Celebrating the Launch of the Habitat Stewardship Program

 By Heather Levy, Stewardship Coordinator

Birds Georgia is excited to announce the launch of a new conservation program called the Habitat Stewardship Program. An offshoot of our Wildlife Sanctuary Program, the Habitat Stewardship Program is geared towards larger public and private lands of 10 acres or larger. The goal of the program is to enable property stewards to make improvements to their lands for wildlife while offering educational materials, technical assistance, and connections to cost-share resources. The program is open to properties in any state of conservation, from those who may be new to wildlife management or have recently acquired properties and need a lot of technical assistance to those who have been managing high quality wildlife habitat for decades. The Stewardship Coordinator, Heather Levy, who manages the program, will work closely with enrollees by providing assistance and connecting them with local practitioners and funding opportunities.

The program rubric offers flexibility for landowners who may be in different regions and therefore managing different habitats and/or wildlife. The rubric also differentiates between those managing private lands and those managing public lands. There are three main categories: Habitat, Community Science. Engagement/Education, and Research and Monitoring (an optional category). Within each category are subcategories with minimum criteria that must be selected. For example, Best Management Practices, under the Habitat category, offers 17 potential options, and requires that at least five be selected. Options include actions like implementing a non-native invasive species removal plan, retaining or creating standing dead trees (snags), and using prescribed fire. There is also space in the application to include photos or additional information. The specific criteria that applicants select can be actions they are already implementing or actions they plan to accomplish within a 12-month period.  For example, if a landowner/steward has not yet applied a prescribed fire on their property, but plan to do so within the next year, they may select prescribed fire as a criterion and include in the adjacent text space that they are planning on 50 acres of longleaf pine habitat during the next growing season.

Program participant are eligible for a suite of benefits, including access to a digital library of technical assistance and cost-sharing resources, in-person and virtual property visits from the stewardship coordinator, and more. To ensure all areas of the state are covered and visited by local practitioners, the Stewardship Coordinator will connect any interested enrollees with their local Georgia Department of Natural Resources/Quail Forever Private Lands Program representative, Natural Resource Conservation Service office, county extension agent, and/or local conservation groups. These organizations will also have the most up to date information on current cost-share programs and can let landowners/stewards know if their property may be eligible for funding opportunities. In addition, enrollees will receive a one-year Birds Georgia membership. Membership perks include a subscription to our Private Lands Newsletter, discounts on field trips and programs, and more. Those interested may also opt in to have their properties for available engagement and research opportunities as they become available, such as our current nightjar habitat use program. Enrollees will receive a Birds Georgia Habitat Steward sign or certificate.

To enroll in the program, applicants should review the rubric, fill out the application, and pay the one-time application fee, which is $150 for private landowners and $250 for publicly owned lands. Any public or private land in any part of the state is eligible to enroll. Annual monitoring reports are due near the one-year mark of the original application to provide updates to the Stewardship Coordinator. Instructions on how to apply, the rubric, benefits, and link to the application may be found on our website under the Conservation tab.   

While we were developing the program, we had applicants pre-enroll to provide updates on the status and launch of the program. We were excited to receive over 35 pre-applications and their full applications are beginning to trickle in. Heather Levy is thrilled to be managing this program and offering technical assistance to landowners and land stewards for the benefit of healthy habitats and wildlife. We want to sincerely thank those that have already applied and encourage you to share the program with other landowners and stewards that might be interested. If you have any questions about the program, please do not hesitate to contact Heather via email.