Conservation Grants

Waterfowl Festival
2009 Conservation Grants

Over the past four decades, the Waterfowl Festival has invested more than $5 million in proceeds from each event, along with contributions to our VIP Donor program, to significant projects benefitting wildlife habitat, environmental education, and research. Our 2009 grants total $92,689 in support of nine projects, including a wetland restoration effort by the Waterfowl Festival itself. We are proud of all we have accomplished over the years by partnering with these and other outstanding organizations, thanks to the generous support of our donors and Festival attendees.

Chesapeake Wildlife Heritage
Easton, Maryland
Conservation Programs - $13,000

Chesapeake Wildlife Heritage works in partnership with public and private landowners to create, restore and protect wildlife habitat and establish a more sustainable agriculture. Two CWH programs continue to receive Festival support.

• The Wood Duck Nesting Box Program adds an estimated 25,000 ducks to fall flights each year. The organization maintains 8,400 boxes in freshwater areas throughout Maryland's Chesapeake Bay watershed, where natural nesting habitat has been depleted.
• The Waterfowl Festival Goose Sanctuary Program works with farmers and landowners to provide safe resting and feeding areas for more than 300,000 overwintering geese by leaving standing rows of unharvested corn and planting winter wheat crops in non-hunted areas.

Ducks Unlimited
Ann Arbor, Michigan
Eastern Neck Wetlands Restoration Initiative (Phase III) - $20,000

Ducks Unlimited is working with a coalition of conservation partners, including the Waterfowl Festival, to restore and enhance seven wetlands at Eastern Neck National Wildlife Refuge in Kent County. Building upon work begun with the restoration of 25 wetland acres lost in 2007, the remaining six sites will help to offset waterfowl and other migratory bird habitat lost to development and agricultural use. Not only will species such as wood ducks, black ducks and green-winged teal benefit from the restored wetlands, but the watershed as a whole will realize improved water quality and reduced soil erosion through the wetlands natural filtration process.

Eastern Shore Land Conservancy
Queenstown, Maryland
General Operating Funds - $2,000

The Eastern Shore Land Conservancy has preserved 245 properties on more than 45,000 acres of Eastern Shore land. Targeting the most critical farm and habitat properties, ESLC works with individual landowners to explore options including conservation easements and fee simple purchases to ensure the future of waterfowl and wildlife on Maryland's Eastern Shore.

Environmental Concern
St. Michaels, Maryland
Wetland on Wheels - $5,000

Whether visiting schools or special events, Environmental Concern's Wetland on Wheels takes the wetlands to people who may not otherwise have an opportunity to explore this unique ecological resource. A colorful 35-foot long trailer serves as a mobile classroom providing hands-on lessons in the importance of wetlands to the health of ecosystems.

Pickering Creek Audubon Center
Easton, Maryland
Audubon Watershed Experience - $8,000

Emphasizing a community-based approach to conservation and habitat protection, Pickering Creek Audubon Center has provided high-quality science education to Talbot County students for over two decades, instilling an appreciation and understanding of our watershed and wildlife resources. Its Audubon Watershed Experience engages all of the county's tenth-grade biology students in a four-part program including in-class and field experience, helping to create the next generation of conservationists. Teaching the fundamentals of birdwatching and fishing in conjunction with science education curriculum, students are exposed to a spectrum of ecological principals in activities they can take home and share with friends and family. A mentoring component allows the students to transfer their new skills and knowledge to a younger class, creating more active student involvement and an opportunity to further expand the reach of the program.

Talbot County Public Schools
Talbot County, Maryland
Echo Hill Outdoor School - $4,000

Fifth-grade Talbot County students gain field experience for their science unit on Estuaries thanks to this two-part Waterfowl Festival grant, helping them recognize the importance of this ecosystem. At Echo Hill Outdoor School in Worton, students are immersed in the ecology of the Chesapeake Bay for three days and two nights, with professionally trained staff providing instruction. Funding also provides transportation for students to the Chesapeake Bay Foundation's Skipjack Program. Giving students an unforgettable on-the-water experience, the program familiarizes students with estuaries and their critical role as habitats for waterfowl and other wildlife.

University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science, Horn Point Laboratory
Cambridge, Maryland
Submerged Aquatic Vegetation (SAV) Restoration - $3,500

Horn Point Laboratory studies the ecological issues facing the Chesapeake Bay, including the depletion of submerged aquatic vegetation (SAV) throughout the region. These grass beds are critical to the survival of many Bay species of fish, turtles, and waterfowl. This fellowship explores the interaction of SAV and water flow, creating new analytical tools to improve the success of SAV bed restoration efforts.

Waterfowl Festival, Inc.
Easton, Maryland
Bay Street Ponds Wetland Project - $37,189

Matching funds for a federal grant will help restore the Waterfowl Festival's newly acquired Bay Street Ponds. The ponds serve as a collection area and sediment trap for the Tanyard Branch, a little known creek that runs through Easton, draining more than 700 acres of watershed within town limits. Restoration and enhancement will improve the flood storage capacity and pollutant filtration function of the ponds, also improving the quality of the water flowing into the Tred Avon River and Chesapeake Bay.