This project will support technical assistance work in the chesapeake BAY watershed for riparian forest buffer establishment and maintenance to support dedicated service forestry staff for technical…

The U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service awarded $241,223 to the State of Maryland Department of Natural Resources on August 8, 2025, under the Forest Stewardship Program (CFDA 10.678) to support technical assistance for riparian forest buffer establishment and maintenance in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed through April 30, 2027. The award funds dedicated service forestry staff who deliver program administration, coordination, and on-the-ground technical assistance to agricultural landowners establishing and maintaining riparian forest buffers. This initiative leverages partnerships with state-level forestry organizations to implement conservation practices that promote forest health, ecosystem restoration, and sustainable economic development on non-industrial private forest lands.

The Forest Stewardship Program provides critical technical assistance infrastructure by connecting private landowners with planning tools, implementation guidance, and financial resources necessary to establish buffers that improve water quality, enhance habitat connectivity, and restore ecosystem function in the Chesapeake Bay watershed. By deploying service foresters through state partnerships, the program expands capacity to reach landowners at the state level and translates federal conservation objectives into localized practice implementation across Maryland's agricultural landscape.

This project will support technical assistance work in the chesapeake BAY watershed for riparian forest buffer establishment and maintenance to support dedicated service forestry staff for technical assistance work in the chesapeake BAY watershed. The forest service administers technical assistance grants to the states through the forest stewardship program. This project promotes a practice primarily through use of partnerships for getting forest buffers established on the ground for agricultural lands. The project will distribute funding to forestry partners at the state level to conduct program administration, coordination, and technical assistance on riparian forest buffers. This program also promotes the establishment of healthy sustainable forests, sustainable economic development, and ecosystem restoration.