The Shapiro Administration announced on June 7 that Pennsylvania is investing more than $5.5 million to enhance soil and water quality, while supporting farms in the Susquehanna River Basin to become more environmentally and economically sustainable.
According to the announcement, the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture awarded 16 farms with $392,119 in Sustainable Agriculture Grants and six conservation organizations with $5.1 million in Public Private Partnership Grants. Both programs are funded through competitive federal funding via the Most Effective Basin program. The grants aim to help Pennsylvania meet its water quality goals for agriculture under the Chesapeake Bay Total Maximum Daily Load and Phase III Watershed Implementation Plan.
“What farmers do and how they do it matters,” said Agriculture Secretary Russell Redding. “Pennsylvania has long been a national leader in conservation of farmland and the soil and water resources we all depend on. That leadership is reflected in the expectations the federal government places on our farmers to improve the Chesapeake Bay’s water quality. But in federal models that measure progress, our farmers don’t always get credit for the work they are doing toward those goals. These grants are both an acknowledgement of Pennsylvania’s leadership, and a tool that will help sustain their farms, and help give them the credit they deserve for improving the quality of life for our entire region.”
Sixteen Sustainable Agriculture Grant recipients were selected by the newly appointed Pennsylvania Sustainable Agriculture Board for projects such as cover crops, rotational grazing, tree plantings for conservation, and silvopasture—which integrates trees with livestock grazing to fix nitrogen in soil and diversify farm income. For example, Nathan Drager’s Lancaster County farm received a grant enabling him to add 300 trees as part of his silvopasture operation.
The state also highlighted advances from other initiatives such as the Agricultural Conservation Assistance Program (ACAP), which has supported over 2,900 farmers with financial or technical assistance for practices benefiting regional water and soil health. In total, more than $1 billion has been invested across state, local, agricultural, and nonprofit collaborations over four years; stream restoration efforts have covered 139 miles; nearly 945 miles of streamside forest buffers have been planted; nitrogen pollution reductions have increased tenfold compared to previous decades; and monitoring shows long-term improvements in river health.
Pennsylvania agriculture contributes $132.5 billion annually to the state economy and sustains over 593,000 jobs, according to the official website. The sector involves more than 49,000 farm families managing over 7.3 million acres with annual cash receipts of $7.8 billion.The Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture supports community prosperity by conserving farmlandand natural resources while fostering economic growth through investments.The department also offers inspection servicesfor consumer protection.Its operations extend across Pennsylvania, according to the official website.
Further details about these investments can be found on the official roster page.
