Waterfowl to benefit from wetlands restoration
SALTON SEA, Calif., March 26, 2007 – Ducks Unlimited was recently awarded a North American Wetlands Conservation Act (NAWCA) grant to conserve wetland habitat on the Lower Colorado River and Salton Sea. Project partners will acquire, restore, or enhance a total of 4,642 acres of important wetlands and associated upland habitats at the two locations.
“NAWCA grants are crucial to DU’s ability to restore and protect wetlands. Partner contributions allow DU to leverage their funds to conserve even more habitat,” said DU’s Western Regional Office Director of Conservation Programs Mark Biddlecomb. “This grant highlights the importance of state and local partnerships. Without those funds, these projects would simply not be possible.”
DU partnered with the California Wildlife Conservation Board, California Department of Fish and Game, Cazador Duck Club, Friends of Cibola National Wildlife Refuge (NWR), P & T Enterprises, Ralph Richmond Duck Club, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
Approximately $2.1 million in matching funds from project partners will be combined with $1 million in NAWCA grant funds. It will restore, protect and enhance wetlands critical to waterfowl within the remnants of the once-massive Sonoran Desert wetland complex. Biddlecomb says the project will take two years to complete.
In the Salton Sea project area, partners will enhance 3,107 acres of wetlands and associated uplands at California’s Imperial Wildlife Area. Partners also will enhance 80 acres at the Sonny Bono/Salton Sea NWR. And partners will restore 88 acres and enhance another 137 acres of wetlands and associated habitats.
"Protecting the Salton Sea and revitalizing sensitive wildlife habitats is an important focus for our region," said Congresswoman Mary Bono (Calif.), whose district contains part of the project. "While this funding is a positive step, we must recognize the critical public and private partnerships and resources that are needed to ensure the future of the Salton Sea."
The project also covers part of Congressman Raul Grijalva’s (Ariz.) district. Grijalva is on the House Natural Resources Committee, which reauthorized NAWCA last year.
In the Lower Colorado River project area, partners will restore 300 acres of habitat on the Cibola NWR in Ariz.
These efforts will benefit many migratory birds, including six federally listed species and 14 state-listed species.
For more information on NAWCA, go to www.ducks.org/nawca
Contact: Mark Biddlecomb
(916) 852-2000
mbiddlecomb@ducks.org
or
Mike Checkett
(901) 758-3793
mcheckett@ducks.org
With more than a million supporters, Ducks Unlimited is the world’s largest and most effective wetland and waterfowl conservation organization with almost 12 million acres conserved. The United States alone has lost more than half of its original wetlands - nature’s most productive ecosystem - and continues to lose more than 80,000 wetland acres each year.