As cranberry prices fall due to global competition, and costs increase due to labor issues, higher utility costs and extreme weather, cranberry farmers like Jarrod Rhodes are part of the Massachusetts Division of Ecological Restoration's Cranberry Bog Program that pays farmers to turn unproductive bogs back into wetlands.

Massachusetts, the second largest cranberry producer in the United States, is seeing a shift as some farmers convert cranberry bogs back into wetlands. Economic pressures, including falling cranberry prices and rising costs, have led farmers to participate in a state program that incentivizes wetland restoration on unproductive land.

The state has restored over 500 acres of wetlands, with another 500 acres planned, allocating about a million dollars annually and leveraging additional grants. These restored wetlands help filter water, store carbon, and provide habitat for wildlife, while also offering recreational opportunities for the public. The program supports farmers nearing retirement and helps ensure the long-term stewardship of their land.

Massachusetts cranberry bogs restored into wetlands

Massachusetts is the second largest grower of cranberries in the United States, but in tonight's In Depth, CBS Boston's Jacob Wyckoff reports economic pressures have some farmers reimagining their cranberry bogs. For Jared Rhodes, a fourth-generation cranberry farmer in Carver, Massachusetts, this 30-acre project is taking his family's land back in time. What do you hope this place looks like in 10 years? In 10 years, I hope it looks like a natural swamp and just kind of everything that it may have looked like, you know, before we were here. As cranberry prices fall due to global competition and costs increase due to labor utilities and extreme weather, cranberry farmers like Rhodes are part of a state program that incentivizes farmers to turn unproductive bogs back into wetlands. These are the type of bogs that Rhodes and his family are restoring. The one behind me is about 95% done, and it's only a matter of time before native plants return. Massachusetts has restored over 500 acres of wetlands with another 500 acres planned. The state allocates around a million dollars a year to these projects while leveraging other local and federal grants to do these restorations. For Massachusetts cranberry farmers, the program is one way to preserve their land as a generation of farmers nears retirement. They want to make sure that the land that they've tended to for so long is in good hands, whether that be a restoration program or passing it on to the next generation. They keep the land, but others can enjoy it, too. When it works, it looks like this, the Eel River headwaters in Plymouth. 60 acres of former bogs, now beautiful wetlands, filtering water, storing carbon, providing storm resilience and open for hiking and wildlife. I see that the trees that I saw planted, you know, over 10 years ago are now taller than I am. Beth Lambert oversees Massachusetts' wetland restoration program, including projects here at Eel River and in Carver. And the thing is, these new wetlands aren't so new. Many of the cranberry farms in Massachusetts were constructed on wetlands. And what we're doing is we're restoring those underlying drivers of water, the soil, and then we let Mother Nature take it from there. We see, you know, the new meandering stream. Back on Rhodes Farm, streams now wind where vines once grew. It's cool to see it kind of all bare and just kind of waiting for it to grow back and see if it actually works the way that it was supposed to. And what once grew cranberries now grows a possibility. Jacob Wyckoff, CBS News, Carver, Massachusetts.

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