This urban wetland has big impact

The Green Bay watershed is one of the largest freshwater estuaries in the world. Spanning 10.6 million acres, it is the source of one-third of the surface water flowing into Lake Michigan. What happens in the watershed has a high impact on the lake's water quality.

Oconto Preserve holds a unique place in the landscape. It is 1,000 feet from the shore of Lake Michigan and the Oconto River and is within the Oconto city limits between a high school and the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources' Green Bay West Shore State Wildlife Area. The Oconto Marsh has several hydrologic connections to the bay of Green Bay. This gives the preserve great importance in maintaining clean water flowing into the bay, and it has extremely high ecological value. Oconto Preserve is both a WDNR Legacy Place, marking it an area of exceptional natural heritage, and an Important Bird Area critical to waterfowl, shorebirds, migrating birds, and breeding rare birds.

Since 2011, the accredited Northeast Wisconsin Land Trust has prioritized preservation of important coastal wetlands to protect Lake Michigan's water quality and the abundance of life they support. The 70-acre Oconto Preserve opened in 2015, including wetlands rated high or exceptional for water quality, flood abatement, carbon storage and wildlife habitat. In 2018, NEWLT more than doubled its size, adding 78 acres of city land. Through partnerships with Ducks Unlimited, WDNR and University of Wisconsin-Green Bay, plans are underway to raise funds to enhance the state wildlife refuge and to restore 25 acres of wetland, creating northern pike spawning habitat.

Oconto's elected officials and NEWLT are enthusiastic about the opportunities the preserve provides. "We are really excited about this preserve. It continues our effort to preserve some of the most important remaining wetlands and migratory bird habitat along Green Bay's west shore. As important, this is also a place that the people of Oconto can use for outdoor recreation and student learning," Deborah Nett, NEWLT's executive director, told the Green Bay Press Gazette. "This project is a win for the environment and a win for the community."

Laura Eklov is Midwest program coordinator for the Land Trust Alliance.