Cache River Wetlands Joint Venture Partnership

The Cache River Wetlands Joint Venture Partnership is a collaboration among governmental entities and non-profit organizations. It is composed of Ducks Unlimited, Illinois Department of Natural Resources, Natural Resource Conservation Service, The Nature Conservancy and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Its goal is to protect and restore a 60,000-acre (240 km2) corridor along 50 miles (80 km) of the Cache River.

Conservation focus

Currently, the partnership is working on three areas: restoring forest and wetland habitats, reducing sediment and eroding streams, and exploring ways to restore low water flow to the lower segment of the Cache River, which was disconnected from the upper stretch of the river in the early 1900s.

Conservation achievements

As of August 2010, the partnership has helped protect 35,000 acres (140 km2), reforest 22,000 acres (89 km2), restore 9,000 acres (36 km2) into wetlands and has undertaken other measures, including the installation of upland water retention structures, rip-rap riffle weirs and lateral gully plugs.

Additionally, local landowners, through Wetland Reserve Program easements with NRCS, have protected an additional 13,500 acres (55 km2) of restored wetlands.

See also

External links

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