The Conservancy provides practical solutions to landowners looking to maximize protection of their creeks and streams. Our projects include:
- Planting trees along streams
- Installing rain gardens to catch and filter runoff from rooftops and roadways
- Engaging school children and their communities in planting trees
- Fencing livestock out of streams and other waterways
- Directing landowners to cost-share programs to help them pay for conservation projects
We provide a fu
ll range of services from hiring the contractor to plant the trees and put up the fence to referring interested landowners to local program specialists for federal and state cost-share conservation programs like CREP (Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program).
CREP is a voluntary program that hopes to achieve the enhancement of water-quality by excluding livestock from streams and stream banks by creating a forested buffer zone. CREP is a program that combines state and federal funding to offer qualified farmers assistance with the installation of buffers as well as a rental payment for the land which has been removed from production. Potomac Conservancy works in Virginia, West Virginia and Maryland educating landowners on this important program and connecting them with local program specialists.
- In Virginia, the Potomac Conservancy has been working with the Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation (VA DCR) to permanently protect these CREP buffers with permanent conservation easement agreements. The Conservancy serves as the primary contractor for DCR in the Northern Shenandoah Valley Region, and works with eligible landowners and DCR to complete these projects.
- In Maryland, we work closely with the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) and others to enroll people in the CREP program. Enrollees generally agree to maintain a vegetated buffer of between 35'-50' from their streams. If the stream and buffer is on pastureland, the area is also fenced to keep cattle out. Landowners agree to a 10-15 year contract and in turn receive a yearly rental payment. As this is a cost share program, there is some cost to the landowner, but it is often offset by available signing bonuses.
Recent and Ongoing Projects:
- If you are interested in learning more about how to protect
or restore your land using federal cost-share programs, check out our recent and easy-to-navigate publication Conserving Habitat through the Federal Farm Bill: a guide for land trusts and landowners. - To date the Conservancy has worked with VADCR to close permanent easements on over 43 acres of important riparian habitat.
- In the Monocacy watershed in Frederick County, MD, Conservancy staff have overseen:
- Over 3 miles of stream bank buffers
- 23.9 acres of planted forest buffers
- Over a half mile of fencing to keep livestock out of our streams