Summary
The 64-million-acre Prairie Pothole Region in the north-central United States provides breeding grounds for over 60 percent of key migratory bird species in the United States. During much of the 20th century, the draining of wetlands and the conversion of prairie to cropland has reduced bird habitat. Under the Small Wetlands Acquisition Program, the Department of the Interior's U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (the Service) aims to sustain remaining migratory bird populations by permanently protecting high-priority habitat. Some habitat is temporarily protected under the Department of Agriculture's Conservation Reserve Program. In this context, GAO examined (1) the status of the Service's acquisition program in the region, (2) the Service's habitat protection goals for the region, and (3) challenges to achieving these goals. To answer these objectives, GAO examined Service land acquisition data and projected rates of habitat loss.
Since the inception of the Small Wetlands Acquisition Program in the late 1950s, the Service has acquired and permanently protected about 3 million acres of wetlands and grasslands in the Prairie Pothole Region, primarily using Migratory Bird Conservation Funds. The Service has purchased outright almost 700,000 acres and acquired permanent conservation easements on more than 2.3 million acres that are privately owned. To sustain bird populations in the region, the Service's goal is to acquire and permanently protect as much as possible of an additional 12 million acres of "high-priority" habitat--at-risk acreage capable of supporting a high number of breeding duck pairs per square mile. The goal acreage consists of 1.4 million acres of wetlands and 10.4 million acres of grasslands. According to the Service, achieving this goal is necessary to sustain the region's current population of 4.2 million breeding duck pairs and to ensure that enough habitat is maintained during wet years, when duck populations boom. At the current pace of acquisitions, it could take the Service around 150 years and billions of dollars to acquire its 12 million goal acres. Some emerging market forces, however, suggest that the Service may have only several decades before most of its goal acreage is converted to agricultural uses. The pace of acquisitions could be increased marginally by using existing funds more efficiently or substantially by providing additional resources. The Service has purchased some expensive habitat in South Dakota. On the basis of GAO's analysis, the Service could have acquired about an additional 8,500 acres of high-priority habitat in South Dakota in fiscal year 2006, over and above the 16,169 acres that it did acquire, by more effectively targeting low-cost, high-priority habitat. However, with about $17 million per year for land acquisitions in the Prairie Pothole Region, the Service's limited resources pose a substantial challenge. Another way to address this challenge is to explore additional resource alternatives, such as increasing the price of the federal Duck Stamp (these funds are placed in the Migratory Bird Conservation Fund), reauthorizing a wetlands loan, or providing additional funds from the Land and Water Conservation Fund. Each of these alternatives would require congressional action, such as H.R. 2735 and S. 272, which have been introduced in the 110th Congress.
Recommendations
Our recommendations from this work are listed below with a Contact for more information. Status will change
from "In process" to "Implemented" or "Not implemented" based on our follow up work.
Director:
Team:
Phone:
Robin M. Nazzaro
Government Accountability Office: Natural Resources and Environment
(202) 512-6246
Matters for Congressional Consideration
Recommendation: Determining the resource level that is appropriate to devote to acquiring migratory bird habitat in the Prairie Pothole Region is a policy decision that rests with Congress and the President. How much time the Service has to protect this high-priority habitat will largely depend on how much of the land stays temporarily protected by Agriculture conservation programs. The two legislative proposals that have been introduced in the 110th Congress would provide the Service with hundreds of millions of additional resources for land acquisitions in the region. However, several billion dollars will likely be needed for the Service to achieve its goal. We present this information to Congress as it deliberates whether and to what extent additional resources should be provided to the Service to acquire high-priority habitat in the Prairie Pothole Region. Congress may wish to consider this information as it debates H.R. 2735, regarding whether and to what extent the price of the Duck Stamp should be increased; S. 272, regarding whether and to what extent to reauthorize a wetlands acquisition loan; and whether and to what extent additional funds may need to be provided from the Land and Water Conservation Fund.
Status: In process
Comments: When we determine what steps the Congress has taken, we will provide updated information.
Recommendations for Executive Action
Recommendation: To help ensure that the Service acquires as much high-priority habitat as possible with its available funds, the Secretary of the Interior should direct the Director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to fully integrate the Service's recently developed scientific models with consideration of land prices, with the goal of maximizing the acquisition of the least expensive high-priority habitat when deciding which lands to acquire in the Prairie Pothole Region, while balancing that goal with the continued need to acquire high-priority habitat throughout the region.
Agency Affected: Department of the Interior
Status: In process
Comments: When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
