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Nature Conservancy presents plan to protect roughly 1,900 acres of prairie in Clay County
Summary
The Nature Conservancy told Clay County commissioners it plans to protect about 1,900 acres of wet meadow prairie and marginal cropland in Keene and Hagen townships, with long‑term ownership split among the Conservancy, Minnesota DNR and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and funding from the Outdoor Heritage Fund.
The Clay County Board of Commissioners heard a presentation on May 5 from the Nature Conservancy about a land‑protection project covering roughly 1,900 acres of wet‑meadow prairie and marginal cropland in Keene and Hagen townships.
"We're very pleased to protect more land for wildlife habitat and for controlled public recreational access," said Liz Berry, associate director of grasslands in Minnesota for the Nature Conservancy, who led the presentation. She said the landowner approached the Conservancy to sell marginal acres that the owner does not plan to farm long term.
Berry and fellow presenter Jane Cowen, habitat protection program manager, described planned long‑term ownership and management: the Nature Conservancy would retain about 480 acres, the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources would hold roughly 320 acres as a Wildlife Management Area, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service would hold about 1,100 acres. Presenters said hunting will be allowed across the complex and that limited farming is planned in the short term to prepare sites for prairie restoration.
The presenters outlined restoration tools they expect to use, including rotational haying, conservation grazing, controlled burning and invasive species control, and said the project will reconnect native prairie fragments important for pollinators, grassland birds and water quality. They identified the Outdoor Heritage Fund portion of the Clean Water, Land and Legacy Amendment as the funding source for the protection work.
Commissioners asked about timing for transfer to public agencies, whether trails or formal walking paths would be established, and restoration sequencing. Berry said transfers to the DNR and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service are expected within one to two years and that the Conservancy typically does not establish permanent walking trails where doing so would harm habitat; limited informal use and occasional mown firebreaks related to controlled burning were described as possible.
No formal action was required of the board at the meeting. Presenters offered to provide contact information and follow up with staff on questions about public access and management details.
