By Bruce Ross, Executive Director bruceross@wi.rr.com
This article originally appeared in Wisconsin Waterfowl Association’s February, 2021 Newsletter edition.
One of WWA’s limiting factors in putting more wetland restoration on the landscape is finding good projects with willing landowners. An idea started last year began to get some legs when volunteer BJ Grassman raised his hand to be a “Project Lead Generator”. Let me explain this title, which is difficult to understand – even to my eyes nowadays, and I’m the one who named it.
In order to generate more wetland restoration opportunities, we need to prospect for landowners willing to consider working with us. And if they are in the state’s high-priority areas, so much the better. But while readers of this e-news are well aware of our habitat efforts, what about the many landowners with restorable wetlands that DON’T know about our offerings??
Willow Creek project completed by WWA
That’s why BJ and WWA’s Habitat Committee are prototyping how do we identify and reach out to potential willing landowners, outside the WWA network. We are thinking that by increasing our visibility with regional conservation organizations, we can use their existing communications with such landowners to spread the WWA word. This article, recently published by the Fox Wolf Watershed alliance and written by Peter Z, begins to do just that.
We have to be concerned about private wetland hydrology since 75% of Wisconsin’s wetlands are held in private hands. And 85% of restorable wetlands are held privately. Since most ducks harvested in Wisconsin are born in Wisconsin, well, the importance of private wetlands to overall state duck production is pretty significant.
Know of any similar organizations in your neighborhood? Help connect WWA to them by letting us know about them.