TN Heritage Conservation Trust

The Tennessee Heritage Conservation Trust Fund is an independent board within the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation that seeks to protect significant natural areas in  Tennessee by strategically partnering with  landowners, government agencies, non-profit  organizations, for-profit companies and others. 

To date, the Heritage Conservation Trust Fund has approved more than $30 million dollars in grants to leverage for a total of $117,609,000 in conservation purchases to protect approximately 42,600 acres of priority land in Tennessee. In July 2008, five projects protecting more than 4,600 acres were approved for $2.2 million in grant funding.

The projects approved for grant awards must meet certain criteria before the funds are provided, including property surveys and appraisals, environmental assessments and enactment of mechanisms like conservation easements to guarantee the permanent protection of the properties.

Eligible projects range from the preservation of tracts for the purposes of tourism and recreation to projects focused on protecting or restoring the state’s physical, cultural, archaeological, historical and environmental resources.

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