Federal Agencies’ Agreement Streamlines Management of Wetland Habitat in Minnesota

The Natural Resources Conservation Service and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service recently finalized an agreement between the agencies that streamlines the management of wetlands with the Morris Wetland management District in western Minnesota.

 Robyn Thorson, Midwest regional director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) and William Hunt, state conservationist for the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), signed a form delegation of authority that will allow the Service to manage 596 acres of restored wetlands and associated uplands within the Centennial Waterfowl Production Area currently enrolled in the NRCS Wetlands Reserve Program (WRP).

 The agreement, the second such agreement between the two agencies in Minnesota, will allow the Service to manage WRP land without having to obtain case-by-case consent for management activities from NRCS.  “This is a common sense agreement that streamlines management by reducing unnecessary bureaucracy,” said Steve Delehanty, wetland manager at Morris Wetland Management District.

 The Wetlands Reserve Program is a voluntary program administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture that offers landowners the opportunity to protect, restore, and enhance wetlands on their property.  The NRCS provides technical and financial support to help landowners.

 Centennial Waterfowl Protection Area (WPA) was dedicated in May 2003 and is one of 246 WPA’s managed as part of the 51,000-acre Morris Wetland Management District.  The District’s goal is to restore and protect sufficient wetland and grassland habitat to meet the needs of prairie wildlife, particularly breeding waterfowl, and provide places for public recreation, that includes hunting, fishing, wildlife observation, photography, environmental education and interpretation. 

 More information about the Morris Wetland Management District is available on the Internet at:  http://www.fws.gov/midwest/Morris.  For more on the NRCS Wetlands Reserve Program in Minnesota go to: http://www.mn.nrcs.usda.gov/programs/wrp/index.html

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