State (Va.) Receives $175,000 Federal Grant to Purchase Wetlands on the Chickahominy River

Contact: Terri Edwards 413/253-8324 The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service today awarded a $175,000 National Coastal Wetlands Conservation Grant to the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries for the purchase of 103 acres of wetlands along the Chickahominy River, a tributary of the James River, in Charles City County. The federal grant will supplement a $215,000 contribution from the state and an additional donation of $10,000 from The Wildlife Foundation of Virginia. The acquisition will protect diverse wetland habitats and undisturbed old growth woodlands near the State Game Farm Marsh Wildlife Management Area. When acquisition is complete, the state will increase public access to the property for hunting, fishing, wildlife viewing and boating.