Afield: Lessard Council asking for wish lists

BRAINERD — Last week, a group of people gathered here to discuss possible Brainerd-area conservation projects to be considered by the Lessard Outdoor Heritage Council.

On Nov. 4, Minnesota voters passed the Clean Water, Land and Legacy constitutional amendment, which will add 3/8 of 1 percent to the Minnesota sale tax. The additional tax will generate roughly $270 million per year, of which an estimated $90 million will be dedicated to the Outdoor Heritage Fund for fish and wildlife habitat.

Outside it was cold, but inside the ambiance was cheerful. Finally, after many years, even decades, Minnesotans have hope for stewardship of their natural resources, wild possessions that not only define us but are crucial to our physical and mental health. Now, at last, we need not solely depend on a Department of Natural Resources wrought with budget shortfalls, legislators who often favor shopping malls over marshes and lottery money squandered on "more important" issues.

Spending of the Outdoor Heritage Fund will be overseen by the 12-member Lessard council. The purpose of last week's meeting was to discuss and possibly make recommendations to that group of projects in the Brainerd area.

Gary Drotts, DNR area wildlife manager, began discussions by reviewing the Clean Water, Land and Legacy Act, and more specifically the Outdoor Heritage Fund. Interestingly, Drotts pointed out that the DNR's game and fish fund for 2008 was about $89 million, or roughly the same annual amount projected to be generated by the Outdoor Heritage Fund.

Drotts also proposed that we form a coalition consisting of local groups and individuals with the purpose of meeting to review area fish, wildlife and forest needs.

"The Brainerd lakes area is an important natural resource area," Drotts said. "Collectively we can manage those resources more efficiently and effectively than we can individually."

Kent Montgomery of The Nature Conservancy also spoke at the meeting.

"It was a perfect storm," said Montgomery about the passing of the amendment. "It was great to wake up [the day following the election] to see the results."

Montgomery noted that 56 percent of Minnesotans voted "yes" for the amendment. He also pointed out the importance of tourism to Minnesota, and that nonresident tourists who spend money in Minnesota also will contribute to the fund.

Sadly though, Montgomery reported that 40 percent of our state's lakes and rivers that have been tested are polluted -- a fact that all Minnesotans should be ashamed of.

The highlight of the meeting, at least for me, was the opportunity to suggest local conservation projects we thought were critical.

Ten conservation project ideas were presented on posters, and each attendee was given three stickers. The stickers were to be placed on the areas of particular interest to us.

If we had specific projects in mind, we were asked to write those on the posters.

I grew up hunting, fishing, photographing and otherwise cavorting about the outdoors near Brainerd. At age 14 I first hunted ducks along a wild rice-strewn Mississippi River shoreline north of Brainerd, and I continue to do so. Now, roughly three decades later, the area is basically unchanged. But it is being threatened by development.

So I pasted my three stickers on the "river corridors" poster and further specified my interest in the Mississippi River north of Brainerd by jotting my idea on the poster.

The Mississippi's extensive bays and wild shoreline provide home to all sorts of fish and wildlife, but the area is particularly important as a waterfowl stopover during spring migration.

There, birds such as ring-necked ducks gather by the thousands to feed on the abundant wild rice, and wood ducks nest in the mature woodlands lining the shoreline.

After the roughly 35 attendees had a chance to place their three stickers, it was obvious their primary choices were water- and wetland-oriented, which is not surprising because unaltered shorelines are now rare in the heavily populated Brainerd lakes area.

The Lessard Outdoor Heritage Council has until April 1 to make its conservation recommendations to the Legislature -- a somewhat daunting task in this, its first year.

How our newly acquired conservation monies will be spent has yet to be determined. My hope is that at least a portion of the funds will be used to preserve the wild shorelines of the Mississippi River north of Brainerd before the last flock of ring-necked ducks says farewell to the last grain of wild rice.

Bill Marchel, an outdoors columnist and photographer, lives near Brainerd.