Posts by lschultz
Great American Outdoors Act Becomes Law
The Great American Outdoors Act (GAOA) became law today when the president signed this historic conservation legislation. This landmark bill will protect public lands and expand recreational opportunities for decades to come. GAOA will permanently dedicate full funding to the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF), and establish the National Parks and Public Land Legacy…
Read MoreOn the Ground: Volunteer Input Requested
With more than 3,000 volunteers and more than 150 wildlife habitat improvement projects completed, the On the Ground (OTG) program has impacted wildlife habitat on public land throughout Michigan over the past eight years. As we look back and review the past eight field seasons, we are compiling data and reports to build a comprehensive…
Read MoreOn the Water July Updates
MUCC’s On the Water program has been making an impact throughout the state of Michigan this July! On July 11th OTW kicked off its field season with a trash pick up at Bay City State Park to help improve Saginaw Bay. And it was a great success! With over 35 volunteers and about 350 pounds…
Read MoreVolunteer with the DNR: 100-in-100 Clean-Up Challenge
Despite volunteer event cancellations with wildlife habitat improvement programs like On the Ground during the COVID-19 pandemic, there are still ways to do good for your public lands through individual volunteer efforts. One such volunteer opportunity is hosted by the Michigan Department of Natural Resouces (DNR) Adopt-a-Forest program and is focused on the illegal dumpsite…
Read MoreGreat American Outdoors Act Passes Congress!
The Great American Outdoors Act (S. 3422/H.R.7092 & H.R.1957) passed out of the House of Representatives by a margin of 310-107 on Wednesday. We are now one important step closer to full, permanent funding for the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) and addressing the deferred maintenance backlog on federal public lands. The LWCF has only…
Read MoreNew Deer Regulations Passed at July NRC Meeting
The Michigan Natural Resources Commission (NRC) took action on deer regulations at their July meeting, just in time for rules to be printed in the Michigan Hunting Digest for the fall 2020 hunting seasons. The new rules include an extended firearm season in the southern Lower Peninsula and added flexibility for harvesting an antlerless deer. …
Read MoreAdaptive Cormorant Management up for Comment
Double-crested cormorant (cormorant) management is once again at the center of agency rule-making with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) and MUCC is weighing in. Cormorants are a native species, but wreak havoc on fisheries populations across the Great Lakes region. To facilitate adaptive, localized management the USFWS submitted a proposed rule to the…
Read MoreBringing Back the American Elm
The Michigan Department of Natural Resources is requesting the public’s assistance in identifying the locations of American elm trees that are still standing and healthy in Michigan. Known as “survivor elms”, researchers are hoping that these trees will be the driving force behind a new, disease-resistant version of the American elm tree population. Decimated by…
Read MoreDeer Regulations Up For Action At July NRC Meeting, Transparency May Be Lacking
The Michigan Natural Resources Commission (NRC) must take action on 2020 deer regulations at their July meeting if these changes are to be implemented in time for the fall hunting seasons. The NRC will meet virtually on Thursday, July 16 to consider a relatively short agenda. The Michigan Department of Natural Resources (DNR) will host…
Read MoreProposed Regulations Reveal NRC Transparency Issues
A slough of amendments were proposed to deer regulations at the June Natural Resources Commission (NRC) meeting and could pass without a thorough vetting. With three new commissioners joining the NRC in July and regulations impacting 600,000 Michigan hunters on the table, we deserve greater transparency. As of right now, amendments could be made to…
Read More