ANN ARBOR, MI — Plans to conserve about 4,000 acres of farms and natural lands in Southeast Michigan are in jeopardy with the loss of promised federal funds, according to a regional conservation coalition.
An award of $24.6 million to the Southeast Michigan Conservation Coalition Regional Conservation Partnership Program was expected to preserve farmlands and forests in five Michigan counties — Jackson, Lenawee, Livingston, Washtenaw, and Wayne counties.
But the funding, which the U.S. Department of Agriculture awarded last year, has been “rescinded,” Ann Arbor-based Legacy Land Conservancy, which leads the coalition with nonprofit and local government partners, announced Thursday, June 19.
While their funding contract had not yet been fully executed, coalition lead Susan LaCroix of Legacy said the group had been informed weeks back it would be able to move forward signing an initial agreement.
“We were taken aback” when they found out about the reversal, LaCroix said Friday, while working on figuring out the best way to appeal the decision.
“I had to call about eight or nine landowners this week and tell them the sad news,” she said.
The Ann Arbor News/MLive reached out to the USDA for comment on Friday, but has not received a response.
Cathy Harsh is among dozens of landowners who were expecting purchases of conservation easements to protect farms and natural lands from future development with help from the federal funds.
“If something happens to my sister and me, we want to know that the farm will be protected,” Harsh, whose family farm is located in Lenawee County, said.
“Having Legacy purchase our conservation easement using money from the award was going to protect our farm forever and give us some extra money to help pay off all our bills and debts,” she said.
“With the increased costs of living and our limited farming income, it was going to help my sister and I retire with a little more security. Money is tight right now, not just for us but for everybody.”
About $20 million of the award would have gone directly to the purchase of conservation easements on private agricultural and forested lands in the coalition’s five-county service area, according to Legacy. Recipients are required to provide a 50% funding match for the conservation easement purchases.
Of the 4,000 acres to be conserved, about 2,000 acres had already been identified with “landowners waiting for funding and ready to go,” LaCroix said.
The group also planned to do outreach across the region to build relationships with more landowners.
Last year, the USDA under the former President Joe Biden administration announced about $1.5 billion in funds for the program and accepted project proposals from across the country.
At the time, USDA officials said the funds would “help farmers, ranchers, and forest landowners adopt and expand conservation strategies to enhance natural resources while tackling the climate crisis,” according to an April 2024 release from the USDA.
Federal investment came through the Farm Bill and the Inflation Reduction Act.
LaCroix said they were originally informed the Southeast Michigan project would be funded through congressionally appropriated Farm Bill funds, but they were “surprised” when a letter informed them their funding was through the Inflation Reduction Act, passed in 2022, when Biden was president.
“When we inquired about why they are saying now it’s IRA funds, we were informed that the agency had decided to re-rank projects after several months and change how they were funded,” she said.
She said they did not receive an explanation why projects were re-ranked.
“We definitely got kicked out of the Farm Bill funding group and they moved us into the IRA funding, and then they could tell us they weren’t funding us,” she said.
In a January executive order, President Donald Trump ordered agencies to pause disbursement of funds appropriated through the Inflation Reduction Act, which invests in domestic energy production and manufacturing, and aims to reduce carbon emissions. A federal judge has since said the funds had to be released. Meanwhile, Congress is working to undo the act’s provisions.
Conservation easements ensure land remains in agricultural production, protect soils from development, and preserve communities’ ability to grow food, according to a release from Legacy officials.
They also say it is “especially important” in Jackson, Livingston, Lenawee, and Wayne counties because those communities “historically have not had the opportunity to conserve land with NRCS funding.”
Nearly all of the coalition partners are in Washtenaw County. The partners with Legacy include the city of Ann Arbor, Ann Arbor Township, Scio Township, Washtenaw County Parks and Recreation Commission, Dexter Township, Webster Township, Northfield Township, Augusta Township, the Southeast Michigan Land Conservancy, and the Livingston Land Conservancy.
“While we are in conversations with the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) for more clarity, we are working with our legal team to better understand our options in this unfortunate situation,” Diana Kern, Legacy’s executive director, said in a statement.
“The landowners, families, and farmers we planned on helping through this award are our priority and we are prepared to appeal this decision,” Kern said.
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