Tri-State Outdoor News

Just add money – that’s a pretty bold statement given our nation’s recession, but that’s all it will take for the Patoka River National Wildlife Refuge to grow.

A little more support from you, the reader, wouldn’t hurt either. If all goes according to expectations, it appears as though the Patoka Refuge might under go a 1,1150-acre growth spurt by the end of this year. For the first time since fiscal year 2005, the Patoka Refuge received a $500,000 appropriation from the Land and Water Conservation Fund, the primary funding mechanism for land acquisition for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Money for this fund comes primarily from offshore oil leases. Getting a piece of that pie depends greatly upon legislative support in Washington D.C.

“It’s a good start but not nearly enough,” said project manager Bill McCoy.

“Hopefully, by the end of the year, another $1 million will be coming our direction with the passage of the 2010 fiscal budget.”

Just being a part of the fiscal budget is big news given the refuge has received very few appropriations since it was created in 1994. Getting on that annual list of refuges to be funded takes work. It takes work by the public and our federal representatives. The icing on the cake for fiscal year 2010 is that McCoy is hearing that the Patoka will also be on the President’s list of requests for funding raising the status of the Patoka even higher when it comes to appropriations. But even at that, the President’s budget is only proposed and the Patoka could still be removed if the support isn’t there. If the Patoka does remain in the President’s budget, it will be the first time ever.

“I think we’re in the budget because of a small group of people making the contacts,” McCoy said. “Fortunately we have a hardcore group plus we now have a congressman (Democrat Rep. Brad Ellsworth, both a gun owner and hunter) who is sympathetic to the refuge’s need. I feel more hopeful now than ever.”

The group McCoy was speaking of is the “Friends of the Patoka River Refuge,” a group of folks just like you and me who truly care about seeing the refuge grow to its fullest potential.

McCoy said the Friends group is doing a bang up job of working with legislators and the U.S.F.W.S on getting the word out on the neglected refuge that is losing potential acquisitions to private parties due to the lack of funding.

McCoy said that because of the work of the Friends Group, along with the Evansville Audubon Society, even Senators Richard Lugar and Evan Bayh seem to be taking a renewed interest and are talking about the Patoka a little more these days.

“Lugar and Bayh have always been supportive of the refuge,” McCoy said. “But I don’t believe they’ve necessarily seen the level of public support they would like. That’s been changing due to the work of various groups and individuals,” he said.

What’s at stake here is a vital piece of the refuge puzzle – 1,150 acres known as the Columbia Mine Site adjacent to Snakey Point Marsh just outside of Oakland City. That tract is now owned by Peabody Energy and announced last year its intentions to sell the ground if the refuge couldn’t come with the cash – and soon. The land is currently leased to private interests. But in November 2008, when the refuge got word of the $500,000, the outlook grew a bit brighter and Peabody agreed to wait just a little while longer. Could it be their wait is nearly over?

But the fact remains that any future appropriations, including the proposed $1 million for 2010, could be jerked away if our legislators and President fail to see dedicated public support for the refuge. As mentioned, as of now, only a handful of groups have taken the initiative to write letters and make phone calls and among those are the Evansville Audubon Society, the Izzaac Walton League, Ducks Unlimited, Quail Unlimited and the newly formed Friends of the Patoka River. And while these groups represent their members, individual support still needs to grow.

McCoy commented that one thing he’s noticed is how the bird watching and habitat conservation groups have hit the ground running both in an organized fashion and on an individual basis. What he doesn’t see or hear about are the hunters and fishermen doing the same.

“People are aware of the Columbia tract but few are doing anything to help,” McCoy said. “I’ve been getting a lot of hunters and fisherman stopping by to see if we’ve bought the Columbia Mine Site and I have to simply tell them ‘not yet’,” McCoy said. “And then when I ask whether they’ve contacted their congressman, most say no. But when I ask the same question to a birdwatcher, I generally get a positive response.”

That’s a sad commentary when you consider that hunters and fishermen are considered consumption users but fail to give back by writing letters and making phone calls. These folks truly are a silent group of users who will most certainly cry the loudest if the funding fails and the Columbia Mine is lost.

But even if all the cash comes through, McCoy said the money still isn’t enough when you look at the big picture and overall goal of the refuge. That goal is 22,472 acres but only 5,946 have been acquired in 15 years – that’s only an average of 396 acres per year. And in recent times, that 396-acre average is also the amount of acreage being lost annually as weary landowners who have waited for 15 years begin selling to private interests.

“We’re going to take $1.3 million, or thereabouts, and spend it all in one place. That much money doesn’t go far but that 1,150 acres is significant. I’ve still got dozens of other landowners who would sell today if we had the money.”

What the Patoka won’t be getting this year is money from the recent federal stimulus bill, or at least not any for acquisition. The refuge did get some money from the federal economic incentive plan to host a Youth Conservation Corps Camp this summer. With this money, McCoy will be able to hire high school students to work at the refuge doing a variety of jobs from setting fence posts to aiding biologists in a plant and animal inventory project in addition to eradicating invasive species.

“That’s about the extent of the federal stimulus money for the Patoka,” McCoy said. “But as we acquire more land, we’ll be in a better position to compete for any future stimulus dollars. But for now, I’d just as soon get money to buy land than build a visitor’s center or anything else. Land is what we need at the Patoka. We need places to go, that’s why land is so important.”

Once acquired, McCoy said the Columbia Mine would be available for public use almost immediately. “We don’t need to do much to the ground because of the habitat work already done by coal company. In fact, they were recognized nationally for the quality of that restoration. It’s a great place for birding and will become part of our ‘Wild Drive’ auto tour with interpretive stops not mention the fact that it includes the whole eastern shoreline of Snakey Point.”

There’s still a lot of letter writing and phone calling to do to ensure our legislators fully understand the importance of the Patoka River Refuge. And while it’s good to see a few groups leading the charge on this front, the question begs, “What have you done for the Patoka Refuge?”