$530,500 of the allocated $600,000 was used to enhance 150 acres of Wirth Park habitat. This project included habitat enhancement of woodlands and wetlands involving invasive species removal and planting of native species. This project benefits animal species including the pileated woodpecker and the threatened Blanding’s turtle. Primary outcomes include better quality plant communities, reduced fragmentation, and higher functioning wetlands.
Restore 3,647 acres of public forest to help meet wildlife and recreational goals within six Minnesota conservation plans, leverage $500,000 from outside sources for forest restoration on private lands and keep Golden-winged Warbler off the ESA.
MNDNR's St. Louis River Restoration Initiative (SLRRI) is a collaborative program enhancing and restoring the St. Louis River estuary and contributing watershed. The 11,000-acre estuary is a unique resource of statewide significance. SLRRI's vision includes diverse, productive, and healthy aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems of the river and watershed. Through SLRRI Phase 11 we will restore or enhance an additional 62 acres of priority aquatic, wetland, and estuary forest habitat for important fish, game, and Species of Greatest Conservation Need.
Under the CREP partnership with USDA, 28 easements were recorded on a total of 2,390 acres to restore previously drained wetlands and adjacent uplands. Two easements are RIM wetland easements that were required to complete wetland restoration work on an adjacent easement secured with 2018 Wetlands funding. The landowners received the RIM-Only payment rate. The easements were accomplished with local implementation done by SWCD, NRCS and FSA staff within the 54 county CREP area and leveraged federal funds for landowner payments and conservation practices.
The Anoka Sand Plain Partnership restored / enhanced 3,714 acres of priority prairie, savanna, forest, wetland, and shoreline habitat on public lands and waters within the Anoka Sand Plain EcoRegion within the Metropolitan Urbanizing, Forest-Prairie, and Northern Forest regions. Total R/E acreage achieved over the course of the appropriation is 126% of our stated acreage goals, and was accomplished through a robust partnership of four direct recipients improving a total of 16 priority sites including WMAs, state forest, national wildlife refuges, city and county lands.
Through this grant, the Minnesota Land Trust protected 641 acres and 39,415 feet (7.46 miles) of critical shoreland and high-quality wildlife habitats in Minnesota’s Northeast region through permanent conservation easements. Landowners donated $2,100,500 in easement value through this grant, greatly leveraging by 131% the $1,609,000 in grant funding provided by the Outdoor Heritage Fund. The amount of shoreland protected exceeded that proposed for the grant by 299%.
This program initiates a comprehensive approach to protecting, restoring and enhancing wildlife habitat and water quality by working with willing landowners to establish permanent conservation easements totaling 620 acres along the Vermillion River and including North, Middle and South Creeks, the South Branch and their tributaries; the Cannon River and its primary tributaries within Dakota County (Dutch, Mud, Chub, Darden and Pine Creeks, and Trout Brook); and to acquire permanent easements on 84 acres along Marcott Lake in Inver Grove Heights, Lake Marion in Lakeville, and Chub Lake in Eu
Our program/project will protect and maintain intact forest ecosystems through the use of perpetual conservation easements and other tools. This program/project will directly protect approximately 187, 277 acres of forest and wetlands with permanent conservation easements and 1,344 acres with fee acquisition.
