Chesapeake Bay Foundation: National Fish & Wildlife Foundation Grant Will Help Pennsylvania Farmers Connect For Healthier Local Waters

On March 31, the Chesapeake Bay Foundation announced a new National Fish and Wildlife Foundation grant will help create cleaner rivers and streams in Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, and West Virginia through regenerative farm practices like converting row crops to pasture, better livestock grazing, and streamside trees under .

The Chesapeake Bay Small Watershed Grant of $939,700, with $267,800 in matching funds, will implement nearly 1,700 acres of agricultural conservation practices, including managed grazing and planting trees along streams.

The grant is made from NFWF’s Chesapeake Bay Stewardship Fund, funded primarily by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency through the Chesapeake Bay Program Office. 

Additional funding for this project is provided by the U.S. Department of Agriculture Natural Resources Conservation Service. 

In Pennsylvania, CBF will collaborate with Capital Resource Conservation and Development Council, Inc. (Cap RC&D) to provide educational resources, peer-to-peer technical assistance, field days, and pasture walks in Lancaster, York, Adams, Cumberland, Lebanon, Dauphin, and Franklin counties.

With Cap RC&D, field days will focus on improving pasture conditions, soil health, and converting row crops to grazing. 

This produces less polluted runoff, healthier soils, and reductions in fertilizer use and farm costs, all of which leads to cleaner water in local streams and the Chesapeake Bay.

Pastures with deep-rooted forage plants are more resilient to extreme weather, like prolonged droughts or torrential rains. 

Veterinary expenses and cull rates may drop because of fewer foot ailments and other herd health problems, since the livestock are more active and outside with less exposure to pathogens.

Grant funds awarded to CBF for the project will also go toward economic case studies on farms in Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Virginia, looking at the costs and benefits of shifting to regenerative production systems like grazing.

Kelly O'Neill, Agriculture Policy Analyst with the Chesapeake Bay Foundation in Pennsylvania said-- “For Pennsylvania, this grant means that more farmers will improve their grazing efforts by learning from other farmers.

“Federal and state investments in regenerative agriculture are good for farm productivity and the health of local streams by keeping soil and nitrogen on the land instead of running into local waters.

“Regenerative grazing has helped many farmers to balance expenses and income, while improving the quality of farm life by reducing labor and costs. Livestock move frequently through a series of paddocks, allowing the forage plants to recover while the animals are grazing elsewhere.

“Grazing operations generally have lower start-up and maintenance costs than the alternative. Many livestock farmers shifting to grazing can spend more time managing pastures and monitoring herd performance, and less on a tractor.”

For more on Chesapeake Bay-related issues in Pennsylvania, visit the Chesapeake Bay Foundation-PA webpage.  Click Here to sign up for Pennsylvania updates (bottom of left column).  Click Here to support their work.

Also visit the Keystone 10 Million Trees Partnership to learn how you can help clean water grow on trees.

How Clean Is Your Stream

DEP’s draft 2026 Water Quality Assessment includes a mapping tool that allows you to check on the status of water quality near you.

Click Here to check how clean your stream is.

[Posted: March 31, 2026]  PA Environment Digest