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Federal Funding and Protection Programs <br />Land and Water Conservation Fund <br />The Land and Water Conservation Fund is the largest source of federal money for park, <br />wildlife, and open space land acquisition. Under the act, a portion of the money is <br />intended to go to federal land purchases and a portion to the states as matching grants <br />for local park projects. <br />Wetland Reserve Program <br />The Wetlands Reserve Program, administered by the Natural Resource Conservation <br />Service, is a voluntary program offering landowners the opportunity to protect, restore, <br />and enhance wetlands on their property. This program offers landowners three options: <br />permanent easements, 30 -year easements, or 10 -year restoration cost -share <br />agreements. In all cases, the landowner retains ownership and responsibility for the <br />land, including any property taxes based on its re- assessed value as wetland or non- <br />agricultural land. The landowner controls access to the land; the right to hunt, fish, trap, <br />and pursue other appropriate recreational uses; and may sell or lease land enrolled in <br />the program. The landowner may request uses which are compatible with protecting <br />and restoring the wetland and associated upland habitat. <br />To be eligible under this program, land must be restorable and be suitable for wildlife <br />benefits. In addition, the landowner must have owned the land for at least one year <br />prior to enrollment, with limited exceptions. <br />North American Wetland Conservation Act (NAWCA) <br />This program, administered by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, encourages <br />voluntary, public - private partnerships to conserve wetland ecosystems. Projects must <br />be approved by the North American Wetlands Council for consideration for federal <br />funding. In addition, the project must have a private funding match and support <br />conservation of migratory non -game birds and endangered species. <br />Standard Grants Program: Projects must meet certain biological criteria, and grant <br />requests are limited to $1 million. Partners must minimally match the grant request at a <br />1 -to -1 ratio. <br />Small Grants Program: The Small Grants Program supports long -term wetlands <br />acquisition, restoration, and /or enhancement projects that are less complex than those <br />encountered in the Standard Grants Program. Grant requests may not exceed $50,000, <br />and funding priority is given to projects that have a grantee or partners that have not <br />participated in an Act - supported project before, criteria for funding a project are the <br />same as those for the Standard Grants Program. <br />Open Space Acquisition Funding and Protection Strategies - Draft October 2001 <br />