Locally Led Conservation

A strategic approach to conservation delivery across Vermont.

Vermont’s Natural Resources Conservation Districts (NRCDs) are involved in the Locally Led Conservation Delivery System to listen to the community and prioritize and direct staffing and funds for addressing natural resource concerns in the district.

One of the outcomes of the Locally Led Conservation process is to secure federal USDA NRCS funding for identified priority natural resource concerns in each district through Local Fund Pools. Learn more about Local Fund Pools for FY2026, applications are due August 22, 2025.

 

Lauren Weston, District Manager, Franklin County NRCD presenting at a locally led dinner for Franklin County, Grand Isle County, and Lamoille County NRCDs in 2025.

OCNRCD Locally Led Meeting

Participants at the Orleans County NRCD Locally Led Meeting in 2025.

Locally Led Conservation Delivery System Outline

Conduct Local Needs Assessments

  • NRCD Natural Resources Assessment
    • Conservation District report that describes the natural features and resources of the District, community demographics including characteristics of the working landscape, how they have changed over time, and their current status. This Assessment includes information from the Tactical Basin Plans and other regional plans.
  • Community & partners local workgroup survey 
    • Conservation Districts gather public input from a broad range of agencies, organizations, businesses, and individuals in the local area who have an interest in natural resource conditions and needs to identify locally led priorities to prioritize and direct staffing and funds for addressing natural resource concerns in the district and watershed. The survey results are used to inform the creation of the Conservation District’s local Conservation Action Plan, which will help guide annual funding for natural resource conservation in your community.
    • Learn more about the surveys and share your input.

Host Local Workgroup Public Meetings

  • Convene community stakeholders – the public and natural resource professionals – to review and evaluate natural resource conditions in the natural resource assessment, survey results and gathered local NRCS program statistics and to set recommended priority goals for local conservation.
  • Conservation Districts develop a Local Work Group (LWG) conservation needs assessment report with outcomes from the needs assessments and the meeting(s).

Develop a Plan

  • Conservation Districts guide community stakeholders in the development of a 5-year action plan to address their natural resource priority goals.

Obtain Resources

  • Conservation Districts and community stakeholders obtain the resources needed to carry out the plan.
    • Conservation Districts apply to NRCS for the Local Fund Pool
    • Conservation Districts present a summary of the LWG report and Conservation Plan to the NRCS State Technical Committee

Implement Solutions

  • Conservation Districts work with NRCS to set local fund pool ranking.
  • Community stakeholders implement the solutions.

Measure Success

  • Community stakeholders measure the success of their efforts.