A good crowd gathered at the Henry Lake restoration project in Wright County on
Friday, September 21, 2007 to celebrate the enhancement, restoration, and protection
of 100,000 acres of habitat through the Minnesota’s Habitat Conservation Partnership.
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100,000 Acres and Counting
Habitat Conservation Partnership Announces Milestone
Wright County, Minn. – September 21, 2007 – Minnesota’s Habitat
Conservation Partnership, an Environmental Trust Fund supported effort, announced
today that it has surpassed a significant milestone for the restoration, management
and protection of Minnesota wildlife habitats. A crowd of 50 people gathered at
the Henry Lake restoration in Wright County today to celebrate and dedicate the
100,000th acre accomplishment.
"100,000 acres is truly awesome," said Matt Holland, project coordinator for the
partnership and senior field coordinator for Pheasants Forever. "The Henry Lake
restoration project is representative of how this Partnership works. Multiple groups,
doing habitat restoration in a focused area that builds upon existing conservation
investments made by the state. By working together and bringing additional funding
to bear on Minnesota resources, we are making a difference for wildlife, fish, plants
and the citizens of Minnesota." Holland went on to say, "This event was organized
to recognize the hard work, vision, and leadership of many people that have made
this result possible."
The work is not done however, "While the 100,000-acre milestone is a fantastic accomplishment,
our needs continue to outpace our capacity to deal with habitat issues," stated
Jane Prohaska, project partner and executive director of the Minnesota Land Trust.
"Tremendous pressure is being put on our grasslands wetlands, lakes and forests.
The lottery proceeds allocated to the Partnership have provided a catalyst for good
habitat work, and we need to continue being as efficient as possible with our limited
habitat dollars."
The Partnership currently reports 102,659 acres in over 650 wildlife habitat restoration,
enhancement and protection projects for Minnesota. Total expenditures to date exceed
$85 million dollars. A total of $19.4 million came from the Minnesota Environment
and Natural Resources Trust Fund and the remainder, $65.7 million, has come from
the project partners. "The collaborative effort and seed money from the Legislative-Citizen
Commission on Minnesota Resources [lottery proceeds] have been multiplied over three-fold,"
said Tom Landwehr, project partner and assistant state director for The Nature Conservancy,
"We have leveraged these dollars to bring over $65 million in federal and private
sources to restore, enhance and protect Minnesota’s grasslands, forests, lakes and
streams."
The Partnership was formed and funded by the 2001 Minnesota Legislature, as recommended
by the Legislative Citizen Commission on Minnesota Resources, to work to restore
fragmented landscapes and connect high quality habitat for the purpose of sustaining
fish, wildlife and plant populations. Funding is provided by the Environment and
Natural Resources Trust Fund and the participating partners. The Partnership provides
for a statewide coordination of existing federal, state and private land and water
conservation programs. The project focuses these programs and resources on identified
project focus areas that have high potential for restoring and enhancing functional
habitats benefiting Minnesota. The Partnership is one of the largest and most unique
conservation collaborations in the country.
Minnesota Habitat Conservation Partnership The mission of Minnesota’s Habitat Conservation
Partnership is to restore, enhance, and conserve habitat for the purpose of sustaining
fish, wildlife and native plant communities for all generations.
Member Organizations: Ducks Unlimited * Fond du Lac Reservation * Friends of the
Detroit Lakes Wetland Management District Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe * Minnesota
Board of Water and Soil Resources * Minnesota Deer Hunters Association * Minnesota
Department of Natural Resources Minnesota Land Trust * Minnesota Valley National
Wildlife Refuge Trust, Inc. * National Wild Turkey Federation * Pheasants Forever
* Red Lake Band of Chippewa * The Nature Conservancy * Trust for Public Land * U.S.
Fish and Wildlife Service * U.S. Natural Resources Conservation Service