Conservation Planning
Southwest Michigan Land Conservancy recognizes the importance of strategic conservation planning and the benefits of partnering to create effective and long-term conservation projects. SWMLC has developed a collaborative public process to identify priority conservation areas and targets which includes establishing a stakeholder committee to assist in the Geographic Information Systems (GIS) mapping analysis and planning. This process has allowed us to identify the most significant conservation areas for protection of wildlife habitat, endangered and threatened plant and animal communities, and water resources within the nine-county region.
SWMLC has conserved many properties that were identified through strategic conservation planning processes. A few notable examples include Spirit Springs Sanctuary (Rocky River Watershed Strategic Conservation Plan), Ford Farm Conservation Easement (Augusta Creek Watershed Plan), Black River Preserve (Black River Watershed Strategic Conservation Plan), and Eureka! Conservation Easement (Paw Paw River Watershed Strategic Conservation Plan).
Over the past ten years, SWMLC has completed or participated in conservation planning projects for:
♦ Barry State Game Area (view Executive Summary)
♦ Black River Watershed
♦ Dowagiac River Watershed
♦ Four Township Water Resources Council
♦ Kalamazoo River Watershed (view Executive Summary)
♦ Michigan Dune Alliance Coastal Areas
♦ Mitchell’s Satyr Butterfly Priority Habitat Protection
♦ Paw Paw River Watershed (view Executive Summary)
♦ Prairieville Creek — part of the Gull Lake Watershed (view Executive Summary)
♦ Rocky River Watershed
Southwest Michigan
Land Conservancy
8395 East Main St.
Galesburg, MI 49053
269-324-1600 conserveland@swmlc.org
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Subscribe for news Some conservation planning projects in which SWMLC is currently involved:
Augusta Creek Watershed Protection
Funded through the Clean Water Act to protect pristine land and water resources in the Augusta Creek Watershed and sustain exceptional water quality.
Wetland Partnership Project for the St. Joseph River Watershed
A bi-state, multiple-partner effort coordinated by the Friends of the St. Joe River Association to understand and rank the functions of remaining wetlands. SWMLC leads the outreach portion of the partnership to convene workshops targeting landowners who own the most significant, high-functioning wetlands to inform them of conservation options and conservation partners to work with.
Glass Creek Watershed Protection
Funded through the Clean Water Act to protect pristine land and water resources in the Glass Creek Watershed and sustain exceptional water quality.
Headwaters and Greenways: A Strategic Conservation Plan for the Southern Kalamazoo Moraine and Jones State Game Areas
SWMLC is in the early stages of convening partners across parts of Cass and St. Joseph counties to conserve wildlife greenways and critical headwater stream systems of five unique watersheds that emanate in and around the Jones State Game Areas.
