The Interior Department has awarded $12.9 million in cost-share grants under President Bush's Cooperative Conservation Initiative. The grants from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Bureau of Land Management, and the National Park Service will be added to matching funds from more than 700 partners for a total of more than $35 million.

"These are projects that most likely would not have gotten done otherwise without the federal cooperative conservation grant matched by the funds from the partners."

Craig Manson is the Assistant Secretary for Fish and Wildlife and Parks. He says the idea of the program is to manage conservation at the lowest level.

"These are all projects that involve species and conservation issues on the ground, the get your hands dirty kind of conservation."

The projects in 40 states and Puerto Rico and will conserve or restore more than 50,000 acres. Ron Tull Interior Department Radio News Service, Washington.