$8 Million Available to Restore Wetlands in Ohio

Columbus, OH – Have you been interested in developing a wetland?
If so, the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) Division of
Wildlife and Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS) need to
know.

The NRCS Wetlands Reserve Program (WRP) is a voluntary
conservation program that offers landowners the means and
opportunity to protect, restore, and enhance wetlands on their
property through perpetual easements, 30-year easements or Land
Treatment Contracts. The United States Department of Agriculture
(USDA) Natural Resources Conservation Service manages the program
and provides technical and financial support to help landowners who
participate in WRP.

Interested landowners should contact a NRCS Wetland Team member
or an ODNR Division of Wildlife private lands biologist. Landowners
wanting to participate should call in the next few months.

NRCS Wetland Team Members:

Barbara Baker – (419) 429-8306

Danielle Balduff – (330) 830-7700

Gordon Starr – (937) 836-5428

Ohio’s Private Lands Biologists:

Central Ohio, Dan Crusey, (614) 644-3925

Northwest Ohio, Jeff Burris, (419) 429-8367 and Mark Witt, (419)
429-8362

Northeast Ohio, Dan McMillen, (330) 644-2293

Southeast Ohio, Lloyd Culbertson, (740) 589-9957

Southwest Ohio, Heidi Devine and Diana Malas, (937) 372-9261

The goal of WRP is to achieve the greatest wetland functions and
values, along with optimum wildlife habitat. Enrolled lands are
mostly high-risk agricultural lands located in flood-prone areas
that are then restored to wetlands.

In addition to paying the landowner for the easement, the U.S.
Department of Agriculture pays up to 100 percent of the cost of
restoring the wetland. In Ohio, WRP was offered for the first time
in 1995. To date, Ohio has 326 WRP easements covering 20,143
acres.

One of the primary concerns of landowners considering
participating in WRP is over control of the wetland area. The
landowner retains ownership and controls access of the land. The
landowner must agree to implement a Wetlands Reserve Plan of
Operations (WRPO), a conservation plan that identifies how the
wetland functions and how the area will be restored, improved, and
protected.

The Ohio Department of Natural Resources ensures a balance
between wise use and protection of our natural resources for the
benefit of all. Visit the ODNR web
site.