The Fund is very active in land conservation in Louisiana, working with a wide range of partners to protect more than 200,000 acres across the state, valued at $134 million. We believe effective land and water use planning will ensure that future generations can experience Lousiana's natural areas and world class outdoor opportunities as we do today.

Based on our proven track record for conservation in the state, we were invited to assist the Louisina Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LA DWF) to think strategically about the wise stewardship of the state’s natural resources.

The Master Plan

The LA DWF has asked the Fund to help create a "master plan" for the state's wildlife management areas and refuges. Using our expertise in strategic conservation, real estate acquisition, plan implementation and mapping, we'll provide a blueprint for LA DWF to strategically and effectively move forward on management, planning, and acquisition priorities for its wildlife management system.

In the winter and spring of 2012, we'll be working closely with the LA DWF staff across the state to develop the following elements of the master plan:

• An Inventory of wildlife management areas (WMAs) and refuges describing the range of public uses, facilities, resource management challenges and partnership potential.
• Document the degree of use of the WMAs/refuges for scientific research and highlight opportunities for expansion of research collaboration, using the WMAs as living laboratories.
• Conduct a capacity test of the use of existing local, state and federal agency conservation programs, nonprofit and university partnerships.
• Assess the opportunities for strategic expansion of WMAs/refuges and connecting these lands with a network of functional wildlife corridors.
• Provide a green infrastructure network to help LA DWF decision makers incorporate a broad ecological context into land acquisition, facility expansion and natural resource management decisions.
• Develop a comprehensive implementation strategy that includes land acquisition opportunities, approaches to leverage key Federal and state conservation incentive programs, and new mechanisms for obtaining conservation and restoration capital.

Our Background In Green Infrastructure Planning In Louisiana

In recent years, we've collaborated with the LA DWF on the design of a green infrastructure network that provides a regional ecosystem-based framework for evaluating mitigation opportunities for a natural gas pipeline system. This network is a strategically planned, interconnected natural resource system that provides multiple ecosystem benefits that can help inform future expansions of the wildlife management area system.

For more information on our mitigation work, click here.

Photo: finchlake2000/Flickr

When the Appalachian Trail was mapped in the 1920s, the plan set out by Benton Mackaye called for a trail and associated spurs that stretched from Maine to northern Alabama. While the primary trail was completed in north Georgia in the 1930s, efforts to build the spur into Alabama faded.

Over the course of nearly two decades, the Fund worked with numerous partners to link the Pinhoti Trail in Alabama to the Appalachian Trail in north Georgia.  By conserving key properties and extending the Pinhoti Trail, we were able to successfully link the two trails and extend the reach of the Appalachian Trail into Alabama.

Our efforts began back in 1985 when the Alabama Trails Association approached us to engage private landowners and negotiate the acquisition of properties that were key to completing the trail. We helped acquire nearly 10 properties, protecting more than 7,000 acres and adding more than 20 miles to the Pinhoti Trail across Alabama and Georgia. Finally in 2006, the purchase of three miles of trail corridor culminated the effort to link the Pinhoti to the Appalachian Trail.

Even after linking the trails, our work continued. In 2009 we permanently protected the eight-mile crest of Rebecca Mountain, a major ridge in the Appalachian Mountains. This land allows the U.S. Forest Service to complete a portion of the Pinhoti Trail that connects Rebecca Mountain to the Appalachian Trail in Georgia. This property is open to visitors for hiking, camping and recreation.

With three million people hiking a portion each year, the Appalachian Trail is one of America's favorite places to experience the outdoors. We will continue to protect lands around the trail, whether in New Hampshire, Alabama or the other states that it passes through. We're passionate about conservation and work to make sure America's favorite places stay that way.

Access to the outdoors is a health and quality of life issue for all Americans, but especially those living in or near urban areas.  Our work with the City of Brentwood in Tennessee is a great example of how our efforts can make a real difference in a community. In 2010, we helped the city increase its green space by 50 percent.

Brentwood, just 13 miles from downtown Nashville, is one of the most desirable suburban locations to live and work in Middle Tennessee. As the city grows and the number of subdivisions increases, the community is putting conservation first. Green space preservation is the top priority in the Brentwood 2020 Plan, a long-term planning strategy created with community input. The city hopes to purchase large tracts of land while they are still available—and affordable.

Not wanting to see their land developed into subdivisions, members of the Smith family offered to sell 320 acres to the city for a price well below market value. Brentwood asked the Fund for assistance, and over the next two years we provided the expertise and capital for the city to acquire the property and the historic home that sits on it. It's was the city's largest land purchase, and the property is now the largest park in Brentwood. Click here to download a PDF of a map of the land.

With forested wildlife habitats still in their natural state, hiking trails for outdoor enthusiasts and field land to hold activities such as youth sports, the property is a welcome addition to the city park system. Access to the new park is off a major road, and the bikeway network that runs through the city will connect the park with other areas, such as the public library.  This addition of public green space provides a higher quality of life to Brentwood residents and the assurance that the city will remain a desirable place to live for years to come.

By contributing to the Fund, you can ensure the natural places in our cities—and our country—are preserved. After all, no one should have to go far to experience the outdoors.

Located about 40 miles south of Mobile, Alabama, Weeks Bay NERR encompasses more than 6,500 acres—nearly 5,000 of those are water. It is part of the National Estuarine Research Reserve System which protects more than 1.3 million acres across the U.S. One of the primary goals of the reserve is to restore degraded wetland systems in order to improve wildlife habitats and water quality within the estuary. It also offers public access for educational and recreational opportunities.

The Fund preserved 820 acres of coastal wetland habitat located within the acquisition boundary of Weeks Bay NERR—the largest addition since its designation as a reserve in 1986.

This addition offers both wetlands and forests that serve as winter havens for various migratory birds, including the Prothonotary Warbler (pictured at right) and other declining neotropical species.

But saving our outdoor resources is about more than just buying land. In order for conservation to last, it needs to make economic sense. The 820 acres that have been added to the reserve not only protect critical habitat for birds but also support the local economy.  “This accomplishment will not only provide long-term restoration opportunities to benefit these important coastal wetland habitats, but it will enable public recreation for the citizens of Baldwin County and the State of Alabama,” said Walter Ernest, IV, Executive Director of the Weeks Bay Foundation. “The public use provided will also support the local economy through activities such as birding, which accounts for over $600 million in spending within the state.”

“Protecting this property has been a priority for the Weeks Bay NERR for many years, and we are proud to assist in making this a reality.” said Ray Herndon, Regional Director for The Conservation Fund.

If you would like to support our efforts to ensure America's natural wonders are preserved for our children to enjoy, please donate today.

Photos: Weeks Bay, photo TCF (top); Prothonotary Warbler, photo Richard Gibbons, Flickr.

The Fund's Resourceful Communities Program is working to establish North Carolina's first community forest. UNCTV spotlighted the benefits and future of Hoke Community Forest, the first community forest in the state.

You can also read about Hoke Community Forest here

Thanks to Dell's Plant a Tree for a Friend Facebook campaign and the generous support of individual donors, the Fund was able to restore 358 acres at Upper Ouachita National Wildlife Refuge near Monroe, Louisiana. Restoration of native forestland has many benefits, including creating much needed habitat for wildlife and providing flood protection and cleaner waters for the communities downstream from the Ouachita River.

That's a lot of trees.

To celebrate Earth Day 2010, Dell created the Plant a Tree for a Friend Facebook application. For every tree Facebook users dedicated to a friend during the month of April, Dell made a donation to the Fund. More than 43,000 people participated.

But it gets better: Dell's campaign inspired several generous individuals to donate to the Fund's efforts to restore Upper Ouachita's native forestland. And the tree supplier, Delta Wildlife Consulting, was able to provide 30 percent more trees than initially anticipated. As a result, 108,000 native seedlings—hickory, oak and cypress—were planted on 358 acres in the Upper Ouachita National Wildlife Refuge.

"Dell's Plant a Tree for a Friend Facebook campaign has tremendous benefits for Louisiana’s wildlife and its people," said the Fund's Jena Thompson Meredith of the Fund. "Given the recent events in the Gulf Coast region, restoring these lands is now more important than ever."

Why Upper Ouachita NWR?

The Conservation Fund works with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which identifies the highest priority locations for reforestation.

"Every day, we hear about the impacts of deforestation in the Amazon or Indonesia,” says Ray Herndon, The Conservation Fund’s Louisiana state director.  “But it’s happening in the Gulf Coast area too. Migratory bird populations have lost more than 24 million acres of bottomland hardwood forest habitat over the last century along the Red River and lower Mississippi River valleys. In fact, no other wetland system in North America has suffered such a tremendous reduction in area."

"Habitat destruction is more pronounced in the Gulf Coast area than in any other area of the United States."

—Ray Herndon, The Conservation Fund’s Louisiana state director

Over the past century, Louisiana’s lush forests and waterways have been cleared, dammed, leveed and drastically altered, leaving less habitat for the hundreds of thousands of migrating birds that descend upon the Gulf Coast region every fall. The Upper Ouachita NWR provides habitat for dozens of species of migratory waterfowl, songbirds and shorebirds that use forested, moist soil and open-water wetland habitats for nesting, foraging and taking cover from predators. During the fall and winter, these lands flood, setting the table for wintering waterfowl looking to plump up on high protein nuts and other foods. In late summer, the water recedes within open-water wetland pools, creating mudflats for migrating shorebirds.

The Louisiana black bear is also found in Upper Ouachita Refuge and reforestation will offer this federally protected species more corridors for roaming and denning.

See images from the tree planting:

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  Upper Ouachita NWR
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  Upper Ouachita Planting Area
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  Preparing to plant the trees
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  Planting the trees

Other Benefits

In addition to restoring essential wildlife habitat, this planting—along with several other restoration projects planned by the Fund in Upper Ouachita—will have a major impact on water quality and flood control for the communities downstream. An editorial in Monroe's News-Star newspaper outlines the potential impact of our forest restoration efforts:

"The Ouachita River's water quality should improve as the restored forest filters out some of the excess nutrients that are washed into the water, such as agricultural fertilizers. And, the project will improve water storage capacity during high-water seasons, taking pressure off the levee system that protects the Twin Cities and other communities downstream in Louisiana.

While this project is believed to be the largest floodplain restoration project of its kind in the United States, it would never have been possible without a significant non-profit and public partnership. The Conservation Fund's participation in this major effort, along with the many others who have contributed to make it possible, is to be commended.

For those of us who live downstream, we probably won't notice the next time the water rises that it isn't as high as it used to be at the same time each spring. And we may not notice the water is clearer.

But the benefits of this restoration will be measurable, and will at some point save lives and property as the Ouachita hits flood stage.

We are grateful to Dell, Dell's supporters and the individual donors who made our efforts in this region possible. Since 2007, Dell and The Conservation Fund have been working together to rebuild forests across the United States through the Plant a Tree program. Thanks to this continuing partnership, Dell customers have made donations that helped plant more than 130,000 trees between 2007 and 2010. Stay tuned for additional endeavors to restore forestland in the Gulf Coast!

We know that for conservation solutions to truly last they need to benefit the surrounding communities. In South Carolina, the creation of the  Belfast Wildlife Management Area, not only protects wildlife habitat, it also offers the public access to a new outdoor space to enjoy and preserves part of South Carolina's history.

 After a two-year effort, working with a group of organizations, we completed the creation of Belfast WMA. Our efforts began in 2008 when we purchased nearly 4,664 acres for this new wildlife management area. We immediately transferred nearly half of it—2,228 acres—to South Carolina DNR andheld the remaining portion until DNR secured the necessary funding to acquire the rest of the property. DNR completed the purchase in July 2010.

Located between two sections of Sumter National Forest, Belfast WMA contains a mix of hardwood forest, pine forest and wetlands that provide habitat for a variety of game and non-game species such as white-tailed deer, wild turkeys, bobwhite quail, Kentucky warbler and American woodcock. The property also includes a historic plantation home that dates back to 1786 and is one of the oldest structures in Laurens County.

This land is now open to the public for hunting and other recreational opportunities. South Carolina DNR plans to use the plantation home for group events, educational programs and to promote outdoor activities with youth.

"With the acquisition of this property, we will not only expand hunting opportunities but will also utilize Belfast Plantation for educational and recruitment efforts through the creation of shooting ranges and expansion of educational programs. DNR hopes to work with schools and organizations in both counties to enhance opportunities to get youth into the outdoors," said John Frampton, DNR director.

Take a video tour of the Belfast Wildlife Management Area:

Eleventh graders at the Pine School in Hobe Sound, Florida, skipped class for a day for a good cause: the school’s first Service Learning Day. Led by teachers Greg Squier, Rebecca Conway and science department chair, Dr. Darryl Martino, the juniors spent the day removing invasive species from the historic Banner Lake area in Hobe Sound.

The Banner Lake area is important habitat for a number of endangered and threatened species, including the snail kite, bald eagle, Florida sandhill crane, Florida scrub jay, gopher tortoise, eastern indigo snake and numerous other bird and animal species.

“It is great to put together projects like this that provide an opportunity to teach and learn about the natural environment,” said Matt Sexton, vice president of The Conservation Fund. “We are grateful to the Pine School and the group at Aquatic Vegetation Control of Riviera Beach who donated their time to work with these students. They spent days on the site with a full crew treating the exotics. Without them taking care of the big trees, which are a seed source, pulling the saplings would be a recurring need."

View the photo gallery to see the day's activities.

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Photo: Frank Kehren/Flickr

In 2009, Grandfather Mountain State Park officially became North Carolina's newest state park. We helped to protect 2,456 acres along the crest of the famous landmark, truly a natural wonder worth passing on to our grandchildren. Popular hiking trails, the headwaters of the Watauga and Linville rivers and gorgeous natural canvas of wildlife habitat make this a top destination for people who love the outdoors.

We worked with The Nature Conservancy to help the state acquire this property, which was financed through North Carolina's Parks and Recreation and Natural Heritage trust funds.

The perfect day trip for visitors from North Carolina and Tennessee, Grandfather Mountain has been a wildlife sanctuary and nature preserve for decades. In fact, it has been the only private park designated by the United Nations as an International Biosphere Reserve.

Hugh Morton developed the popular Grandfather Mountain attraction in the 1950s. Morton’s heirs retain a 749-acre portion of the property, which is now protected by a conservation easement and includes a nature center, wildlife habitats and "mile-high" swinging bridge.

To go to the park's website, click here.