(FDACS/TALLAHASSEE, FL/Jan. 25, 2023) — Florida Commissioner of Agriculture Wilton Simpson and the Florida Forest Service announced that $2.6 million is now available to landowners through the Sequestering Carbon and Protecting Florida Land Program. The program offers landowners incentive payments to help increase the acreage of healthy forests in Florida.
“We are proud to offer the Protecting Florida Land Program to help landowners offset the initial cost of site preparation for planting trees,” said Commissioner Wilton Simpson. “Since most of our state’s forests are privately owned, Florida landowners are key to maintaining and conserving our forests for future generations, and this program will empower them to make a long-term investment in protecting Florida’s robust forest lands.”
Forests remove carbon dioxide emissions as well as produce oxygen, contribute to clean water, and provide homes for wildlife. The Sequestering Carbon and Protecting Florida Land Program Florida is open to non-industrial, private landowners, local governments, and registered nonprofit organizations. Applicants may request funding for tree establishment site preparation practices on a minimum of 20 acres and up to a maximum of 500 acres. In 2022, the Florida Legislature appropriated more than $8 million for this program. More than $5 million has already been used to increase the acreage of healthy forests in Florida, and the remaining $2.6 million will be used by landowners to prepare for future plantings.
To obtain an application and learn more about the Sequestering Carbon and Protecting Florida Land Program Florida, visit: FDACS.gov/CarbonProgram.
The Florida Forest Service, a division of the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, manages more than 1 million acres of state forests and provides forest management assistance on more than 17 million acres of private and community forests. The Florida Forest Service is also responsible for protecting homes, forestland, and natural resources from the devastating effects of wildfire on more than 26 million acres.
For more information about Commissioner Simpson and the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, visit FDACS.gov.