$6M wetlands initiative will improve habitats on 61 state game land sites

The state Game Commission and Ducks Unlimited have partnered to form the Pennsylvania Wetland Habitat Initiative that would improve 1,600 acres of wetland habitats on 61 state game lands.

Outdated pipes, damaged dikes and dilapidated infrastructure limit site managers’ ability to the wetlands and leave the species in these habitats vulnerable.

“Right now, it seems like the majority of the projects will be focused on our northwest area, so up in the Crawford and Erie areas,” said Tim Haydt, a public lands section chief for the commission. “Then in the southeast part of the state around Middle Creek, Lancaster and York. We really have sites scattered throughout the state.”

The Pennsylvania Wetland Habitat Initiative is a $6 million investment to replace water control structures and improve existing spillways. Improvements are expected to occur over the next three years at sites in 31 counties.

The Game Commission has carried out a two-year statewide assessment of the number and condition of wetland sites with man-made infrastructure. The sites’ conditions were then rated and assigned a level of priority to determine which would be worked on during the initiative.

Haydt said that the assessment had found that some infrastructures had been put in place in the 1970s and ‘80s, and hadn’t been touched since.

New water control structures will be put in place, dikes and spillways will be repaired, as will the boards that regulate wetland water levels. This means water can be managed more efficiently on game lands, and allow natural vegetation to grow.

“This project is going to give us the ability to do what’s called moist-soil management,” Haydt said. “Basically we can raise and lower water levels, and that allows us to manage the species composition in this area to make sure that they have good wetland plants that come in.”

Haydt said that the Game Commission would also be able to stimulate plant growth to produce high-energy seeds. In the fall, migrating waterfowl and other water-bird species can eat the seeds and tubers of native plants, and the invertebrates that inhabit these food sources and associated mudflats. Some plants like cattails also offer birds refuge, a place to rest and protection from wind and rain during inclement weather.

“Maintaining wetlands on the landscape is important because they do provide habitat for certain types of animals,” Haydt said. “Wetlands in general act as nature’s sponge or filter. The more we can improve these areas, the better the integrity of the sites around them as well. They filter out sediment and pollutants, and slow the water down within the system which prevents flooding.”

Healthy wetlands help control flooding. With trees, roots, and vegetation slowing the flow of water into the floodplain, the land acts as a sponge, and keeps water levels lower during flooding. Wetlands also combat erosion and sedimentation, critical to the overall health of the environment, particularly bird populations.

Haydt said that there are currently 185 projects identified. He said 78 have been labeled as “complex.” Depending on the condition of each site’s infrastructure, repairs could take from one day to as long as a couple weeks.

Restoring habitats will benefit several species of waterfowl, shorebirds, secretive marsh birds, waterbirds and other wetland-dependent wildlife

According to Ducks Unlimited Regional Biologist Jim Feaga, this is the largest conservation initiative Ducks Unlimited has been involved with in Pennsylvania.

“This is a significant investment,” Haydt said. “We’re not aware of anything to this magnitude in the state.”