Wildlife Habitat Incentive Program Lake Champlain Basin

[howesfc]

NY Big Game,
 
One of the strategies in our draft deer management plan calls for promoting landowner awareness and participation in state and federal land conservation programs that benefit deer and deer habitat.  Here is an immediate opportunity.
 

The Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS) has announced special funding through the America's Great Outdoors initiative for the Lake Champlain Basin. Eligible landowners within the basin will be able to enroll in the Wildlife Habitat Incentive Program (WHIP) to manage grassland and shrubland habitat. While targeted for grassland and shrubland birds, the program will also benefit other wildlife such as woodcock, deer, turkeys, and cottontails. NRCS has reduced the minimum land required for this initiative to five acres, allowing smaller landowners to participate. To apply or find out more about the program, please call or visit the Plattsburgh, Malone, or Greenwich NRCS Service Centers at the locations listed below.  You can also read more about WHIP at www.nrcs.usda.gov/programs/whip.  The deadline for enrollment for this initiative is August 10, 2011.  Additional funding may be available after this initial program offering. 

 

Plattsburgh: 6064 State Route 22

Plattsburgh, NY 12901-9601

(518) 561-4616

 

Malone: 151 Finney Blvd

Malone, NY 12953-1067
(518) 483-2850

 

Greenwich:

2530 State Route 40
Greenwich, NY 12834-9627
(518) 692-9940

[upstatehunter]

There is a lot of land over there that is prime for habitat management. Lots of old farms.
 
Wish they would do something with their forever wild and forest preserve lands here. They do well with the waters for trout, with all the stocking programs and artificial only ponds....but nothing is really done for birds and deer. The longer the forests are just left to mature, they are only good for hikers and fisher persons....I have talked to a couple biologists on it, and they both agree somewhat that the state has kind of made their bed and now doesn't know what to do. To many would flip out if they opened the lands to some sort of logging. It will only get worse, as these forests mature. Most are almost 40 years old now, and still have 20-30 years to go to complete maturity. The wildlife will be completely gone by then. Feel sorry for the next generation of hunters, as I won't live to see it most likely....