Jessica Mathews / news@whmi.com


The Livingston Land Conservancy or LLC has received a conservation partnership grant.

The Conservancy is a participant in the Southeast Michigan Conservation Coalition (SMCC): Increasing Permanent Land Protection and Equality of Access to Conservation Tools project, will benefit locally from a recent $24.6 (m) million Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP) award.

It was made possible by a U.S. Department of Agriculture Natural Resources Conservation Service investment to advance conservation and climate-smart agriculture across the country.

As the lead entity for the project, Legacy Land Conservancy - an accredited land trust serving Jackson, Lenawee, and Washtenaw Counties - will be responsible for managing deliverables and coordinating funding for the regional coalition partners: the City of Ann Arbor, Ann Arbor Township, Scio Township, Washtenaw Parks and Recreation Commission, Dexter Township, Webster Township, Northfield Township, Augusta Township and Southeast Michigan Land Conservancy, as well as the LLC - the only participant representing Livingston County exclusively.

The award is made with funding available through the Farm Bill and the Inflation Reduction Act, which is the largest investment in climate action and conservation in world history.

A majority of the funds, approximately $18 (m) will be used directly by the partners to purchase conservation easements on private agricultural and forest lands in the five-county coalition area.
The Conservancy says that is especially important for Livingston County landowners who have historically not had the opportunity to conserve land with NRCS funding. The LLC currently holds conservation easements on seven Livingston County properties, of which approximately 330 acres are productive farmland.
The SMCC RCPP project, spearheaded by Legacy Land Conservancy, is one of only 92 partnerdriven conservation projects funded by the USDA, and the only one in Michigan this year.

LLC Board of Directors President Sara Thomas said “We are grateful to be part of this group of dedicated agencies working to preserve valuable farmland and forward-thinking actions to respond to the changing climate. Many thanks to Legacy Land Conservancy for their leadership on such an important endeavor. We really look forward to protecting farmland and associated natural lands right here in Livingston County.”
Conserving farm and forest land in Southern Michigan is said to be an important tool to balance the region’s expanding development and economic needs with the natural infrastructure necessary to ensure clean air and water and provide access to fresh food.

The Conservancy says Jackson, Lenawee, Livingston, Washtenaw and Wayne counties lost 88,000 acres of agricultural and non-industrial private forest land between 1992-2022, a 12.7% decrease in just 30 years.
In Livingston County specifically, the 2021 High Quality Areas Assessment Study saw the loss of 9,839 acres of combined farmland and natural lands since 2004, an almost 10% decrease.

Specific project details are contingent on a formal agreement with NRCS, expected to be signed by spring of 2025, with actual funds available beginning in the fall of 2025.

One requirement of the award is that SMCC RCPP partners are responsible for 50% matching funds on each conservation easement purchase. The award does not cover hard costs of procuring such easements like surveys, title reports and insurance, environmental assessments, appraisals or organizational incurred costs like contracted labor or ongoing monitoring and legal defense of the easements.

The Livingston Land Conservancy is an all-volunteer non-profit organization dedicated to the protection of the natural heritage and rural character of the Greater Livingston County area. The LLC funds its land protection and stewardship activities exclusively through private donations, gifts, fundraising, grants and memberships. No public county or municipal funding is received. The LLC currently has 735 acres of land under its protection as of Fall 2024, with other acquisitions pending.