HOUGHTON, MI-- About 1,300 acres and 3.5 miles of the Pilgrim River corridor in Houghton County will be protected from development under a DNR Forest Legacy Program grant.
The $550,000 grant will allow the state to acquire a conservation easement on 1,299 acres of land adjacent to the Pilgrim River Community Forest. The land will be available for public use and managed as a working forest under Michigan’s forest management plan.
Department of Natural Resources officials say the project will protect wildlife habitat and a portion of the migratory bird flyway. It will also prevent 10 percent of the entire Pilgrim River watershed from being developed.
The Forest Legacy Program is providing 75 percent of the funding for the project. The program is administered by the U.S. Forest Service and funded through the Land and Water Conservation Fund.
