The land and water conservation fund (LWCF) state and local assistance program provides matching grants to develop parks owned by states and local communities

The U.S. Department of the Interior's National Park Service awarded $3.42 million to the Massachusetts Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs (EOEA) under the Outdoor Recreation Acquisition, Development and Planning program (CFDA 15.916) on October 1, 2025, with a completion date of December 31, 2028. Through this Project Grant, EOEA will provide a subaward to the Town of Groton to fund development projects at Cow Pond Brook Fields. The funding, derived from offshore oil and gas lease revenues through the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) State and Local Assistance Program, supports the creation and enhancement of public outdoor recreation facilities and park infrastructure at the local level.

This award exemplifies the LWCF program's core mission to expand public access to outdoor recreation by supporting state-selected projects that align with Massachusetts' outdoor recreation priorities. The Cow Pond Brook Fields development will deliver improvements and enhanced recreational amenities to benefit the general public, consistent with typical program outcomes such as athletic facility upgrades, playground development, trail improvements, and park infrastructure enhancements across municipalities. The project represents a matching grant arrangement wherein the state and local partners contribute non-federal cost-share resources alongside the federal obligation.

Based on its outdoor recreation priorities, the state has selected grant projects to receive LWCF funding. LWCF grants are made pursuant to 54 U.S.C. 2003 and are funded by offshore oil and gas lease revenue, not tax dollars. In this project, the massachusetts exec. Office of energy environmental affairs will make a subaward to the town of groton for developments at COW pond brook fields. This project will benefit the general public.