DU, Bonneville Environmental Foundation, and Meta Expand Partnership to Restore Mississippi Alluvial Valley Wetlands

MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Mar. 9, 2026 — Ducks Unlimited (DU) today announced an expansion of its conservation partnership with the Bonneville Environmental Foundation (BEF) and Meta for wetland restoration in Louisiana and across the Mississippi Alluvial Valley. This commitment in DU’s Flyway Forests Program will drive large-scale watershed and floodplain restoration to improve wildlife habitat, increase floodwater storage capacity, and support long-term water benefits across some of the region’s most critical landscapes in the Lower Mississippi River Basin.

“This investment from BEF and Meta significantly advances conservation efforts in the Lower Mississippi Alluvial Valley,” notes Adam Putnam, DU’s CEO. “By combining private dollars with the public grant award, we’re able to restore wetlands and floodplains at a scale that simply would not be possible otherwise. These are some of the most important waterfowl landscapes in North America, and investments like this work to ensure they remain productive and resilient for generations to come.”

DU’s Flyway Forests Program represents a dynamic model of public-private partnership in action. The program recently secured a $10 million U.S. Forest Service award to restore thousands of acres of bottomland hardwood forests across the Mississippi Alluvial Valley, including a 500-acre forested wetland restoration component. BEF and Meta's contributions directly leverage this federal investment, funding critical wetland construction activities, including hydrologic restoration, grading, berm building, and the installation of water control structures, which were not covered under the federal award. At the same time, the restored wetlands and bottomland hardwood forests are expected to strengthen migratory bird habitat, expand biodiversity, and complement DU's voluntary carbon market reforestation work, delivering ecological benefits across the region for years to come.

“Our partnership with DU is an essential component of Meta’s commitment to becoming water positive in 2030, and we’re working together to make a lasting impact,” says Stefanie Woodward, water stewardship lead at Meta. “We are also committed to supporting our local data center communities, and these projects are critical to those efforts by helping to restore wetlands, support wildlife, and ensure more water is returned to the environment in Louisiana and the Mississippi Alluvial Valley.”

The partnership also includes an investment from Meta at the Russell Sage Wildlife Management Area near Monroe, Louisiana, where DU replaced aging water control infrastructure and restored wetland hydrology across an important waterfowl management complex.

Across both projects, the partnership reflects a shared commitment to delivering measurable outcomes, including restored hydrology, improved water quality, enhanced floodwater storage, and strengthened habitat in some of the Lower Mississippi River Basin's most ecologically significant areas.

About Bonneville Environmental Foundation

A US nonprofit, BEF empowers businesses to be in balance with the environment through a full suite of environmental products, educational, and community engagement programs. In our Business For Water Stewardship™ program, we work collaboratively with community and policy stakeholders to advance solutions that ensure people, wildlife, economies, and ecosystems have enough clean water to flourish. Learn more at B-E-F.org.