Rain gardens are beautiful landscape features, but also help keep our lakes and streams clean. A rain garden’s job is to filter and soak in storm water runoff that would otherwise go into nearby waterbodies, usually through the curb and gutter system. Storm water from roofs, driveways, streets, and other hard surfaces is directed into the rain garden, which is in a depression. The garden is planted with plants that can tolerate periodic flooding. Standing water exists for only 2-3 days, eliminating mosquito breeding.

 ACD - Water Quality Cost Share

State Cost Share

The Anoka Conservation District assists private landowners, cities, schools and other organizations with a variety of habitat improvement. Projects range in size from a few hundred square feet to 40 acres and above, they also range in complexity from helping with species selection on a windbreak to restoring an oak savanna and the long term management. We are happy to assist landowners with improving habitat on their property including species selections for trees, shrubs, grasses and flowers and the placement of vegetation. We can also assist with invasive species removal plans to restore the diversity and balance of native systems.

There are many cost-share and technical assistance programs available to agricultural producers, many of these programs are offered by the U.S. Department of Natural Resources. Several of these programs are also available to landowners not actively farming their land but qualify for the programs offered. For more information on these programs please click on the links to the left. Many programs focus on preventing soil erosion, improving water quality or habitat improvement and others focus on farmland and habitat protection.

ACD - Habitat Improvement Cost Share

RCWD- Water Quality Cost Share

NPEAP

Ecosystem restoration involves the reestablishment of vegetation complexes that are believed to have existed in an area prior to settlement of the area. Diverse ecosystems of native vegetation are believed by biologist to support a wider variety of wildlife and to be more resilient in the face of natural and man made disturbances.

USDA NRCS - Conservation Programs

There are many landowners within the Anoka County who are trying to do what they can to preserve our area's natural heritage. They are doing this through conservation easements and selling their property to land conservation organizations. Cost-share is offered to landowners having ecologically significant natural resources on their property as identified by the ACD in land cover analysis of Anoka County. ACD will also help landowners apply for land protection funding from existing programs including the MN DNR remediation Fund Grant Program, Metro Conservation Corridors, MN DNR Division of Wildlife acquisition funds, and Forest Legacy Program conservation easement program.

There are many landowners within the Anoka County who are trying to do what they can to preserve our area's natural heritage. They are doing this through conservation easements and selling their property to land conservation organizations. Cost-share is offered to landowners having ecologically significant natural resources on their property as identified by the ACD in land cover analysis of Anoka County. ACD will also help landowners apply for land protection funding from existing programs including the MN DNR remediation Fund Grant Program, Metro Conservation Corridors, MN DNR Division of Wildlife acquisition funds, and Forest Legacy Program conservation easement program.