Additional Financial Resources

CONSERVATION EASEMENTS

1. Agricultural Conservation Easement Program - Agricultural Land Easement (ACEP-ALE)

   ACEP-ALE is a program of the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) to help protect working farms and ranches through conservation easements. Under the Agricultural Land Easement component, NRCS may contribute up to 50 percent of the fair market value of the agricultural land easement. Where NRCS determines that grasslands of special environmental significance will be protected, NRCS may contribute up to 75 percent of the fair market value of the agricultural land easement.

2. Agricultural Conservation Easement Program - Wetland Reserve Easements (ACEP-WRE)

   Under the Wetlands Reserve Easements component, NRCS helps to restore, protect and enhance wetlands. NRCS pays 100 percent of the easement value for the purchase of the easement. Additionally, NRCS pays between 75 to 100 percent of the restoration costs.

3. North American Wetlands Conservation Act (NAWCA)

   NAWCA is a program of the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service to increase bird populations and wetland habitat, while supporting local economies and American traditions such as hunting, fishing, bird watching, family farming, and cattle ranching. Land trusts and other agencies may apply for NAWCA funding to pay landowners who are willing to enter into a conservation easement or sell their land.

4. Texas Farm and Ranch Lands Conservation Program (TFRLCP)

   TFRLCP is a program of the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department to conserve natural resources by protecting working lands from fragmentation and development. Land trusts may apply for TFRLCP funding to pay certain costs to landowners who are willing to enter a conservation easement.

HABITAT MANAGEMENT

1. Coastal Grassland Restoration Incentive Program (C-GRIP)

   The Gulf Coast Joint Venture implemented C-GRIP in 2018 in the central section of coastal Texas in order to provide financial incentives to private landowners for habitat treatments to provide suitable grassland bird habitat on their property. C-GRIP is a voluntary program that reimburses private landowners a portion of the costs for approved practices that generally fall into the categories of brush management, prescribed burning, native grass reseeding, and prescribed grazing. C-GRIP provides cost-share of 50% of the approved amount for such practice.

2. Conservation Reserve Program – State Acres for Wildlife Enhancement (CRP – SAFE)

   CRP SAFE is a land conservation program by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) working to reinstate valuable land cover which will improve water quality, prevent soil erosion, and reduce loss of wildlife habitat. Farmers in the program enter a 10 to 15-year contract to remove sensitive land from agricultural production and plant species that improve environmental health, in exchange for a yearly rental payment.

3. Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP)

   CSP is the largest conversation program in the United States led by NRCS. The program works with landowners to identify natural resource problems and strengthen existing conservation efforts by designing a custom CSP plan and improving operations.  NRCS provides funding over the term of the CSP plan to landowners that implement an approved plan.

4. Conservation Technical Assistance Program (CTA)

   CTA is a free assistance program of NRCS which provides farmers, ranchers and forestland owners with the knowledge and tools they need to conserve, maintain and restore the natural resources on their lands and improve the health of their operations with a personalized conservation plan. 

5. Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP)

   EQIP is a program of NRCS that provides financial and technical assistance to agricultural producers and non-industrial forest managers throughout Texas to address natural resource concerns and deliver environmental benefits such as improved water and air quality, conserved ground and surface water, increased soil health and reduced soil erosion and sedimentation, improved or created wildlife habitat, and mitigation against drought and increasing weather volatility. NRCS reimburses partial costs according to current payment rate schedules.

6. Grassland Restoration Incentive Program (GRIP)

   GRIP is a program of the Oaks and Prairie Joint Venture aimed at achieving grassland bird conservation in focus areas throughout the Oaks and Prairies Ecoregion of Texas and Oklahoma. GRIP provides direct payment to landowners as an incentive for conducting approved grassland bird habitat improvement practices on their property. GRIP provides cost-share of 50% of the approved amount for such practice.

7. Partners for Fish and Wildlife

   The Partners for Fish and Wildlife Program of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service provides free technical and financial assistance to landowners interested in improving wildlife habitat on their land. Priority goes to projects judged likely to provide habitat for rare, threatened and endangered species. Projects have a minimum duration of 10 years.

8. Pastures for Upland Birds Program (PUB)

   PUB is a Texas Parks and Wildlife program which provides technical guidance to private landowners to restore native grass and for vegetation on pastures and hayfields dominated by exotic grasses. PUB may fund a portion of the restoration costs, including the costs of herbicide and native seed; while the landowner would be responsible for labor and equipment.

9. Texas Landowner Incentive Program (LIP)

   LIP is a program of Texas Parks and Wildlife to help private landowners enact beneficial conservation practices for healthy lands and watersheds, with priority given to projects that benefit species of greatest conservation need. LIP provides a cost-share of 50% of the cost of the practice.

10. Texas Prairie Wetlands Project (TPWP)

    TPWP is a program led by Ducks Unlimited and its partners to provide habitat for wintering waterfowl. TPWP works with private landowners to restore, enhance and create shallow-water wetlands through a 28-county focus area along the Gulf. TPWP projects focus on harvested croplands, moist-soil areas, emergent wetlands and other created wetlands to increase biodiversity for waterfowl and other wetland-dependent species.

11. WHF

    WHF equips landowners and partners with the education, tools, and technical assistance for on-the-ground restoration, management, and generational sustainability of grassland and prairie habitat for the conservation of soil, water, air, and wildlife. WHF provides a comprehensive approach to conservation planning, from identification of challenges and opportunities to implementation of best practices and monitoring of outcomes for all landowners. In coordination with the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service and the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, WHF provides technical assistance at no cost to Texas landowners.

12. Prescribed Burning Associations in Texas

    Training in the use of prescribed fire is available to private landowners from a number of agencies. Several Texas Parks and Wildlife Department Wildlife Management Areas (WMAs) provide periodic orientation and training in wildlife habitat management, including the use of prescribed fire as an important habitat management tool. This training helps landowners understand the basic concepts of prescribed fire and how it is used to accomplish specific habitat management objectives.