Community Conservation Partnerships Program (C2P2)

Grants to Pennsylvania nonprofit organizations, local government agencies, land trusts, heritage areas, and for-profit enterprises for projects that enhance recreational areas and conserve natural resources. Funding is intended to support a wide range of activities in the areas of conservation, parks, and recreation.

Community Conservation Partnerships Program grants can fund:

• Planning, acquisition, and development of public parks
• Recreation areas
• Motorized and non-motorized trails
• River conservation and access
• Conservation of open space

Grants also support regional and statewide partnerships that build capacity to better develop and manage resources.

Community Recreation and Conservation Planning Funding - Planning projects “lay the groundwork” for future land acquisition, development, and/or management of parks, recreational facilities, critical habitat, open space, natural areas, greenways, and river/watershed corridors.

Park Rehabilitation and Development Funding - These projects involve the rehabilitation and development of public parks, recreation facilities, greenways, and river conservation projects.

Land Acquisition and Conservation Funding - These projects involve the purchase and/or donation of land for:

• Park and recreation areas
  
• Greenways
• Critical habitat areas
• Open space

Motorized and Non-Motorized Trail Funding - Trail projects include the acquisition, planning, development, rehabilitation, or maintenance of designated routes on land or water for motorized and non-motorized recreation activities. This includes the purchase of equipment for trail construction or maintenance.

State and Regional Partnership Funding - Partnerships projects are collaborative statewide or regional initiatives that help build local, county, regional, and statewide capacity to better develop and manage recreation and park facilities and to promote the conservation of natural and heritage resources through plan implementation, education, and training. 

Peer and Circuit Rider Funding

• These grant programs fund projects that help municipalities, counties, multi-municipal partnerships, and councils of government to increase local capacity for recreation, parks, and conservation. The Peer program funds collaborative projects that focus on a specific need identified by the grantee and its partners.
• The Circuit Rider program aids in the hiring of a full-time park, recreation, or conservation professional whose services are shared by the members of a formal partnership, commission, or authority.

Rivers Conservation Grants and Riparian Forest Buffer Funding

• Rivers Conservation: Rivers Conservation projects focus on protecting and enhancing the conservation or recreation value of Pennsylvania’s waterways. Applications are submitted under the appropriate primary grant category. For example, funding for a Rivers Conservation Plan would be requested through a Community Recreation and Conservation Planning grant application; an easement or purchase to protect a headwaters area would require a Land Acquisition and Conservation grant.
• DCNR Riparian Forest Buffers: The DCNR Riparian Forest Buffer Program provides financial assistance to identify locations in need of riparian forest buffers, and to design, establish, monitor, and provide short-term maintenance for those buffers.

For examples of eligible projects for each of these programs, see the URL for Full Text link below.