WV Forest Legacy Grant Program

The WV Forest Legacy Grant Program aims to conserve vital forest areas in West Virginia that are at risk of being transformed into non-forest land. Through a conservation easement, property owners can sell or donate their development rights while retaining other ownership rights. The program operates on a 75:25 matching basis, with the West Virginia Division of Forestry managing the conservation easements to ensure that these lands continue to function as working forests.

Conserve Working Forests
The Forest Legacy Program conserves environmentally important forest areas threatened by conversion to non-forest areas.
These specific areas, located within Forest Legacy Areas, are conserved by being purchased as a conservation easement from willing sellers at fair market price as established by a standardized appraisal. A conservation easement is a legal agreement (deed) through which a property owner sells or donates his rights to development or other activities on his land. He retains all of the rights not sold. Consequently, the land will continue as a working forest producing products. The Forest Legacy Program is a 75:25 matching program between the government and private sources. The West Virginia Division of Forestry will hold the deed to conservation easements in the West Virginia Program.

Eligibility

The property must be located in one of the four WVDOF Forest Legacy Program (FLP) areas.The property must be in danger of conversion to non-forest uses.The title needs to be free from defect.Deeds of Trust are acceptable, provided that they can be subordinated to the conservation easement.The WVDOF can use federal funds to pay up to 75% of the cost of the easement's fair market value.Twenty five percent (25%) of the easement value is to be donated by the landowner.