Improving wildlife habits
Farmers and landowners are finding new ways to cover the costs associated with restoring native habitats and improving wildlife conservation on their land.
The Arkansas Game and Fish Commission’s new Conservation Incentive Program offers up to $10,000 per landowner per year for approved habitat improvements.
This annual program, which began in 2024, is a state-funded complement to programs offered by the United States Department of Agriculture such as the Environmental Quality Incentive Program and the Conservation Stewardship Program.
Bailey Coffelt, a private lands biologist with AGFC, works closely with many federal agencies and nonprofit organizations such as Quail Forever and the National Deer Association for the improvement of habitat and conservation efforts.
She regularly attends site visits and works closely with landowners to restore native grasslands and wildlife habitats across Northwest Arkansas.
“There’s a lot of different things that landowners can go through and apply for. Our state program is going to be the CIP, which is going to cover everything from TSI [timber stand improvement], to prescribed fires, and fire break establishment,” said Coffelt. “We are still working to secure funding for feral hog trapping and invasive species removal programs.”
According to statistics from the AGFC, only 10% of the land is manageable public land, leaving 90% of the land inaccessible to state and federal conservation improvements.
As members of a state agency, AGFC employees require the explicit permission and cooperation of landowners to extend habitat improvements to the 90%.
Through the Conservation Incentive Program in 2024, nearly 100,000 acres of private lands were improved for both wildlife and fisheries habitat management, according to Coffelt.
Coffelt said there was nearly “$3.5 million of habitat work in private lands through CIP alone.” Private lands biologists were also able to help landowners with federal fund applications, so the total conservation funding was over double the states allocated funding, she said.
These federal funds come from the Conservation Stewardship Program of the National Resource Conservation Service through the USDA and offer many different programs for landowners, including wildlife habitat conservation.
Programs for improved grazing conditions and increased crop resiliency are also offered through the CSP.
The Environmental Quality Incentive Program also offers a variety of initiatives geared towards farmers to improve habitat as well as air, water, and soil quality.
“It doesn’t matter if you are having issues with your stream, your creek, or your timber,” Coffelt said. “It doesn’t matter whether it’s deer, turkey, pollinators, lizards, or salamanders. You can get [a federal, nonprofit or state conservation employee] out on your property, and it doesn’t cost you anything.”
The best way for landowners to find the right program for their operation is to reach out to a local NRCS agent, AGFC private lands biologist, or nonprofit organization that works on the specific habitat they are interested in cultivating.
