Department of Conservation and Recreation
Conserve. Protect. Enjoy.
Department of Conservation and Recreation
The Land and Water Conservation Fund Act of 1965 established a federal reimbursement program for the acquisition and/or development of public outdoor recreation areas. The Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) is administered in Virginia by the Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) on behalf of the National Park Service (NPS). The program represents a federal, state and local partnership. A key feature of the program is that all LWCF assisted areas must be maintained and opened, in perpetuity, as public outdoor recreation areas. This requirement ensures their use for future generations.
Virginia has received more than $125 million in assistance since the LWCF began. It has made more than 420 projects possible within the Commonwealth.
The LWCF is a 50-50% matching reimbursement program. The grant recipient must be able to fund 100% of the project while seeking periodic reimbursements.
For further details about NPS LWCF program guidelines and project eligibility, please review the National Park Service LWCF State and Local Assistance Program Manual (Version 72.1 effective April 2025).
Please see Chapter 3 for project eligibility and Chapter 4 for proposal development and review requirements.
For specific regulatory requirements please refer to Federal Regulations: 2 C.F.R. § 200, 2 C.F.R. § 1402, 36 CFR 59.
To be added to our Grants Announcement email list please provide contact and affiliation to RecreationGrants@dcr.virginia.gov.
Entities eligible to compete for LWCF funding
Please refer to Common Ineligible LWCF Costs to determine if your park proposal elements can be considered for LWCF funding.
The DCR LWCF 2025 Application Manual contains details about eligibility, match requirements, rules, regulations and application procedures.
The following templates and forms were used for the 2025 LWCF Grant Round that closed August 28, 2025. These documents may be modified for future grant rounds.
These are not all the documents that complete a NPS LWCF Grant Application. Please consult DCR Grants Staff for more information.
LWCF Grant Rounds are typically scheduled in summer, dependent upon available Federal LWCF Apportionments.
Download all files as a zip file.
All projects must go through full NEPA and Section 106 review prior to submission to the National Park Service. NPS has the authority to approve compliance or ask for further information.
Please note that some projects will not be simple Categorical Exclusions. Also, projects may need further Virginia State Review Procedures and local review, as applicable, depending on project scope and design.
For all active LWCF Project Sponsors, please review the following guidance documents during administration of your project. There are example documents for drawdown procedures as well as templates to use. They can be downloaded below or contact us if you are not able to download them.
The Outdoor Recreation Legacy Partnership Program (ORLP) is a 50-50% matching nationally competitive reimbursement program. There is not a 2025 ORLP Grant Round.
There will not be a 2025 REPI Grant Round.
These grant funds have been available nationally through the federal National Park Service Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) combined with the Department of Defense (DOD) Readiness and Environmental Protection Integration (REPI) Program. This grant purpose protects the Nation’s military readiness, enhances relationships with communities, preserves the environment, and improves military installation and community resilience to climate change.
All parks that have received funding from the LWCF State and Local Assistance Grant Program must maintain public outdoor recreation use in perpetuity. If your locality or agency is proposing or being presented with any non-outdoor recreation development or significant use changes on LWCF protected parks, please email RecreationGrants@DCR.Virginia.gov or mail information to:
DCR-Planning and Recreation Resources Division
600 East Main St. – 17th Fl.
Attn: Recreation Grants Team
Richmond, Virginia 23219-2094
Contact us at RecreationGrants@DCR.Virginia.gov or call Recreation Grants Manager Kristal McKelvey at 804-508-8896.
To be added to our Grants Announcement email list please provide contact and affiliation to RecreationGrants@dcr.virginia.gov.
