resources Conservation Service offers technical and financial assistance to help farmers, ranchers and forest landowners.

how to get started

To get started with NRCS, we recommend you stop by your local NRCS field office. We’ll discuss your vision for your land.

NRCS provides landowners with free technical assistance, or advice, for their land. Common technical assistance includes: resource assessment, practice design and resource monitoring. Your conservation planner will help you determine if financial assistance is right for you.

We’ll walk you through the application process. To get started on applying for financial assistance, we’ll work with you:

  • To fill out an AD 1026, which ensures a conservation plan is in place before lands with highly erodible soils are farmed. It also ensures that identified wetland areas are protected.
  • To meet other eligibility certifications.

Once complete, we’ll work with you on the application, or CPA 1200.

Applications for most programs are accepted on a continuous basis, but they’re considered for funding in different ranking periods. Be sure to ask your local NRCS district conservationist about the deadline for the ranking period to ensure you turn in your application in time.

As part of the application process, we’ll check to see if you are eligible. To do this, you’ll need to bring:

  • An official tax ID (Social Security number or an employer ID)
  • A property deed or lease agreement to show you have control of the property; and
  • A farm number.

If you don’t have a farm number, you can get one from USDA’s Farm Service Agency. Typically, the local FSA office is located in the same building as the local NRCS office. You only need a farm number if you’re interested in financial assistance.

NRCS will take a look at the applications and rank them according to local resource concerns, the amount of conservation benefits the work will provide and the needs of applicants. View Application Ranking Dates by State.

If you’re selected, you can choose whether to sign the contract for the work to be done.

Once you sign the contract, you’ll be provided standards and specifications for completing the practice or practices, and then you will have a specified amount of time to implement. Once the work is implemented and inspected, you’ll be paid the rate of compensation for the work if it meets NRCS standards and specifications.