• The goal of land retirement programs is to preserve environmentally important or at-risk areas.Freies Land, totes Land image by weinhundert from Fotolia.com
  
  Land retirement programs seek to stop agriculture production on farm lands near environmentally important or sensitive regions. These regions can include streams, rivers, prairies or wetlands, and the goal of these programs is to create buffers or to restore wetlands. These programs seek to improve the quality of water in the area and protect wildlife in the area. Generally, these programs are run by local or federal governmental agencies, and the landowner will receive some type of compensation.
  
  

San Joaquin Valley and Tulare Lake Basin

• The land retirement program to protect the San Joaquin Valley and the Tulare Lake Basin was created by a cooperative effect between the Mid-Pacific Region Bureau of Reclamation, Bureau of Land Management and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The area is heavily farmed, and the program seeks to retire much of the land around the area to reduce runoff and protect endangered species. The goal of this program is to restore retired farmlands so that they can become a habitat for local wildlife and to reduce the instances of drainage problems in the area.
  
  Bureau of Reclamation, Mid-Pacific Region
  
  2800 Cottage Way
  
  Sacramento CA 95825-1898
  
  916-978-5100
  
  usbr.gov
  
  

Chesapeake Bay Program

• The goal of the Chesapeake Bay program is to retire lands around the Chesapeake Bay in Maryland, Pennsylvania, the District of Columbia and Virginia to protect the areas and habitats around the bay. Land conservation is obtained by negotiating fee/easement purchases, obtaining development rights, donating easements, and land donations. The program hopes to preserve over 700,000 acres for historic sites, wildlife refuges, tourism and public parks. Preserved lands can range from federal parks, cities, ranges, forests, farms, military areas and scenic drives.
  
  Chesapeake Bay Program
  
  410 Severn Avenue, Suite 109
  
  Annapolis, MD 21403
  
  800-968-7229
  
  chesapeakebay.net
  
  

Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program

• Administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture Farm Service Agency, the goal of this program is to encourage agricultural producers to voluntarily retire their land. The program seeks to protect environmentally susceptible areas, make ground and surface waterways safe, lower the amount of erosion in the area and protect and repair wildlife habitats. This program is open to state and local governments and Native American tribal governments. These agencies must identify a farm-related environmental issue that could have a wider impact for either the state of the federal government. Entities must then commit to a 10- to 15-year contract to not use these lands for agricultural purposes.
  
  U.S. Department of Agriculture Farm Service Agency
  
  1400 Independence Avenue, Southwest STOP 0506
  
  Washington, DC 20250-0506
  
  202-720-3865
  
  fsa.usda.gov