The purpose of this workplan is to implement practices within the Wild Rice - Marsh Watershed (WRMW) to make progress toward the sediment, total phosphorus, storage, soil health, forest, and groundwater goals established in the Comprehensive Watershed Management Plan (plan). Practices are targeted to the ?highest? priority catchments that were prioritized by sediment loading. Sediment is a priority issue within the WRMW plan. Projects targeted by this workplan are estimated to reduce 2,799 tons/year of sediment. Total phosphorus is also a priority issue in the WRM plan.
Provide contract management to ENRTF pass-through appropriation recipients for approximately 115 open grants. Ensure funds are expended in compliance with appropriation law, state statute, grants policies, and approved work plans.
The Lower Minnesota River East Watershed Partnership would like to request our first round of WBIF funding. The Funding request is for FY'24 and FY'25, but will be incorporated into the FY'24-FY'26 Workplan.
This proposal accelerates the strategic permanent protection of 1,003 acres (241 wetlands and 762 grasslands) of Waterfowl Production Areas (WPAs) open to public hunting in Minnesota. Pheasants Forever (PF) will strategically acquire parcels that are adjacent to existing public land or create corridors between complexes. All acquisitions will occur in the prairie, prairie/forest transition, or metro regions.
This Phase XIII proposal permanently protects and restores 659 acres of Waterfowl Production Areas (WPAs) open to public hunting in Minnesota. Pheasants Forever (PF) will acquire parcels that are adjacent to existing public land or create corridors between complexes. All acquisitions will occur in the prairie, prairie/forest transition, or metro regions. Acquired properties will be restored to the highest extent possible with regard to time and budgets.
Funding provided through this appropriation enhanced 5,024 acres of wetland habitat. Eight wetland and shallow lake infrastructure projects were competed that enhanced 1,643 acres of wetland. Cattail spraying using a helicopter outfitted with an OHF-purchased spray unit and impacted impacted 1,762 acres. Work by the Region 3 Roving Habitat Crew enhanced 1,619 acres of wetland. Finally, survey and design work was initiated on four projects to prepare for future construction.
This proposal accelerates the strategic permanent protection of 611 acres (122 acres of wetlands and 489 acres of grassland habitat) of Waterfowl Production Areas (WPAs) open to public hunting in Minnesota. Pheasants Forever (PF) will strategically acquire parcels that are adjacent to existing public land or create corridors between complexes. All acquisitions will occur in the prairie, prairie/forest transition, or metro regions.
This is the twelfth phase to accelerate the protection and restoration of 540 acres of strategic prairie grasslands, associated wetlands and other wildlife habitats as State Wildlife Management Areas (WMA) open to public hunting. Pheasants Forever (PF) will be permanently protecting strategic parcels within the prairie, prairie/forest transition, and metro planning regions which will be restored and transferred to the MN Department of Natural Resources (MN DNR) to be included as a WMA.
Many of Minnesota's wetlands have been lost and the remainder degraded. The original proposal planned for 15,000 acres of wetland/shallow lake enhancement to provide critical habitat for each life stage of waterfowl and wetland wildlife. The six projects subsequently completed with this appropriation enhanced 13,800 acres of wetlands and shallow lakes in the Prarie and Forest/Prairie Ecosections of Minnestoa.
The Accelerated Water Quality Project Implementation Program will increase the connection between landowners, local government units and the landscape to accelerate efforts addressing non-point source loading to surface waters throughout the Red River Valley Conservation Service Area.
Pheasants Forever, Ducks Unlimited, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will cooperate to permanently restore and conserve approximately 800 acres of grassland and 400 acres of wetland as Waterfowl Production Areas in western and southern Minnesota. All lands acquired through this grant proposal will be owned and managed by the Service as part of the National Wildlife Refuge System.
This program will acquire and develop approximately 730, acres of new Wildlife Management Area (WMA) lands. New WMA acquisition acre targets by LSOHC Sections will be consistent with the recommendations of The Citizens Advisory Committee report of 2002? Wildlife Management Area Acquisition The Next 50 Years. Additionally, this program will protect 275 acres of native prairie as state Scientific & Natural Areas (SNAs) and perpetual Native Prairie Bank (NPB) easements.
This programmatic partnership between the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and Ducks Unlimited (DU) will accelerate enhancement, restoration, and protection of shallow lakes and wetlands important to waterfowl. This partnership will assess, design, and implement shallow lake and wetland enhancement, restoration, and protection projects to address the most important wetland issues facing waterfowl and other wetland wildlife in Minnesota.
Pheasants Forever (PF) and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) will cooperate to permanently restore and protect approximately 700 acres as Waterfowl Production Areas (WPAs) in western and southern Minnesota. All lands acquired through this grant proposal will be owned and managed by the Service as part of the National Wildlife Refuge System.
This program uses a multi-programmatic approach to achieve prioritized aquatic habitat protection, restoration, and enhancement for lakes, trout streams, and rivers across Minnesota. We propose to: i) protect 7.8 miles of shoreline on lakes, rivers and trout streams; ii) effect structural repairs to 2 lake outlet control structures that will integrate fish passage; iii) restore and enhance river and stream functions that will benefit over 50.5 river miles; and iv) enhance 1.4 miles of shoreline habitat on publicly-owned lakeshore.
Water control structures and dikes were designed and constructed on six Wildlife Management Areas (WMA) in the counties of Becker, Clearwater, Itasca, Lincoln, Roseau, and Yellow Medicine. Dike work at Roseau River WMA protects and enhances 3200 acres of wetlands wetlands in Pool 2 of the WMA. Roseau River WMA has 10 large water control structures, seven moist soil cells, and four large pools covering 11,800 acres. Cells for a moist soil unit were constructed at Lac Qui Parle WMA in Lac Qui Parle County.
We protected 22.3 miles of trout streams and 1.3 miles of lakeshore via easements (585 acres in total), and 7.4 miles (504 acres) of lakeshore through fee-title purchase. We enhanced shoreline habitat on 524 acres of riparian land, and instream habitat on 3.1 miles of trout streams and 0.5 miles of warmwater rivers.
The goal of this program was to accelerate the protection of 887 acres as Waterfowl Production Area's. Pheasants Forever successfully protected eight parcels totaling 1,554.39 acres of prairie wetland and grasslands providing excellent habitat for numerous wildlife.
In total, we under spent on our budget, over delivered on acre goals, and over delivered on match leverage received.
This program of on-the-ground conservation projects increased the wildlife and ecological values of forest communities on Minnesota's public forestlands. Restoration and enhancement projects in this program enhanced more than 10,000 acres of forest.
We propose restoration and enhancement of prairie and savanna on WMA’s, SNA’s, and Native Prairie Banks in Minnesota and restoration and enhancement of bluff prairies on State Forest Land in southeast Minnesota.
The Native Prairie Bank Program will work with willing landowners to enroll 420 acres of native prairie in perpetual conservation easements. Enrollment will focus on Minnesota Prairie Plan identified landscapes and target high quality prairies that provide valuable wildlife habitat.