Apply for a Grant
Ag Plan Reimbursement Program
Pennsylvania’s conservation districts are encouraged to work with farmers to apply for reimbursement of agricultural plans. This grant is first come, first served. The grant round will stay open until funds are exhausted or the end of grant period, whichever comes first. Financial and other support for the Ag Plan Reimbursement Program is provided by the Pennsylvania Association of Conservation Districts, Inc. through a Growing Greener Watershed Protection grant from the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection.
The reimbursement program is open. Click here for more information.
CREP Mini-grant Program for Conservation Districts
This mini-grant program funds up to $3,000 for conservation districts to implement educational and outreach activities that support and extend the work of the Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program (CREP). Projects focus on CREP enrollment, re-enrollment and/or CREP maintenance. Financial and other support for the CREP Outreach Program Office Mini-grant Program is provided by the Pennsylvania Association of Conservation Districts, Inc. through a Growing Greener Watershed Protection grant from the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection and with additional support from USDA-NRCS.
The 2023-25 grant round is open. Applications will be accepted on a rolling basis until funds are expended. Deadline for final reports: May 2, 2025. Click here for information.
Lawn Conversion Sub-Grant for Conservation Districts
PACD was awarded a $100,000 Community Conservation Partnerships Program Grant from the PA Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR) to offer Lawn Conversion training and mini-grants to Pennsylvania’s conservation districts. The lawn conversion program will help the Commonwealth achieve a goal of planting 5,000 acres of upland forest and 5,000 acres of meadow by 2025.
The grant round will stay open until funds are used up or June 30, 2026, whichever comes first. Click here for the grant application, guidelines, and templates.
PRISM Sub-Grants
A pilot Partnerships for Regional Invasive Species Management (PRISM) program is taking place in the North West region of Pennsylvania. The NW region covers 13 counties: Erie, Warren, McKean, Crawford, Mercer, Venango, Forest, Elk, Lawrence, Butler, Clarion, Jefferson, and Armstrong. Funding is available for Education & Outreach Mini-grants and Management Project Sub-grants.
The grant round is open. Click here for the grant applications and guidelines.
Riparian Buffer Sub-Grant for Conservation Districts
Pennsylvania’s conservation districts are encouraged to apply for funding to install riparian forest buffers in conjunction with landowners. Multi-functional riparian forest buffers are encouraged but conventional buffers are accepted as well. This grant is first come first served.
The grant round will stay open until funds are used up or June 30, 2025, whichever comes first. Click here for the grant application, guidelines, and templates.
Nonpoint Source Pollution Educational Mini-Grant Program
The PACD administers the Nonpoint Source Pollution Prevention Mini-Grant Program. Grants of up to $2,000 are awarded to promote water quality and pollution prevention. With this funding, conservation districts are able to implement educational programs to increase local awareness of water quality issues and encourage citizen participation in activities to improve water quality in local watersheds. Financial and other support for this project is provided by the Pennsylvania Association of Conservation Districts, Inc. through a grant from the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection under Section 319 of the Clean Water Act, administered by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
The 2024-25 mini-grant round is closed. The deadline to apply was April 30, 2024. Click here for more information.
Note: This is the final round of this mini-grant program.
Other Resources
- Grants & Awards – From the PA Environment Digest, this resource lists upcoming deadlines for awards and grants.
- Nonpointsourcepa.org – The site is a resource for funding opportunities for nonpoint source pollution projects in the following four areas: Agriculture, Acid Mine Drainage, Stream Restoration, and Urban Stormwater.
- Pennsylvania Department of Education
- Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection