Ducks Unlimited
The Texas Prairie Wetlands Project (TPWP) is a partnership between Ducks Unlimited, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The TPWP mission is to create overwintering habitat for waterfowl and improve health and survival rates before migration in the spring.
TPWP works with private landowners in 28 counties on the Texas Gulf Coast to restore and enhance existing wetlands and to create new wetlands. TPWP provides technical assistance for surveying, engineering, and designing a wetland project and will provide cost-share funds for project implementation cost. Projects should be at least 20 acres of surface water and contain shallow water for at least 4 months between September and April. Projects under 20 acres of surface water will be considered on a case-by-case basis. Large tracts of land may be more competitive, but smaller ecologically significant tracts are often developed. TPWP contracts are legally binding and the term is usually between 10 and 15 years.
Many landowners utilize TPWP projects for hunting leases and nature tourism. According to the Ducks Unlimited in an article Texas Prairie Wetlands Project Receives Oil Spill Settlement Funding, 67,000 acres of waterfowl habitat have already been protected along the Texas coast through the TPWP in the previous 20+ years, and an additional 5,200 acres are set for conservation in the upcoming fiscal year.
Getting Started:
- Interested landowners should contact the Ducks Unlimited Program Coordinator in order to discuss the landowner’s management goals and project ideas.
- Contact information for the program can be found at the bottom of the TPWP DU program page
- TPWP landowner guidelines and technical assistance request forms are also available at this site
