Partners for Fish and Wildlife in North Carolina
Ninety percent of the land in North Carolina is privately owned. Without conservation efforts on private lands, our trust resources would simply not survive. The Partners for Fish and Wildlife Program supports landowners that may lack the technical and financial support necessary to manage their land for wildlife.
The Partners for Fish and Wildlife Program is the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s primary mechanism for delivering voluntary on-the-ground habitat improvement projects on private lands for the benefit of Federal trust species. Biologists provide technical and financial assistance to landowners who want to restore and enhance fish and wildlife habitats on their property. Partners for Fish and Wildlife projects may include improving habitat for species such as migratory birds, anadromous or migratory fish, endangered or threatened species, or any other declining or imperiled species.
The goals of the program are to promote and implement habitat improvement projects that benefit Federal trust species, provide conservation leadership and promote partnerships, encourage public understanding and participation, and to work with USDA to implement Farm Bill conservation programs.
The Partners for Fish and Wildlife program contributed to the restoration of this 5.5 acre remnant native Piedmont Prairie. Photo by John Suther.
All private landowners qualify to participate in Partners for Fish and Wildlife. Participating landowners include private individuals, family trusts, partnerships, corporate owners, non-profit organizations, local governments, and universities.
Partners for Fish and Wildlife works in a diversity of habitat types throughout the state. Some Partners for Fish and Wildlife Projects are educational in nature, providing the necessary materials and opportunities for children and adults to learn the significance of the State’s natural resources. Most of the Partners for Fish and Wildlife projects have occurred in four main habitat types: Forested Wetlands (Bottomland Hardwoods, Non-alluvial swamp forest, Pocosins), Longleaf Pine, Piedmont Prairies, and Streams and Riparian Areas.
Partners for Fish and Wildlife provides technical assistance such as habitat restoration and enhancement recommendations and planning. The program provides information on other available programs and partners that may help. Financial assistance is often available. Landowners are expected to agree to keep their land in the restored condition for a minimum of 10 years and to provide cost share or in kind services.
Since the program began in North Carolina in 1988, nearly 15,000 acres of upland and bottomland habitat and 30 miles of streams have been restored in over 230 projects throughout North Carolina!
