Camp Ripley Sentinel Landscape ACUB Protection Program - Phase VIII

Phase VIII will protect approximately 1,325-acres of fish, game, migratory bird, and forest habitat along the Crow Wing, Long Prairie, Gull, Nokasippi, and Mississippi River corridors and lake watersheds within a 5-mile radius of Camp Ripley. This phase will secure approximately 22 permanent conservation Reinvest in Minnesota (RIM) easements, utilizing partnerships with Camp Ripley, a State Game Refuge, the Board of Water and Soil Resources (BWSR) and the Morrison Soil and Water Conservation District (SWCD). Easement acquisition will occur in portions of Morrison, Crow Wing, and Cass County that lie within this 5-mile radius.

Easement acquisition in this area will protect river and lake habitat corridors that are critical to the general public for fishing, hunting, and recreational opportunities. These riparian corridors are critical protection for the State of Minnesota, MN National Guard (MNNG) and National Guard Bureau (NGB) and its mission to sustain military training of soldiers, our local economy, the National Mississippi River Flyway, and Mississippi Headwaters Board mission.

Parcels are targeted that have quality existing habitat, protect corridors and large habitat complexes and reduce future fragmentation. Evaluation criteria include ecological and habitat factors for resident and migratory wildlife species. The target area has been limited to ensure a concentration of easement acquisitions that provide landscape scale benefits and will allow for protection of large forested parcels that are in imminent threat of conversion.

The forested region of these three counties is where agriculture transitions to existing forested lands. Thousands of acres just outside of this work area are being converted from forest to annual cropping, primarily for potato/corn production. Forests not only provide critical wildlife habitat for game and non-game species, but forests lessen the impact of water quality contamination from land use practices. This region of the state, most specifically Morrison County, is the fastest growing county in the state for the loss of grazing land to annual cropping. The loss of forests would exacerbate problems associated with conversion. Drinking water standards in the area are also in jeopardy with the increase in irrigation and large scale livestock operations, so protecting the forested lands has become a critical issue.

In 2016 Camp Ripley was designated as a federal Sentinel Landscape, one of seven in the nation. This designation by both State and Federal entities coordinates strategies to protect this landscape. Many agencies have identified their scope of priorities within the Sentinel Landscape 10-mile boundary. The Camp Ripley Sentinel Landscape Army Compatible Use Buffer (ACUB) program has never had less than 250-interested landowners on the waiting list for participation. To date Outdoor Heritage Fund (OHF) support of $9M has leveraged $39M in federal dollars and protected 30,000-acres.