The Virginia Conservation Assistance Program provides financial incentives for installing landscaping features that reduce stormwater runoff from urban and residential properties. These practices can be installed in small-acreage settings at the source of stormwater discharges that may cause erosion or poor drainage. All non-agricultural property— residential, business, public, and private— is eligible for the program.

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Stormwater runoff occurs when water cannot trickle into the soil during a rain event. This happens in two instances: when rain is falling too intensely for the soil to absorb it and when impermeable surfaces such as pavement and turf prevent rainwater from seeping into the soil. When rain becomes runoff, it moves quickly across the ground surface instead of trickling slowly into the soil. As runoff flows, it erodes the soil in its path, therefore channeling sediment and pollutants into nearby streams, some of which drain into the already-polluted Chesapeake Bay.

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The program provides financial incentives for the installation of practices that reduce stormwater runoff. There are two types of practices: nonstructural and structural. Nonstructural practices reduce pollutants at the source of stormwater runoff, while structural practices control runoff after it leaves its source.  Some of the practices asociated with this program are: 

• rain gardens

• rainwater harvesting

• impervious surface removal

• conservation landscaping

• bioretention

• dry wells

• infiltration basins

• vegetated stormwater conveyances

• constructed wetlands

• permeable pavement

• green roofs

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To access additional resources and download an application, visit:

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Virginia Consvervation Assistance Program

 

Contact Kelly Snoddy, Conservation Specialist,  if you have questions about VCAP or would like to request a site visit to determine which practice is best for your landscape.

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