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Wisconsin seeks input on managing special natural areas

DNR asks citizens to weigh in on updated strategy for high-quality sites — including several parcels along the St. Croix.

By Greg Seitz | September 11, 2020 | 2 minute read

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Via the Wisconsin DNR:

Farmington Bottoms State Natural Area on the St. Croix River. (Greg Seitz, St. Croix 360)

The DNR’s Bureau of Natural Heritage Conservation has revised the State Natural Areas Program’s long-range strategy for the protection of Wisconsin’s highest quality ecological communities.

This new document incorporates current scientific views on preserve design and climate change projections to address major environmental challenges for SNAs. It also identifies primary objectives to guide the program for the next ten years.

Review the updated plan here (PDF)

Email your comments to the State Natural Areas Program at DNRFWPNHCStateNaturalAreas@wisconsin.gov. Comments accepted until Sept. 17, 2020.

State natural areas (SNAs) protect outstanding examples of Wisconsin’s native landscape of natural communities, significant geological formations and archeological sites.

Encompassing 402,000 acres on lands owned by the state and its many partners, including land trusts, local and county governments, and private citizens, Wisconsin’s natural areas are valuable for research and educational use, the preservation of genetic and biological diversity and for providing benchmarks for determining the impact of use on managed lands. They also provide some of the last refuges for rare plants and animals.

There are many Wisconsin SNAs on and along the St. Croix River and its tributaries. Here are some of the notable sites:

Namekagon Barrens

Big Island

Norway Point Bottomlands

Ekdall Wetlands

Brant Brook Pines

St. Croix Ash Swamp

St. Croix Seeps

Trade River Forest and Wetlands

Sterling Barrens

Interstate Lowland Forest

Osceola Bedrock Glades

Kinnickinnic River Gorge And Delta

Apple River Canyon

St. Croix Islands

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