The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources has been selected to receive $436,000 in federal funds to help the agency and its partners protect swaths of moose habitat in northern Minnesota. The grant is being provided through a program connected to the White House’s America the Beautiful Initiative.
With the funds, the DNR will work with tribal, federal, county, and non-governmental groups to develop a plan that will ultimately protect three tracts of land from 10,000 to 50,000 acres each.
Minnesota’s moose population plumetted beginning in about 2006, leveling off at about half its previous number. The population seems somewhat stable now, but numerous groups are working to preserve and even increase the numbers of the iconic mammal.
“This grant is great news for efforts to address the long-term moose population decline in Minnesota,” said Kelly Straka, DNR wildlife section manager. “This grant supports an effort that has broad support from a number of tribal, federal, county and non-governmental partner organizations, and all are critical players in planning for long-term habitat improvements.”
The initiative seeks to address a major challenge in protecting moose habitat in Minnesota: the checkerboard of land ownership. Several collaborative efforts are already underway, but moose need more help.
With the grant, the DNR will organize several workshops over the next two years to “identify the challenges facing large-scale moose habitat restoration, find strategies to address the challenges, identify areas for large-scale habitat restoration and create an implementation plan for the restoration. The implementation plan will also identify potential sources of funding to complete the agreed upon large-scale habitat restoration.”
The Minnesota grant was one of 55 selected from more than 500 applications from the America the Beautiful Challenge. The fund, managed by National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, pools funds from federal agencies and private foundations to support local conservation projects.
“The President’s challenge is a call to action to support locally led conservation and restoration efforts of all kinds and all over America, wherever communities wish to safeguard the lands and waters they know and love,” wrote Interior Secretary Deb Haaland, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo, and White House Council on Environmental Quality Chair Brenda Mallory in 2021. “Doing so will not only protect our lands and waters but also boost our economy and support jobs nationwide.”
More information:
- Moose habitat planning effort receives America the Beautiful Challenge grant – MN DNR
- America the Beautiful Challenge – National Fish and Wildlife Foundation
- Biden-Harris Administration Outlines “America the Beautiful” Initiative – White House