The Detroit River International Wildlife Refuge will be adding additional acres for wildlife conservation due to the recently awarded North American Conservation Act Grant (NAWCA). 

The NAWCA grant, which is for phase II of the Saginaw Bay to Lake Erie Coastal Habitat Project, will provide $250,000 to the Service to be used for land acquisition at the refuge.  The grant brings together many partners to accomplish common goals along the eastern portion of the Lower Peninsula in Michigan.  Some of the partners include Ducks Unlimited, who is the grant administrator, USFWS Refuges and Private Lands, Michigan DNR, Monroe County Michigan, Pheasants Forever, Waterfowl USA, and several land trusts. 

A major portion of the match for the grant was a land donation from Monroe County, Michigan.  The Monroe donation was the Plum Creek Bay parcel that added 125.76 acres of Lake Erie Coastal Marsh to the refuge.  Staff from the refuge have evaluated several parcels for acquisition and will be eager to move forward with willing sellers as soon as the grant agreements are finalized.