The Gathering Waters Conservancy of Madison has named a northern Wisconsin and Upper Peninsula cooperative for a conservation award.
The Partners in Forestry Cooperative was awarded the Rod Nilsestuen Award for Working Lands . The Conservancy says Partners In Forestry has been instrumental in protecting thousands of acres of forest land in and around Vilas County.
Partners in Forestry Director Joe Hovel of Conover says the benefits of land conservation are intertwined...
"There's economic, there's social, there's intrinsic. The timber industry, with larger forestry equipment, larger parcels of land are essential. And tourism, folks do no visit here to see development. It's the forest and water they come to see and protecting those are very important..."
Hovel says they're happy to recognized for there efforts to conserve forest land...
"...sustainable forestry, without conservation, is not long sustainable. It's gratifying to see the benefits of these wonderful programs like the Knowles-Nelson Stewardship Fund and the Land and Water Conservation Fund alive and benefiting our own communities...."
Partners In Forestry says its mission is to assist members in the sustainable management of their woodlands.
Rod Nilsestuen was a former state Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection head who drowned in Lake Superior in 2010. He was noted for his efforts in land conservation.
