EAST LANSING, January 31, 2022 – The U.S. Department of Agriculture encourages groups wanting to protect agricultural lands to consider enrolling in its Agricultural Conservation Easement Program.
The USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service will provide technical and financial assistance to help tribes, land trusts, and other groups protect these valuable lands. Agricultural land easements purchased through the Agricultural Conservation Easement Program focus on conserving productive agricultural lands and grasslands. Landowners are compensated for enrolling their land in easements.
“Protecting these lands preserves Michigan’s heritage, natural resources and open space,” said Natural Resources Conservation Service State Conservationist Garry Lee. “Easements are also important tools for people who are trying to improve the management of their land.”
Applications for the Agricultural Conservation Easement Program are taken on a continuous basis and are ranked and considered for funding several times per year. The next selection deadline is March 11, 2022.
Individuals interested in enrolling land in an agricultural land easement should contact their local farmland preservation organizations. Land preservation organizations interested in agricultural easements funding should contact their local USDA service center.
