Grants and funding opportunities
Conservation cost-share
Funding and technical assistance is available to landowners for projects that improve water quality by reducing erosion and controlling stormwater runoff.
Available funds
Landowners may receive funding of up to 75 percent of the total eligible costs of installing a conservation practice.
All practices must be approved prior to construction. Landowners will be reimbursed when the project is complete.
Priorities for funding
We encourage the use of practices that improve soil health, including planting cover crops and reducing tillage.
Agricultural landowners or operators can receive funding and support to try effective practices that stabilize soil and make yields more consistent and sustainable over time.
Eligible projects
Eligible projects include those that:
- Reduce stormwater runoff
- Stabilize eroding areas
- Protect shorelines from erosion
- Reduce wind erosion
Projects must be designed to be effective for at least 10 years.
Soil health program
We have funding and support to promote soil health. There are several ways to improve soil health:
- Reduce tillage
- Add cover crops
- Add diversity to the crop rotation
Farmers who improve soil health see many benefits: stabilized soils, improved soil fertility, reduced need for inputs, and yields that become more consistent and sustainable over time.
Project examples
Problem
Crop fields on areas with sloping or highly erodible soils can often lead to soil and nutrients ending up in waterways from surface runoff.
Solution and result
Use of Clean Water Fund grant funds in the Rush Creek subwatershed were leveraged to construct several practices, including a grassed waterway (pictured below) to reduce the runoff. When vegetation gets established in the waterway, it slows down runoff, which helps to reduce major sources of erosion and phosphorous while ultimately keeping productive soil in its place on the fields.
The overall result is less runoff and better water quality.
Story
A farmer in rural Corcoran was having issues with runoff from a steep, sloped field. In addition to producing less crops, the slope contributed to runoff, which reached a nearby lake, leading to water quality issues.
After working with Hennepin County, the landowner was able to install a waterway, sediment control basin, and subsurface drainage. The waterway directs excess water off the fields and into the nearby lake, while the control basins allow soil to settle before running off.
Before, during, and after construction
The pictures here show the progress of the project throughout construction.
Erosion occurring next to the field before starting on the project.
View of the drain tile that went directly below the grassed waterway.
Finishing up grading the soil and burying the tile.
Completed waterway structure prior to seeding it with grass to reduce erosion.
Contact
To learn more about potential projects and funding, or to set up a field visit, please fill out this online form: Cost share for conservation interest form.
Kevin Ellis, conservation specialist
kevin.ellis@hennepin.us
612-382-3956