With the 2022 hurricane season starting June 1st, and the fact forecasters have predicted another active season, USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) wants to remind landowners about the Emergency Watershed Protection Program (EWP).
If your area were to suffer damage from a natural disaster, the EWP can help relieve imminent hazards to life and property caused by floods, fires, windstorms and hurricanes. Aid may include financial and technical assistance to remove debris from streams, protect destabilized stream banks and establish cover on critically eroding lands, repair conservation practices and purchase flood plain easements.
Public and private landowners are eligible for assistance, but must be represented by a project sponsor. That includes a city, county, conservation district or a Native American tribe or organization. NRCS provides technical assistance and pays up to 75 percent of the construction. Local sources then contribute the remaining portion in the form of cash or in-kind services.
The process begins when the sponsor requests assistance from a local NRCS office. Their staff will then visit the site and determine eligibility based on environmental impacts and economic analysis, then request funding from the NRCS national office. If Congress appropriates funds, the sponsor enters into a cooperative agreement to complete the work.
Learn more about EWP on the NRCS website or contact your local USDA service center.