Bozeman, Mont. - October 30, 2024 - Pheasants Forever is excited to announce plans for conservation efforts on 120,000 acres of working lands and wildlife habitat in Montana over the next five years. The project – Montana Grasslands and Wildlife Corridors – was recently funded at $25 million by the United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP).
“This funding is a tremendous step forward for the Montana Grasslands Initiative and will allow us to dramatically impact conservation in our state,” said Pheasants Forever’s Montana state coordinator, Hunter VanDonsel. “Grasslands are the most imperiled landscape on the planet, and it’s vital we do everything we can to protect what remains. We’re very honored to receive this opportunity from the NRCS.”
Grasslands and Sagebrush steppe are critical to the Montana upland experience — as well as to the state’s culture, industry and wildlife. These crucial pieces of Montana’s legacy are disappearing at an alarming rate. Over 30% of eastern Montana’s grasslands have been broken or altered, and the state has seen a 34% decline in grassland bird populations. Over 1.5 million Montana acres enrolled in the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) have expired in the last decade — and nationwide, 2.6 million acres of grasslands are lost every year.
The RCPP funding will directly support the Montana Grasslands Initiative to impact grasslands by removing or modifying 200 miles of fence to facilitate wildlife movement, seeding 5,000 acres of grass, contracting management improvements on 10,000 acres and establishing reliable livestock water on 100,000 acres of grasslands. Additionally, partners expect to utilize land rental contracts to address barriers to grassland restorations, leverage partnerships, and keep restoration projects intact for a minimum of 10 years on 30,000 acres. Over time, these projects will provide benefits such as enhanced habitat for wildlife, increased livestock forage, improved wildlife connectivity, and carbon sequestration.
The awarded RCPP wouldn’t be possible without robust partnerships, including The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Ducks Unlimited, Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks, the Bureau of Land Management, the Prairie Pothole Joint Venture, the Northern Great Plains Joint Venture and Ranchers Stewardship Alliance. These partners will add significant value to the effort, and bring an additional $12 million in leveraged funding to advance work on the ground.
To learn more about this project, contact Hunter VanDonsel at HVanDonsel@PheasantsForever.org.
About Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever
Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever make up the nation's largest nonprofit organization dedicated to upland habitat conservation. This community of more than 477,000 members, supporters and partners is dedicated to the protection of our uplands through habitat improvement, public access, education and advocacy. A network of 754 local chapters spread across North America determine how 100 percent of their locally raised funds are spent — the only national conservation organization that operates through this grassroots structure. Since its creation in 1982, the organization has dedicated more than $1 billion to 580,000 habitat projects benefiting 28.8 million acres.
Media Contact
Casey Sill
402-657-4143
csill@pheasantsforever.org