Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) Program

Land and Water Conservation Fund Program (LWCF)

The Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks – Outdoor Recreation Grant Division (ORG) administer a grant-in-aid program for the acquisition and/or development of public outdoor recreation areas and facilities. Grants are for public bodies only. 

A key feature of the program is that sites assisted with funding from the program must be open, operated and maintained in perpetuity as public outdoor recreation areas and may not be converted to other uses without prior approval by the ORG and NPS acting on behalf of the USDOI.

The program provides 50/50 matching reimbursable grants for development of public outdoor recreation areas and facilities. Two types of projects are available for funding assistance.

• Combination Project: Acquisition of property and recreational development of same property
• Development Project: Recreational development of existing public property

Only project proposals in accordance with the SCORP and reviewed through a State’s Open Project Selection Process (OPSP) may be considered. In order for an application to be considered, it must be a viable project (i.e., ballfield, soccer field, splash park, etc.). Applications for support facilities only, do not qualify. It can be a combination of both.

• Acquisition - Acquisition only projects can be submitted, but will be ranked low in the ratings. According to NPS guidelines, land that is acquired must be developed.
• Development - Physical facilities such as sports and play fields, tennis courts, picnic facilities, etc.
• Acquisition/Development - Land acquired by donation or negotiated purchase followed by development of facilities on that land.

For Acquisition And Development Criteria and Eligible Facilities, please see: https://www.mdwfp.com/media/301299/ms-2021-lwcf-grant-guidelines-with-appendices.pdf#page=16

For Requirements for Development Projects, please see: https://www.mdwfp.com/media/301299/ms-2021-lwcf-grant-guidelines-with-appendices.pdf#page=18

Project sponsor ownership and control of property

The project sponsor must possess sufficient title and adequate legal control of the property that is to be placed under Section 6(f) protection in order to provide reasonable assurances that a conversion under Section 6(f)(3) of the LWCF Act will not occur without its knowledge, state review and NPS decision. Such assurances are contained in the General Provisions of the LWCF Project Agreement (Appendix B of the Guidelines).

• Others (see text field entitled "Additional Eligibility Criteria" for clarification)

Additional Geographic Information: