The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Natural Resources Conservation Service, Sand County Foundation, and other partners are combining forces to address conservation issues in the Driftless Area of Wisconsin.
The USDA-NRCS Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP) awarded $1.5 million for the project to Sand County Foundation.
“We’re looking forward to assisting landowners in making land management improvements across the ecologically important landscapes of the Driftless Area,” said Dr. Heidi Peterson, Sand County Foundation’s Vice President of Agricultural Conservation and Research.
“By targeting conservation funding and technical assistance to grasslands and oak savannas, we will reduce erosion from vulnerable landscapes, and increase habitat for grassland birds and pollinators,” she explained. “The Driftless Region Conservation Partnership will leverage the resources of NRCS and local partners in targeted geographies to enroll about 100 eligible landowners in RCPP contracts.”
“Over the five-year project, we will improve resiliency and ecosystem services on at least 1,000 acres of existing degraded prairie and savanna habitat. We will also convert 1,000 acres of vulnerable cropland to permanent vegetative cover as agroforestry, prairie buffers, field borders, and well-managed pastures,” Peterson said.
Key partners in the project include: Valley Stewardship Network, Driftless Area Land Conservancy, Southern Driftless Grasslands, Savanna Institute, Applied Ecological Services, The Nature Conservancy in Wisconsin, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, and Southern Wisconsin Land Conservancy.
In 2021, NRCS is investing $330 million in 85 locally driven, public-private partnerships to address climate change, improve the nation’s water quality, combat drought, enhance soil health, support wildlife habitat and protect agricultural viability.
Projects are awarded through the RCPP. RCPP partners offer value-added contributions to amplify the impact of RCPP funding. Throughout its history, RCPP has leveraged partner contributions of more than $1 for every $1 invested by USDA, resulting in nearly $3 billion collectively invested in natural resource conservation on private lands.
“The Regional Conservation Partnership Program is public-private partnership working at its best,” said Terry Cosby, Chief of USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service. “These new projects will harness the power of partnership to help bring about solutions to natural resource concerns across the country while supporting our efforts to combat the climate crisis.”
For more information on RCPP, visit the RCPP website.