The North American Wetlands Conservation Act (P.L. 101-233) (December 13, 1989) authorizes a

wetland A wetland is a distinct ecosystem that is flooded or saturated by water, either permanently (for years or decades) or seasonally (for weeks or months). Flooding results in oxygen-free (anoxic) processes prevailing, especially in the soils. The ...

s habitat program, administered by the

United States Fish and Wildlife Service The United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS or FWS) is an agency within the United States Department of the Interior dedicated to the management of fish, wildlife, and natural habitats. The mission of the agency is "working with othe ...

, which provides grants to protect and manage wetland habitats for

migratory birds Bird migration is the regular seasonal movement, often north and south along a flyway, between breeding and wintering grounds. Many species of bird migrate. Migration carries high costs in predation and mortality, including from hunting by ...

and other wetland wildlife in the United States, Mexico, and Canada. A nine-member council meets periodically to decide which projects to fund. The program encourages private-public costsharing projects. It must allocate between 50% and 70% of all funds to projects in Mexico and Canada, and no more than 50% of the U.S. share for projects in these countries can come from federal sources. The Act was recently reauthorized through FY2007 in P.L. 107-308, which gradually increases the funding level to $75 million in the final year.

Results

Wetlands Conservation Act has provided

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...

with different and effective ways to preserve

wetlands A wetland is a distinct ecosystem that is flooded or saturated by water, either permanently (for years or decades) or seasonally (for weeks or months). Flooding results in oxygen-free (anoxic) processes prevailing, especially in the soils. The ...

to ensure that

wildlife Wildlife refers to domestication, undomesticated animal species (biology), species, but has come to include all organisms that grow or live wilderness, wild in an area without being species, introduced by humans. Wildlife was also synonymous ...

and migratory birds’ habitats are safe. More than 2,000 projects have been started, collaborating with 3,000 other organizations. These collaborations include private and public landowners and over 25 million acres in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. Over $411 million in federal appropriations have been leveraged into $3.5 billion which creates jobs through NAWCA, and these jobs have accumulated $200 million in worker's earnings annually.

Conservation issue

Plants and soils in

have a very active and significant role in the environment because they filter water by removing high levels of nitrogen and phosphorus. They also remove toxic chemicals before they have the opportunity to enter the groundwater. When the wetlands' plants and soils are intact, many harmful toxins are shut out, and the entire habitat can be a safer place for

and other species to reside. NAWCA not only benefits

and migratory birds, but also benefits other visitors. When wetlands have an abundance of wildlife, humans can enjoy fishing, hunting, and nature as well.

NAWCA in Multiple States

Louisiana

Louisiana Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is borde ...

currently has 47 NAWCA projects which has covered an amount of 519,038 acres of

habitat and NAWCA has 19 multi-state projects completed in

which has conserved 314,887 acres of

habitat. It is said that

has the highest rate of coastal

;

also has the most moss loss.

loses 16,000-22,000 acres a year and nearly 1,500 square miles of

marsh A marsh is a wetland that is dominated by herbaceous rather than woody plant species.Keddy, P.A. 2010. Wetland Ecology: Principles and Conservation (2nd edition). Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK. 497 p Marshes can often be found at ...

has been lost over a total of seven years. *Black Lake Terracing Project The Black Lake Terracing Project is led by

Ducks Unlimited Ducks Unlimited (DU) is an American nonprofit organization 501(c) dedicated to the conservation of wetlands and associated upland habitats for waterfowl, other wildlife, and people. It has had a membership of around 700,000 since January 2013. ...

and includes 16 partnerships from other states, federal, nonprofit, and private partners. This project has restored marshes in many areas including areas west of

Hackberry, Louisiana Hackberry is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Cameron Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 1,261 at the 2010 census, down from 1,699 in 2000. The losses were due to extensive damage from hurricanes ...

near Black Lake and areas on the Cameron Prairie National Wildlife Refuge. Black Lake Terracing Project focuses on areas that contain migration and wintering habitats for scaup,

mottled duck The mottled duck (''Anas fulvigula'') or mottled mallard is a medium-sized species of dabbling duck. It is intermediate in appearance between the female mallard and the American black duck. It is closely related to those species, and is sometime ...

northern pintail The pintail or northern pintail (''Anas acuta'') is a duck species with wide geographic distribution that breeds in the northern areas of Europe and across the Palearctic and North America. It is migratory and winters south of its breeding ...

s, and

mallard The mallard () or wild duck (''Anas platyrhynchos'') is a dabbling duck that breeds throughout the temperate and subtropical Americas, Eurasia, and North Africa, and has been introduced to New Zealand, Australia, Peru, Brazil, Uruguay, Arge ...

s. The habitats and livelihood of shorebirds, wading birds, and other water-birds are also species that are a major importance in this project.

Mississippi

Theodore Roosevelt National Wildlife Refuge Complex The Theodore Roosevelt National Wildlife Refuge Complex is the largest refuge complex in the state of Mississippi. Over 100,000 acres (400 km2) of refuge lands on seven refuges, including 13,000 acres (53 km2) of refuge-managed Farmers ...

This

Mississippi Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...

project has protected over 675 acres of

in areas including

Morgan Brake National Wildlife Refuge Morgan Brake National Wildlife Refuge is one of seven refuges in the Theodore Roosevelt National Wildlife Refuge Complex. In addition to the typical bottomland habitats of the Mississippi Delta, Morgan Brake National Wildlife Refuge includes a u ...

and

Panther Swamp National Wildlife Refuge Panther Swamp National Wildlife Refuge is one of seven refuges in the Theodore Roosevelt National Wildlife Refuge Complex in Mississippi. Established in 1978, Panther Swamp National Wildlife Refuge encompasses . Included in those acres is one of ...

. NAWCA projects in Mississippi have provided protection to more than 675 acres of wetland habitats on the Morgan Brake National Wildlife Refuge and Panther Swamp National Wildlife Refuge. In Morgan Brake's wildlife, NAWCA has converted empty crawfish ponds to moist soil units. In order to convert the ponds to soil units, wells and underground irrigation must be improved along with redesigning

levees A levee (), dike (American English), dyke (Commonwealth English), embankment, floodbank, or stop bank is a structure that is usually earthen and that often runs parallel to the course of a river in its floodplain or along low-lying coastli ...

that are in the area. The work on Panther Swamp has enhanced

waterfowl Anseriformes is an order of birds also known as waterfowl that comprises about 180 living species of birds in three families: Anhimidae (three species of screamers), Anseranatidae (the magpie goose), and Anatidae, the largest family, which in ...

habitat in the Lower Twist and Big Twist areas. By enhancing

and building new and better ones will allow refuge staff to better control flooding of moist soil plants and agricultural crops for waterfowl. In 2009, Panther Swamp opened 800 acres that were previously off limits to allow humans to regain hunting privileges in that area.

Theodore Roosevelt Theodore Roosevelt Jr. ( ; October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), often referred to as Teddy or by his initials, T. R., was an American politician, statesman, soldier, conservationist, naturalist, historian, and writer who served as the 26t ...

National Wildlife Refuge Complex has partnered with many organizations including

, Wetlands America Trust, Environmental Synergy, the Walker Foundation, and the

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service The United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS or FWS) is an agency within the United States Department of the Interior dedicated to the management of fish, wildlife, and natural habitats. The mission of the agency is "working with othe ...

Arkansas

*Bayou Meto Basin Phase I NAWCA is working on 14 projects in the

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the Osage ...

area, and over 67,414 acres of land has been conserved. $8.7 million has been contributed to these projects and partner contributions have totaled an amount of $33.5 million. Arkansas has 12 multi-state projects underway, and the 294,710 acres covered are in the best condition than they have ever been. Halowell reservoir, located in

County and constructed in the 1950s, was originally a reservoir for public hunting. From 1960-76, the property was managed as a fishery site and in the late 1960s, the reservoir was flooded. The site was later drained to enhance water control and build levees. Recently, the site has been turned into a

rest area, but there has been failed attempts to provide a quality habitat. Small trees, broomsedges, and asters have invaded the site and have made it hard for waterfowls to enjoy the environment.

Similar legislation

The North American Wetlands Conservation Act had such a positive impact on the

that in 1990, a similar act was written for

and upland habitats. The program is titled The Standard Grants Program, which is a competitive, matching grants program that supports

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

, and the

with private and public wetland projects. These wetland projects that are carried out must be long-term protection, restoration, and/or enhancement of wetlands. Projects carried out in

may also include technical training, education on environmental control and protection, and organizational development. The other program that was created was The Small Grants Program of 1996. This program is the same as The Standard Grants Program, but project activities are usually smaller in scope and do not require as much funds as The Standard Grants Program; grant request must not exceed $75,000.

References

* {{US Environmental law, state=collapsed 1989 in the environment 1989 in law 101st United States Congress United States federal environmental legislation United States Department of Agriculture Wetland conservation in the United States Wetland conservation