DEC announces Conservation Partnership Program Grants

ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10) — On Friday, the Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) announced $2.25 million in partnership grants across the state. The grants are part of the the New York Conservation Partnership Program, a public-private collaboration funded through the Environmental Protection Fund.

DEC Commissioner Basil Seggos announced the grant awards, which are going to 50 nonprofit land trusts. The grants will fund conservation, professional development, and resource management efforts throughout New York City, the North Country, Western New York, and the Capital Region.

“Over the last year, New Yorkers young and old have been exploring the outdoors in record numbers,” Seggos said. “Land trusts across the state help to preserve and manage some of the special, natural places that the public has come to love. The grants announced today support forest management, conservation agriculture, coastal and wetlands restoration, and other activities that are essential to help address climate change and preserve the ecosystems we depend on.”

The Conservation Partnership Program grants will align with $2.6 million in private and local funding to help localities deal with climate change, boost public access to the outdoors, and protect open spaces, farmland, and water quality. They range from $3,000 to $100,000, like so:

Western New York/Finger Lakes/Southern Tier

• Buffalo Niagara River Land Trust: $18,750
• Chautauqua Watershed Conservancy: $40,000
• Finger Lakes Land Trust: $19,000
• Genesee Land Trust: $59,580
• Grassroots Gardens WNY: $56,063
• The Nature Sanctuary Society of WNY: $25,000
• Western New York Land Conservancy: $50,000
• Total: $268,393

Central New York/Mohawk Valley

• Cazenovia Preservation Foundation: $42,450
• Central New York Land Trust: $80,000
• Total: $170,450

North Country

• Adirondack Land Trust: $51,754
• Champlain Area Trails: $63,225
• Indian River Lakes Conservancy: $37,500
• Lake Placid Land Conservancy: $25,000
• Northeast Wilderness Trust: $62,000
• Thousand Islands Land Trust: 86,980
• Tug Hill Tomorrow: $35,190
• Total: $351,649

Capital District

• Agricultural Stewardship Association: $78,900
• American Farmland Trust: $40,000
• Battenkill Conservancy: $30,000
• Capital Roots: $18,000
• Columbia Land Conservancy: $74,600
• Grassland Bird Trust: $30,000
• Greene Land Trust: $29,300
• Huyck Preserve and Biological Resource Station: $44,075
• Lake George Land Conservancy: $23,300
• Mohawk Hudson Land Conservancy: $33,710
• The Nature Conservancy: $60,000
• Northeastern Cave Conservancy: $3,161
• Rensselaer Land Trust: $83,000
• Rensselaer Plateau Alliance: $47,700
• Saratoga PLAN: $52,200
• Total: $647,946

Mid-Hudson

• Dutchess Land Conservancy: $100,000
• Friends of the Great Swamp: $22,500
• Hudson Highlands Land Trust: $50,000
• Kingston Land Trust: $54,994
• Mianus River Gorge Preserve: $38,500
• Mohonk Preserve: $54,000
• Open Space Institute: $40,000
• Orange County Land Trust: $35,000
• Pound Ridge Land Conservancy: $48,800
• Scenic Hudson Land Trust: $60,000
• Wallkill Valley Land Trust: $31,500
• Westchester Land Trust: $62,000
• Winnakee Land Trust: $30,000
• Woodstock Land Conservancy: $9,350
• Total: $636,644

New York City/Long Island

• Green Guerillas: $24,418
• HL Ferguson Museum: $32,000
• North Shore Land Alliance: $40,000
• Peconic Land Trust: $38,900
• Total: $174,918