South Dakota
28 easements for 3,000+ acres in conservation
Quail Prairie
Quail Prairie is a small but significant remnant of the great tallgrass prairies, which has been recognized for years as having incredible native diversity. A portion of the property that has never been plowed or grazed by livestock has tremendous plant diversity. An inventory of the plant diversity was started, including a Floristic Quality Index, which ranks the quality of the plants on a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being the best. 163 individual species were identified, many of which were ranked 8, 9, or 10.
Jim Madsen, former Northern Prairies’ field biologist, spent many hours with the landowner helping her identify plants, taking hundreds of photos, and working to convince her that permanent protection of this jewel of prairie was essential. In 2008, Quail Prairie was placed under a US Fish and Wildlife Service easement ensuring perpetual preservation.
Northern Prairies Provides Public Presentations
In conjunction with the University of South Dakota, Missouri River Institute, and the University of Sioux Falls, Northern Prairies sponsored a presentation on “The Missouri River Flood of 2011: Causes, Impacts, and Post Flood Policy Decisions.” The presentation was given by Professor Tim Cowman of USD, who has extensively studied many aspects of the Missouri River and also spearheaded channel restoration on one of Northern Prairies’ easements. Professor Emeritus John H Davidson of the University of South Dakota Law School and former President of Northern Prairies participated in the presentation on preservation and conservation easements entitled “The Land and Its People.” Liz Almlie of the South Dakota Historic Preservation Office also provided the state's perspective on preservation. The presentation was sponsored by the Clay County Historical Preservation Commission.
Landowner Incentive Program Summary
In July 2004, Northern Prairies Land Trust opened its first South Dakota field office in Watertown. The financial support came through the Landowner Incentive Program (LIP), a US Fish and Wildlife Service program. The SD Department of Game, Fish and Parks sponsored the grant, providing matching funds. Creating partnerships and identifying Northern Prairies as a valuable conservation advocate was integral to the program's success. Over the next 7.5 years, we worked closely with many State and Federal agencies and conservation organizations, developing and implementing individual projects with landowners and coordinating ideas and concepts with partners to bring innovative and wide-scale conservation programs to the tallgrass prairie.
Northern Prairies contacted over 200 landowners and helped implement 250 individual projects. Included in the vast array of projects were shallow wildlife dams that doubled as stock watering ponds and wildlife habitat, rotational grazing systems that included water sources and paddock fencing, restoration of previously drained wetlands, re-establishment of native grasses and forbs, providing prescribed burns as a grazing management tool, assisting landowners with CRP enrollments and providing mechanisms for landowners to protect sensitive and unique landscapes through the use of long-term and perpetual conservation easements.
Northern Prairies Land Trust Plays Key Role in Expanding Bison Range in Badlands National Park
As the result of a complex land exchange in which Northern Prairie played a key role, 30,000 additional acres of bison range has been added in Badlands National Park, allowing for the expansion of the bison herd to about 1,000 head – the size recommended as a minimum for maintaining genetic diversity. The exchange has been described as one of the most important events in Park history, and a huge step forward in protecting native grasslands species of all kinds.
On June 11, 2014, John Davidson, past President of Northern Prairies, joined with other conservation partners and the National Park Service in a formal “fence-cutting” ceremony, celebrating the opening of the new lands to the roaming bison herd.
The project is just one of the many through which Northern Prairies plays a quiet but critical role in advancing prairie conservation.
Local Riparian Easement Programs
Between 2007 and 2011, two riparian easement programs operated to protect the local watersheds. One program entitled the East Dakota Riparian Restoration and Protection Project (EDRRPP) was a revival of a proven program, the Big Sioux River Conservation Easement Program. The second program was the initiation of a new program as part of the Central Big Sioux River Watershed Project.
EDRRPP was initiated by East Dakota Water Development District (EDWDD) and was sponsored by Northern Prairies with funding provided through EDWDD and the South Dakota Department of Environment and Natural Resources 319 grant program. It covered the same nine-county area as EDWDD in eastern SD. The Central Big Sioux River Watershed Project was sponsored by the Moody County Conservation District, and Northern Prairies assisted with the riparian easement aspect of that project. This project covered the lower portion of the Big Sioux River Watershed and offered a variety of conservation practices in addition to easements. Today, riparian best management practices are offered in the Big Sioux River watershed through the Big Sioux River Project.
First Central Big Sioux Riparian Easement
The first riparian easement in the Central Big Sioux River Watershed Project was granted in February of 2012 on property in Minnehaha County. The Big Sioux River runs through the heavily wooded portion of this property and is subject to significant erosion problems. By agreeing to incorporate the protective buffer the landowner is taking action to help improve water quality in an area just upstream from South Dakota’s largest city, Sioux Falls. The easement was purchased with funding from Sioux Falls.