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DEC partners with the Land Trust Alliance (the Alliance), a non-profit land conservation organization, in administering two different grant opportunities to increase the pace of protecting forests and open space in New York State.
Forest Conservation Easements for Land Trusts
The 2024 round of grants is now closed. The 2023 round awarded six grants through the Forest Conservation Easement for Land Trust program totaling $1.35 million from the Environmental Protection Fund (EPF) protecting approximately 1,635 acres of forestland.
These grants are intended to provide community benefits, advance ecosystem benefits and climate resilience, and work towards goals identified in the New York State Open Space Plan, the New York State Wildlife Action Plan, the New York State Forest Action Plan, and/or other local, regional or statewide land protection plans.
Complete details about this grant opportunity including eligibility requirements, how to apply, and other program elements, and grant awards from previous years can be found on the Alliance's website.
New York State Conservation Partnership Program
The New York State Conservation Partnership Program (NYSCPP) is now accepting applications for the 2025 grant round. Land trusts interested in a Professional Development Grant must submit a Letter of Interest by Monday, October 21, 2024 by 5 p.m. EST. Final applications are by invitation only. Applicants invited to submit a final proposal will be notified by mid-November. The deadline for all final applications is Monday, December 23, 2024 by 5 p.m. EST. Complete details about this grant opportunity can be found on the NYSCPP webpage.
Created in 2002, the NYSCPP is a public-private partnership between DEC and the Land Trust Alliance that invests in New York land trusts. Grants are funded through the NYS Environmental Protection Fund (EPF) annually and are administered by the Alliance in coordination with DEC.
Since the Conservation Partnership Program's creation in 2002, and including this year's grants, the program has awarded 1,208 grants totaling more than $31 million to 94 land trusts. Cumulatively, the state's investment has leveraged $32 million in additional funding from local and private sources.
NYSCPP is nationally recognized as a model for leveraging public and private funding for building capacity of land trusts to help advance open space, farmland preservation, and resource conservation goals included in the 2016 New York State Open Space Plan. Complete details about this grant opportunity can be found on the Alliance's website.
2024 and Past Grant Awards
On May 7, 2024, DEC and the Land Trust Alliance awarded $3.075 million in Conservation Partnership Program grants to 44 nonprofit land trusts across the state for 64 projects.
- 2024 Grant Award Descriptions (PDF)
- 2024 Grant Awards by Region (PDF)
- 2024 Grant Distribution Map (PDF)
Details about grant awards from previous years are available on the Alliance's website.
