Contacts
Nicholas Throckmorton, 202-208-5636
Rachel F. Levin, 612-713-5311
During its March 16 meeting, the Migratory Bird Conservation
Commission approved more than $18 million in grants for wetlands habitat
conservation in the United States and Mexico, funding grants to states and
other partners through the North American Wetlands Conservation Act (NAWCA).
The act is managed by the Interior Department’s U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service.
In the Midwest Region of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service,
two grants totaling more than $1.7 million were approved. The grants, to
fund projects in Illinois and Indiana, will be matched by more than $3 million
from partners.
In Indiana, Ducks Unlimited will receive a $1 million grant
which will be matched by $2.6 million in funding from a variety of partners,
including the Indiana Department of Natural Resources, Cinergy Corp., and
local sportsmen’s groups. Other partners in the project, the Southwest
Indiana Habitat Expansion, include the Fish and Wildlife Service, through
its Patoka River National Wildlife Refuge, and The Nature Conservancy.
The grant and matching funds will be used to continue and broaden
existing efforts to protect and restore wetlands and adjacent habitat on
public lands in the Four Rivers Area of southwestern Indiana. Properties
acquired and restored as part of this project will be under state or federal
ownership and will be open to the public for hiking, hunting or wildlife
watching.
In Illinois, a $704,500 grant to Ducks Unlimited will be matched
by funds from DU, the American Land Conservancy and the Illinois Department
of Natural Resources. The U.S. Forest Service is also a partner in the Middle
Mississippi Ecosystem project, which is an expansion of the existing Lower
Kaskaskia River Wetlands Restoration Project.
Grant funds will allow expansion of the existing project into the Illinois
portion of the Middle Mississippi River floodplain and incorporation of new
conservation partners who will work together to protect and enhance 3,369 acres
of emergent and bottomland forest wetland habitat.
“ Through highly successful partnerships under the North
American Wetland Conservation Act, we are setting aside millions of acres
of wetlands to benefit not only migratory birds but other wildlife as well,” said
Interior Secretary Gale Norton. “Sportsmen’s groups and other
conservation organizations have been particularly effective partners, providing
both expertise and financial support for wetland restoration efforts.”
This round of NAWCA Standard Grants will fund 16 projects in
North America, with more than $13.1 million in 11 states to protect, restore
or enhance nearly 140,000 acres of wetlands and associated upland habitats.
Project partners added nearly $55 million.
Since 1991, more than 2,500 partners have been involved in more than 1,300
projects in the United States, Canada and Mexico. Partners must match the grant
request at least dollar for dollar. Canadian and U.S. partners focus on long-term
protection, restoration or enhancement of critical habitats; Mexican partners
also may develop training, management, and environmental education programs
and conduct studies on sustainable use. In total, more than $640.9 million
in NAWCA grant funds have been invested in the three countries. Partner contributions
have amounted to $1.9 billion. Some 13.6 million acres of wetlands and associated
uplands have been affected.
The commission approved nearly $2.4 million for 15 NAWCA projects
in Mexico. Partners added more than $3.5 million.
Funding for the NAWCA standard grants program comes from Congressional
appropriations; funds collected from fines, penalties, and forfeitures under
the Migratory Bird Treaty Act; interest accrued to the Pittman-Robertson
Wildlife Restoration Act; and excise taxes paid on small engine fuels through
the Dingell-Johnson Sport Fish Restoration Act.
At the March 16 meeting, the Migratory Bird Conservation Commission
also allocated $535,000 in revenue from the sale of the Migratory Bird Hunting
and Conservation Stamp (also known as the Federal Duck Stamp) to purchase
key tracts of land for the National Wildlife Refuge System in Louisiana,
New Hampshire and Texas.
Money raised by the sale of Federal Duck Stamps pays for wetland
acquisitions for the National Wildlife Refuge System. Federal Duck Stamps
are purchased predominately by waterfowl hunters and other conservationists.
Since the first Duck Stamp sale in 1934, nearly $700 million has been raised
to help purchase more than five million acres of wetlands for the refuge
system. All acquisitions were previously approved by the affected states.
The Migratory Bird Conservation Act of 1929 established the
Migratory Bird Conservation Commission to approve land to be purchased for
the National Wildlife Refuge System with monies from the Migratory Bird Conservation
Fund. The fund is supported by revenue collected from Federal Duck Stamp
sales, import duties collected on arms and ammunition and right-of-way payments
to the refuge system.
The commission meets three times a year to approve funding
proposals. Permanent commission members are Interior Secretary Norton, Senators
Thad Cochran of Mississippi and Blanche Lincoln of Arkansas; Representatives
John Dingell of Michigan and Curt Weldon of Pennsylvania; Secretary of Agriculture
Mike Johanns; and EPA Acting Administrator Stephen L. Johnson.
For more information on NAWCA and to see summaries of funded
projects for 2005, visit http://birdhabitat.fws.gov/NAWCA/grants.htm.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is the principal federal
agency responsible for conserving, protecting and enhancing fish, wildlife
and plants and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American
people. The Service manages the 95-million-acre National Wildlife Refuge
System, which encompasses 544 national wildlife refuges, thousands of small
wetlands and other special management areas. It also operates 69 national
fish hatcheries, 64 fishery resources offices and 81 ecological services
field stations. The agency enforces federal wildlife laws, administers the
Endangered Species Act, manages migratory bird populations, restores nationally
significant fisheries, conserves and restores wildlife habitat such as wetlands,
and helps foreign and Native American tribal governments with their conservation
efforts. It also oversees the Federal Assistance program, which distributes
hundreds of millions of dollars in excise taxes on fishing and hunting equipment
to state fish and wildlife agencies.
-FWS-
| 
