The grant was made under the Services National Coastal Wetlands Conservation Grants Program, which will award more than $15.7 million to 15 states to conserve, restore and protect coastal wetlands. Along with Ohio, states awarded grants for fiscal year 2003 under the National Coastal Wetlands Conservation Grant Program are Alabama, Alaska, California, Connecticut, Florida, Hawaii, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Texas, Virginia and Washington State.
The grants, which will help fund 21 projects, will be supplemented by $33 million from state and private partners. The Service makes yearly matching grants to coastal states and U.S. territories for projects involving the acquisition, restoration or enhancement of coastal wetlands. Projects are administered for long-term conservation benefits to wildlife and habitat.
"Our state and private partners are key to protecting this nations natural heritage for future generations to enjoy," said Service Director Steve Williams. "Through cooperative projects such as those funded by Coastal Wetlands Conservation Grants, we can help provide habitat for hundreds of species, and in many cases, public use opportunities as well."
The grant to the Ohio DNRs Division of Wildlife will be supplemented with state funds of $660,000. The money will be used to acquire and restore coastal wetlands adjacent to the 2,800-acre Pickerel Creek Wildlife Area in Sandusky County. The northern portion of Pickerel Creek Wildlife Area lies at the center of some of the most productive wildlife habitat still in existence along Sandusky Bay, on Lake Eries southern shore.
The largest Ohio population of the Eastern prairie fringed orchid, a rare wetland plant, occurs at Pickerel Creek Wildlife Area. During spring and fall migrations this area hosts one of the largest concentrations of waterfowl, songbirds, shorebirds and hawks in North America. In addition, bald eagles nest in the area, and remain in the Wildlife Area year-round.
Partners in this years Coastal Wetlands Conservation Grants projects include state natural resources agencies, land trusts, universities, several timber companies, private landowners, and conservation groups such as Ducks Unlimited and The Nature Conservancy.
To date, the Service has awarded more than $120 million in grants to 25 states and one U.S. territory under the National Coastal Wetlands Conservation Grant Program. When the 2003 grants projects are complete, they will have protected and/or restored more than 17,000 acres; nearly 150,000 acres will have been protected or restored since the wetlands grant program began in 1990.
National Coastal Wetlands Conservation grants are awarded through a competitive process. The program is one of three conservation efforts funded by the 1990 Coastal Wetlands Planning, Protection and Restoration Act. Funding for the program is generated from excise taxes on fishing equipment and motorboat and small engine fuels. These taxes are deposited into the Sport Fish Restoration Account of the Aquatic Resources Trust Fund (commonly called Wallop-Breaux after its Congressional sponsors).
For further information about programs and activities of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in the Great Lakes-Big Rivers Region, please visit our website at http://midwest.fws.gov
For more information about the National Coastal Wetlands Conservation Grants program, contact the Division of Federal Aid, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 4401 North Fairfax Drive, Room 140, Arlington, VA 22203, or the National Coastal Wetlands Conservation Grant Program, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 4401 North Fairfax Drive, Room 840, Arlington, VA 22203; or check the programs Internet home page at http://www.fws.gov/cep/cwgcover.html
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is the principal federal agency responsible for conserving, protecting, and enhancing fish and wildlife and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people. The Service manages the 95 million-acre National Wildlife Refuge System, which encompasses nearly 540 national wildlife refuges, thousands of small wetlands and other special management areas. It also operates 70 national fish hatcheries, 64 fishery resource offices and 78 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 governments with their conservation efforts. It also oversees the Federal Aid program that distributes hundreds of millions of dollars in excise taxes on fishing and hunting equipment to state fish and wildlife agencies.
For further information about programs and activities of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in the Great Lakes-Big Rivers Region, visit our website at http://midwest.fws.gov
