AmmoLand.com

NRCS & Ducks Unlimited Launch $1.5 Million Wetland Conservation Partnership In Iowa

Ducks Unlimited

Des Moines, Iowa --(Ammoland.com)- The Natural Resources Conservation Service and Ducks Unlimited signed a $1.5 million cooperative agreement recently to coordinate and deliver the Wetlands Reserve Program in Iowa.

WRP is a voluntary incentive-based program that provides financial and technical assistance to landowners to restore wetlands and associated uplands on their property.

This agreement extends through 2013 and includes planned restoration activities on more than 6,500 acres of private lands throughout the Prairie Pothole and Missouri River Valley Regions of Iowa.

“Ducks Unlimited’s staff and expertise will help us complete WRP restorations in these areas of the state,” Richard Sims, NRCS state conservationist said. “They’re a natural partner since we’re both firmly committed to working closely with private landowners and agency partners to restore high-quality wetlands.”

Wetlands protected and restored under WRP provide significant benefits not only to wildlife, but also the citizens of Iowa. Major flooding has plagued many Iowa communities for several years. Wetlands help reduce downstream flooding by acting like a sponge that absorbs water and slows runoff. Wetlands also improve water quality by recharging ground water and drinking water supplies.

“We’re very excited about this new conservation partnership with NRCS and private landowners in Iowa,” Eric Lindstrom, DU regional biologist, said. “WRP provides tremendous ecological, environmental and societal benefits for Iowans, while bolstering local economic growth and creating private sector jobs through construction activities.”

There is currently a waiting list of Iowa landowners interested in enrolling in WRP. Current funding levels limit the number of competitive applications that can be accepted each year. The agreement between DU and NRCS will help address this backlog and accelerate wetland conservation efforts across the state.

Visit www.ia.nrcs.usda.gov/programs/WRP.html for information about WRP in Iowa.

About:
Ducks Unlimited is the world’s largest non-profit organization dedicated to conserving North America’s continually disappearing waterfowl habitats. Established in 1937, Ducks Unlimited has conserved more than 12 million acres thanks to contributions from more than a million supporters across the continent. Guided by science and dedicated to program efficiency, DU works toward the vision of wetlands sufficient to fill the skies with waterfowl today, tomorrow and forever. Visit www.ducks.org

Filed under: Conservation News by Ammoland No Comments »

Pheasants Forever Adds Conservation Program Experts in North Dakota
Farm Bill Biologists in Forman and Dickinson helping landowners with conservation options.

Pheasants Forever

Saint Paul, Minn. – -(AmmoLand.com)- Pheasants Forever is expanding its Farm Bill Biologist program in North Dakota with the addition of two new positions created in partnership with the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) and local Soil Conservation Districts. Matthew Olson of Fort Ransom, North Dakota, is the new Farm Bill Biologist based out of Forman and Jeff Potts of Watertown, South Dakota, is the new Farm Bill Biologist based out of Dickinson.

Pheasants Forever’s Farm Bill Biologist program is designed to educate farmers and landowners – through one-on-one consulting – about the benefits of conservation programs (such as the federal Conservation Reserve Program, or CRP), as well as assist those farmers and landowners after programs have been implemented. Pheasants Forever first began employing Farm Bill Biologists in 2003 and now has over 45 Farm Bill Biologists working in seven states – Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota and Wisconsin. Farm Bill Biologists have contacted and consulted over 28,000 landowners, resulting in the improvement of over 1.3 million acres of land for wildlife.

“These positions come at an especially critical juncture for North Dakota, where nearly 775,000 acres have expired from the wildlife-friendly CRP in the past five years and another 1.8 million acres are slated to expire in the next five years,” said Jim Inglis, Pheasants Forever’s Farm Bill Biologist Coordinator, “With continuous CRP practices and other conservation programs, landowners have numerous conservation options. The challenge has always been informing them, and these Farm Bill Biologists meet that challenge head on.”

Matthew Olson
A native of Fort Ransom, North Dakota, Olson joins Pheasants Forever after four years with the North Dakota Game and Fish Department. An avid outdoorsman, Olson has an excellent knowledge of the Forman and surrounding area. Olson earned his B.S. in Wildlife and Fisheries Management from North Dakota State University. He is based out of the Wild Rice Soil Conservation District Office in Forman and can be contacted at (701) 724-3247 or via email at molson@pheasantsforever.org.

Jeff Potts
Potts joins Pheasants Forever after earning his B.S. in Wildlife Fisheries and Science from South Dakota State University. He already has extensive experience in the natural resource field, having worked previously with the South Dakota Department of Game, Fish and Parks as a wildlife technician and a land/habitat intern. Potts is based out of the NRCS office in Dickinson and can be contacted at (701) 225-3811 x118 or via email at jpotts@pheasantsforever.org.

Pheasants Forever also has a Farm Bill Biologist position in Jamestown, North Dakota. Steve Stensgard can be contacted at the Jamestown NRCS office (701)252-2521 ext. 129 or via email at SStensgard@pheasantsforever.org. For more information on Pheasants Forever’s Farm Bill Biologist program, contact Jim Inglis, Pheasants Forever’s Farm Bill Biologist Coordinator, at (419) 569-1096 or via email at jinglis@pheasantsforever.org.

About:
Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever are non-profit conservation organizations dedicated to the protection and enhancement of pheasant, quail, and other wildlife populations in North America through habitat improvement, land management, public awareness, and education. Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever has 125,000 members in 700 local chapters across the continent.

For additional information please visit www.PheasantsForever.org and www.QuailForever.org

Filed under: Conservation News by Ammoland No Comments »