ARIZONA – The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) encourages people and groups wanting to protect critical wetlands, agricultural lands and grasslands to consider enrolling their property into conservation easements.

The Agricultural Conservation Easement Program (ACEP) focuses on restoring and protecting wetlands as well as conserving productive agricultural lands and grasslands. Landowners are compensated for enrolling their land in easements.

Applications for ACEP are taken on a continuous basis, and they are ranked and considered for funding several times per year. In Arizona, the deadline to be considered for the next ranking cycle is April 22nd, 2019.

For more information, landowners and tribes interested in wetland reserve easements and partners interested in agricultural easements should contact Scott Morton, Easement Coordinator at Scott.Morton@usda.gov or (602) 280-8823.   back...