Habitat Conservation and
Restoration Grants
There are several grant programs designed to protect and restore important habitats for plants and animals.
These grants help protect and restore:
- High quality, native ecosystems
- Habitat for endangered or threatened species
- Habitat along the water
Examples
- Purchasing pristine habitat for salmon recovery
- Protecting the largest seal nursery in south Puget Sound
- Buying land for the largest, high quality native oak forest remaining in Western Washington
- Restoring a prairie for recovering golden paintbrush, a plant threatened with extinction
- Removing non-native grasses and noxious weeds to create shrub-steppe habitat
- Creating a state park visitor center
- Purchasing waterfront in the heart of a city for a pedestrian boardwalk
- Removing a bulkhead and reshaping of natural beach to improve salmon habitat
Habitat Conservation and Restoration
| ALEA - Aquatic Lands Enhancment Account | ||||
Provides funding to buy, protect, and restore aquatic lands habitat and to provide public access to the waterfront. Projects must be associated with navigable waters of the state. Learn more. |
||||
| Applications Accepted | Who’s Eligible | Match | Eligible Project Types | Grant Limit |
| Even years | Local agencies* State agencies Tribes |
50 percent | Acquisition of land or easements Development Renovation |
$500,000 to $1 million |
| Critical Habitat Category WWRP - Washington Wildlife and Recreation Program |
||||
| Provides funding to protect habitat for wildlife including habitat for endangered, threatened, or sensitive species. Project sites may include high-quality habitat or degraded habitat that once restored will support the target species. A comprehensive plan is required. Learn more. | ||||
| Applications Accepted | Who’s Eligible | Match | Eligible Project Types | Grant Limit |
| Even years | Local agencies
|
50 percent |
Land acquisition |
None |
| ESRP - Estuary and Salmon Restoration Program | ||||
| Provides funding to projects to protect and restore Puget Sound near-shore. Projects must within Puget Sound (east of Cape Flattery), identified by a salmon recovery lead entity or Marine Resource Committee, and identified in a current salmon recovery, watershed, or near-shore habitat restoration or protection plan. Learn more. | ||||
| Applications Accepted | Who’s Eligible | Match | Eligible Project Types | Grant Limit |
| Annually | Local agencies |
33 percent, some of which must come from non-state funds. |
Land acquisition
|
None |
| LWCF - Land and Water Conservation Fund | ||||
Provides funding to buy or develop public outdoor recreation areas and facilities. Grants support both acquisition and development of active and passive recreation areas and conservation lands. Public use is required. A comprehensive plan is required. Learn more. |
||||
| Applications Accepted | Who’s Eligible | Match | Eligible Project Types | Grant Limit |
| Even years | Local agencies* State agencies Tribes |
50 percent | Land acquisition Development Renovation |
$500,000 |
| Natural Areas Category WWRP - Washington Wildlife and Recreation Program |
||||
| Provides funding to protect high quality, representative native ecosystems or unique plant or animal communities, endangered, threatened or sensitive species, rare geological features, or similar features of scientific or educational value. Project sites must have, to a major degree, retained their natural character and be managed primarily for resource preservation, protection, and study. A comprehensive plan is required. Learn more. | ||||
| Applications Accepted | Who’s Eligible | Match | Eligible Project Types | Grant Limit |
| Even years | State agencies**
|
None |
Land acquisition |
None |
| Riparian Protection Category WWRP - Washington Wildlife and Recreation Program |
||||
| Provides funding to protect riparian areas. Projects may include a wide variety of site conditions on either fresh or saltwater riparian areas. Projects must include property acquisition. Projects to extend riparian protection for a minimum of 25 years on lands enrolled in the federal Conservation Enhancement Reserve Program are allowed. All projects must have a minimum grant request of $25,000. A comprehensive plan is required. Learn more. | ||||
| Applications Accepted | Who’s Eligible | Match | Eligible Project Types | Grant Limit |
| Even years | Local agencies* |
50 percent None |
Land acquisition, which may be combined with development, restoration, or enhancement |
None to |
| Salmon Recovery | ||||
| Provides funding to improve important habitat conditions or watershed processes to benefit salmon and bull trout. Projects must go through selection by local lead entities and must address goals and actions defined in regional recovery plans or lead entity strategies. Learn more. | ||||
| Applications Accepted | Who’s Eligible | Match | Eligible Project Types | Grant Limit |
| Annually | Local agencies* |
15 percent |
Land acquisition |
None |
| State Lands Restoration and Enhancement Category WWRP - Washington Wildlife and Recreation Program |
||||
| Provides funding to two state agencies to repair damaged plant and animal habitat. Restoration projects must bring a site back to its original function through activities that will help the site be self sustaining. Enhancement projects must improve the ecological functionality of a site. A comprehensive plan is required. Learn more. | ||||
| Applications Accepted | Who’s Eligible | Match | Eligible Project Types | Grant Limit |
| Even years | Department of Fish and Wildlife
|
None |
Restoration |
$500,000 to |
| State Parks Category WWRP - Washington Wildlife and Recreation Program |
||||
| Provides funding to acquire or develop state parks. A comprehensive plan is required. Learn more. | ||||
| Applications Accepted | Who’s Eligible | Match | Eligible Project Types | Grant Limit |
| Even years | Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission | None | Land acquisition Development |
None |
| Urban Wildlife Habitat Category WWRP - Washington Wildlife and Recreation Program |
||||
| Provides funding to conserve wildlife habitat in cities. Projects must be within 5 miles or inside a city or town (or its adopted urban growth area boundary) with a population of at least 5,000; or within 5 miles of an adopted Urban Growth Area in a county that has a population of at least 200 people per square mile. A comprehensive plan is required. Learn more. | ||||
| Applications Accepted | Who’s Eligible | Match | Eligible Project Types | Grant Limit |
| Even years | Local agencies*
|
50 percent None |
Land acquisition |
None |
| Water Access Category WWRP - Washington Wildlife and Recreation Program |
||||
| Provides funding to create physical access to shorelines for non-motorized, water-related recreation activities such as boating and fishing. At least 75 percent of funding in this grant category is dedicated to acquisition projects. A comprehensive plan is required. Learn more. | ||||
| Applications Accepted | Who’s Eligible | Match | Eligible Project Types | Grant Limit |
| Even years | Local agencies* Tribes |
50 percent | Land acquisition Development Renovation |
$500,000 to $1 million |
* Local agencies means a city, county, town, federally recognized Native American tribe, special purpose district, port district, or other political subdivision of the state providing services to less than the entire state if legally authorized to acquire and develop public open space, habitat, farmlands, riparian habitat, or recreation facilities.
** State agencies eligible are Department of Fish and Wildlife, Department of Natural Resources, Department of General Administration, and State Parks and Recreation Commission
^State agencies eligible are: Conservation Commission, Department of Fish and Wildlife, Department of General Administration, Department of Natural Resources, and State Parks and Recreation Commission.
