Secretary Salazar Announces Nearly $1 Million for Wetlands Grant in Missouri
The Migratory Bird Conservation Commission, chaired by Department of the Interior Secretary Ken Salazar, recently approved a $999,570 grant under the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services North American Wetlands Conservation Act (NAWCA) for wetland restoration and enhancement in the Confluence Region of Missouri. Non-federal project partners who are part of the Upper Mississippi River and Great Lakes Region Joint Venture will contribute an additional $2.2 million in matching contributions.
"The wetlands of the Confluence contain some of the most valuable habitat in the nation for migrating and wintering waterfowl and other birds in the mid-continental U.S.," said Tom Melius, Midwest Regional Director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. "By dedicating more resources to habitat restoration in this area, we can ensure continued protection of these species."
The Commission approved more than $26 million in NAWCA grants to protect and restore more than 200,000 acres of wetlands areas and wildlife habitat in the United States and Mexico. They also approved $11.5 million in Federal Duck Stamp funds to add more than 3,500 wetland acres to seven units of the National Wildlife Refuge System.
The project in Missouri will protect, restore and enhance wetlands and associated habitats in the Confluence Region of Eastern Missouri, an area that has lost 90 percent of its historic wetlands. As part of the project, donated conservation easements will protect habitat for more than 250 species of waterfowl, waterbirds and neotropical songbirds that migrate through or use Confluence wetlands. Habitat restoration and enhancement will benefit large numbers of migrating or breeding waterbirds and shorebirds include king rail, American and least bitterns and black rails, and restored lands will also provide suitable habitat for large numbers of tundra swans and other waterfowl.
"I am honored to oversee a program that for nearly eight decades has secured hundreds of thousands of acres of wetland habitat throughout North America for migratory birds," Salazar said. "The Migratory Bird Conservation Commission is the definition of common-sense conservation, protecting wetlands critical to birds throughout their nesting, wintering, and migratory ranges irrespective of state and international borders that may intersect the flyways," he added.
More than $24.2 million of the more than $26 million in NAWCA grant funds will support 25 projects in 21 states and Puerto Rico, with partners contributing an additional $60.6 million in matching funds to help protect, restore and enhance almost 185,000 acres. Nearly $2 million for seven projects will help protect 2,470 acres of habitat in Mexico, with partners contributing an additional $3.5 million the projects.
The grants were awarded under NAWCAs U.S. Standard Grants and Mexico Grants Programs administered by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, an agency of the Department of the Interior. They are funded by annual Congressional appropriations; fines, penalties and forfeitures levied under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act; interest accrued on funds under the Pittman-Robertson Wildlife Restoration Act and excise taxes paid on small engine fuels through the Dingell-Johnson Sport Fish Restoration Fund.
The commission also approved the purchase of wetland habitat that will be added to seven units of the National Wildlife Refuge System to secure breeding, resting and feeding habitat for waterfowl and other wetland-dependent wildlife. These acquisitions are funded with proceeds from sales of the Migratory Bird Hunting and Conservation Stamp, otherwise known as the Federal Duck Stamp.
This year marks the 75th anniversary of the 1934 amendment to the Migratory Bird Treaty Act that created the Federal Migratory Bird Hunting and Conservation Stamp, commonly known as the Duck Stamp. For every dollar spent on Federal Duck Stamps, ninety-eight cents goes directly to purchase vital habitat for protection in the National Wildlife Refuge System. The Migratory Bird Conservation Commission oversees the use of Federal Duck Stamp funds for the purchase and lease of these wetland habitats for national wildlife refuges. To date, more than 5 million acres of wetlands have been purchased using more than $650 million in Duck Stamp revenue.
More information about NAWCA grant programs and summaries of the approved projects are available on the Web at: http://www.fws.gov/birdhabitat/Grants/NAWCA/index.shtm.
For more information about the Upper Mississippi River and Great Lakes Region Joint Venture, visit. www.uppermissgreatlakesjv.org.
