State Conservationist Terrance O. Rudolph, of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), and Bill Palmer, CEO and president of the Tall Timbers Research Station and Land Conservancy, announced hat a sign-up for the Red Hills to the Coast, Connecting Land and Water project is under way. The deadline for eligible landowners in Georgia to apply is November 5, 2021.

This state project covering Georgia is one of 48 projects across the country that was selected for funding through fiscal year 2020’s Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP). This project was developed in conjunction with Tall Timbers Research Station and Land Conservancy. The project area includes the entirety of the St. Marks River and Aucilla River watersheds in both Georgia and Florida.

The focus areas for this funding announcement are portions of Brooks County and Thomas County within the St. Marks River and Aucilla River watersheds.

Tall Timbers' vision for the St. Marks River and Aucilla River watersheds is a pair of adjoining watersheds that contain conserved, well-managed working lands and natural habitats that allow for an increase in listed species populations, improved water quality for residents, and economic benefits to surrounding communities. Tall Timbers seeks to conserve as many of the unique elements of these two watersheds as possible, while also recognizing the needs and desires of people in the region. Tall Timbers hopes to see higher wildlife populations, clearer springs, cleaner rivers, more productive fisheries, and a better economic outlook for residents of the area because of this project.

Land Management Activities
Private landowners with property in the watersheds within Brooks and Thomas counties can receive financial assistance through land management contracts utilizing the following conservation practices:

• Prescribed burning

• Firebreak

• Fuel break

• Tree/shrub establishment

• Tree/shrub site preparation

• Forest stand improvement

• Restoration of rare or declining natural communities

• Brush management

• Herbaceous weed control

• Critical area planting

• Riparian forest buffer

• Streambank and shoreline protection

• Upland wildlife habitat management

• Wildlife habitat planting

Those interested in receiving funding assistance related to the above practices should visit their local USDA Service Center and submit their Conservation Program Application (NRCS-CPA-1200) before the November 5 deadline.

“Partnerships like these are what RCPP is all about,” said Rudolph. “When we work together to leverage talents and conservation resources, all nearby Georgians, wildlife and landscapes stand to benefit.”

Bill Palmer, president and CEO of Tall Timbers Research Station and Land Conservancy, states, "Tall Timbers has a long history of working with private landowners in the Red Hills of Georgia and is excited about this opportunity to partner with NRCS to help landowners in Georgia improve wildlife habitat and water quality through the RCPP project."

In the 2018 Farm Bill, the RCPP promotes coordination of NRCS conservation activities with partners that offer value-added contributions to expand our collective ability to address on-farm, watershed, and regional natural resource concerns. Through RCPP, NRCS seeks to co-invest with partners to implement projects that demonstrate innovative solutions to conservation challenges and provide measurable improvements and outcomes tied to the resource concerns they seek to address.