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 Did
you know that over 70% of Michigan land is in private hands?
Because of this, many of our most valued and endangered plants
and animals live on private land. Concern for the well-being
of wildlife on private lands led to the creation of the Michigan
Department of Natural Resources' (DNR's) Landowner Incentive
Program.
The
Land Owner Incentive Program provides financial and technical
assistance to landowners to help them enhance their property
for wildlife in specific ecosystems. It is funded by a grant
from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to restore habitat
for rare species on private land.
To
learn more:
A
real-life example: Judy and Peter Gray
In
the two years of its existence, the Landowner Incentive Program
has already enrolled about 1,500 acres in southeastern Michigan,
and about 5,000 acres statewide. Locally, 80 of those acres
are the property of Judy and Peter Gray near Waterloo.
"We thought that if we wanted to live in the country,
we should help protect the country," says Mrs. Gray.
The Grays purchased their land about 5 years ago. Through
contact with the Washtenaw Land Trust and other conservation-minded
groups in the Waterloo area, they developed a desire to "do
their tiny little bit in the face of development in the area"
to improve the wildlife habitat and ecosystems on their land.
They learned of the Landowner Incentive Program through the
Washtenaw Land Trust.
Their goals with the program are to protect the wild aesthetics
of the land that they so enjoy and to sustain the plants and
animals that live there. Even insects will benefit like the
lovely swallowtail butterflies that inhabit a mass of native
Michigan prickly ash shrubs on their property.
Approximately half of the Grays' land is woods and half is
open marsh/sedge meadows. In the absence of fires, both natural
and those set by Native Americans, over 90% of pre-settlement
prairies and wet meadows have been lost to farming, development,
and encroachment by forests. Thus, any remaining meadows that
can be restored to or maintained in a healthy condition are
especially useful to the wildlife that depend on them. The
Grays commonly see deer, raccoons, skunks, foxes, owls and
a variety of other birds on their property.
Under the Landowner Incentive Program, the Grays received
a grant to conduct prescribed burns to maintain open portions
of their property. This will stimulate the growth of native
plant species that need open spaces and knock back the shrubs
and small trees that invade these spaces in the absence of
fire.
The Grays walked the land with Dan Kennedy of the DNR and
Dave Borneman, a habitat restoration specialist, to evaluate
the ecological status of the land and set up a plan of action
for the property. Borneman, who has years of training and
experience with prescribed burns, will develop the burn plan
and implement it. The Grays don't plan to do any plantings
as part of this project; they're interested in observing how
the land responds to the fire.
The Grays' project is still in the planning stages so they
can't yet report on the success of their involvement in the
program, but so far they are pleased with the process and
hopeful that the prescribed burns will enhance the beauty
and eco-friendliness of their property.
How
the program works
The Land Owner Incentive Program provides financial and technical
assistance to landowners to help them enhance their property
for wildlife in specific ecosystems. It is funded by a grant
from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to restore habitat
for rare species on private land.
Eligible properties must be in a priority area and be at least
12 acres. In southeastern Michigan, the priority areas include
western Washtenaw, almost all of Jackson, and northern Hillsdale
and Lenawee counties. Properties outside of the priority areas
may be eligible if they provide a direct benefit to a species
targeted by the program or are greater than 40 acres.
In our region, the program improves prairie and savanna habitat.
Plantings, prescribed burns, wetland restorations and invasive
species removals may all play a part in the process. Plantings
of non-native material or forest management are not supported
by the plan, and landowners must agree to not do anything
on the land that would be incompatible with rare species utilizing
the land.
As part of the program, landowners also agree to allow the
DNR to visit the properties to evaluate the changes in the
ecosystems.
Thank
you to Rick Meader for compiling this information.
About
the Washtenaw Land Trust:
The Washtenaw Land Trust is a private, non-profit, tax-exempt
501(c)(3) organization that protects natural areas and working
farms throughout Washtenaw, Jackson, and Ingham Counties.
Washtenaw
Land Trust
info@washtenawlandtrust.org
734-302-LAND(5263)
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