The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is asking the public to share its thoughts on a draft environmental assessment and restoration plan for Tobico Marsh, a 900-acre wetland near Bay City, Michigan. The plans will be discussed during a meeting at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, March 10, 2004, at the Bay City State Recreation Area Visitor Center, 3582 State Park Drive, in Bay City.
This meeting is an opportunity for people to learn about proposed plans for fish and wildlife habitat improvements in Tobico Marsh and to provide comments on them, said Lisa Williams, a biologist at the Services East Lansing Field Office. We want to use the best available information to plan and implement restoration activities for the marsh.
The draft plan now being presented incorporates information and suggestions given by the public at a meeting in January 2002 along with an engineering study of water level fluctuations. The plan will be available at the Bay City State Recreation Area Visitor Center in Bay City, Michigan, and on the internet at http://midwest.fws.gov/nepa/.
Comments on the plan will be accepted through April 9, 2004. Comments may be sent to Lisa L. Williams, Ph.D, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 2651 Coolidge Road, Suite 101, East Lansing, Michigan 48231; 517-351-8324 (direct phone); 517-351-2555 (general phone); 517-351-1443 (fax); or via e-mail to: lisa_williams@fws.gov
Some highlights of the plan include modifications to the flap gate at Tobico Lagoon, improvements to the existing culverts under Parish Road, and installation of additional culverts under Parish Road and Boutell Road. These improvements are designed to improve water flow through the marsh and reduce the cost of pumping water from Hadd Drain to Saginaw Bay.
In 1998, the Service, the State of Michigan and the Saginaw Chippewa Tribe, acting together as natural resource trustees, negotiated a settlement with General Motors and the cities of Bay City and Saginaw under a Natural Resources Damage Assessment (NRDA).
The settlement provided for cleanup of contaminated sediments in Saginaw River, construction of boat launches and a nature park, and restoration of wildlife habitat in portions of the bay and river, including Tobico Marsh. More information on the settlement and its benefits can be found at http://midwest.fws.gov/nrda/saginaw
The goals of NRDA are to restore the habitats and resources to the condition they would have been had the contaminants not been released into the environment, and to compensate the public for the loss of use or enjoyment of natural resources. The parties responsible for the contamination are required to pay for these activities.
For more information on the meeting, contact the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s East Lansing Field Office at 517-351-8324.
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 542 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 governments with their conservation efforts. It also oversees the Federal Aid program, which distributes hundreds of millions of dollars in excise taxes on fishing and hunting equipment to state fish and wildlife agencies.
