NFWF Chesapeake Bay Small Watershed Grants

Federal-foundation partnership funding community-based watershed restoration in the Chesapeake Bay watershed. Two grant tracks — Planning & Capacity ($20K-$200K) and Implementation ($200K-$1.5M) — for projects that reduce nutrients and sediment.

The Chesapeake Bay Small Watershed Grants program, administered by the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation in partnership with EPA's Chesapeake Bay Program, has been the single most consistent source of community-scale watershed funding for the Bay region for over two decades. The program funds local nonprofits, conservation districts, watershed groups, schools, and municipalities working in any of the six Bay states (including the entire PA portion of the Bay watershed) and DC.The program offers two tracks: Planning & Capacity grants from roughly $20,000 to $200,000 fund organizational capacity, partnership building, watershed plan development, and pilot projects. Implementation grants from roughly $200,000 to $1.5 million fund on-the-ground restoration — riparian buffers, agricultural BMPs, urban stormwater retrofits, in-stream and streambank work, wetland restoration. Match is typically 1:1.The vast majority of central and eastern Pennsylvania is in the Chesapeake Bay watershed, including the Susquehanna and Juniata basins. For H2O member groups in those areas, this is the funding source to plan an annual application around. Pre-application engagement with NFWF program staff is welcomed and improves competitive positioning.