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Nature Conservancy presents Michigan programs, Keweenaw parcel plan and request for local recreation authority
Summary
Rich Bowman of The Nature Conservancy described the organization's Michigan programs, conservation funding, forestry and fisheries projects, and a temporary Keweenaw parcel purchase intended to be transferred to a local recreation and forest authority that will require statutory tweaks.
Rich Bowman, director of external affairs for The Nature Conservancy in Michigan, told the House Committee on Natural Resources and Tourism that the national conservation organization operates in all 50 states and about 80 countries and that the Michigan unit focuses on freshwater, Great Lakes coastal systems, resilient forests and climate. Bowman gave the committee multiple program and budget figures, described ongoing fisheries and forest work, and outlined a 2022 purchase in the Keweenaw Peninsula that The Nature Conservancy is holding as a temporary owner while it works with the Department of Natural Resources and local officials to create a local recreation and forest authority.
Bowman told the committee the Michigan unit operates on a budget of about $8 million a year and has "a little less than 50 staff." He said The Nature Conservancy has protected about "436,000 acres" in Michigan and owns and manages…
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