This cooperation between the forest service and virginia department of conservation and recreation is to support natural heritage resources assessments, surveys, conduct project planning, and…

Federal Cooperative Agreement Summary

The U.S. Forest Service, Region 8 – Southern Region, awarded a Cooperative Agreement of $5.14 million to the Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) under the Good Neighbor Authority program (CFDA 10.691), effective September 19, 2025, through September 18, 2035. The agreement authorizes DCR to conduct natural heritage resources assessments and surveys, develop project planning strategies, and implement recovery and restoration initiatives across Virginia to restore watershed and ecological systems on National Forest System lands.

Under this 10-year cooperative agreement, DCR will deliver comprehensive environmental assessment and restoration services focused on ecosystem recovery and watershed health. The funded activities encompass natural heritage resource surveys, ecological data collection, project design and planning, and on-the-ground implementation of restoration work to address degraded watersheds and ecological conditions. The Good Neighbor Authority program enables state agencies to execute restoration projects across jurisdictional boundaries, increase the pace and scale of land management improvements, and reinvest any generated revenue into regional forest and watershed health priorities. This agreement represents a negotiated sole-source award with specific work products and project objectives to be achieved collaboratively between the Forest Service and the state agency.

This cooperation between the forest service and virginia department of conservation and recreation is to support natural heritage resources assessments, surveys, conduct project planning, and implementation of recovery to restore watershed and ecological systems.