Welcome to the interactive web schedule for the 2019 Midwest Fish & Wildlife Conference! Please note, this event has passed. To return to the main Conference website, go to: www.midwestfw.org.
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CONFERENCE SCHEDULE UPDATES & CHANGES: As a result of the prolonged government shutdown, we experienced a number of cancellations and changes to the schedule. Cancellations and changes are listed here (as of January 26, 2019).
AUTHORS: Dan Salas, Senior Ecologist, Cardno; Iris Caldwell, Program Manager, Sustainable Landscapes, Energy Resources Center at The University of Illinois at Chicago
ABSTRACT: Rights-of-ways offer unique conservation opportunities by connecting landscapes and providing a generally stable habitat protected from future development. The Rights-of-Way as Habitat Working Group, composed of multiple industries and unique partnerships, are working to support pollinators and other wildlife, within these working lands. Inspired by population declines and potential listing of monarch butterfly under the Endangered Species Act, members of this group have worked together to develop a voluntary agreement to enhance and sustain monarch butterfly habitat. Underscoring the importance of this effort, the partnership of more than two dozen energy and transportation organizations is undertaking one of the largest scale CCAAs to date and under one of the fastest timelines pursued for such a large conservation agreement. During this session, we will discuss how voluntary conservation tools like CCAAs can be used to provide important conservation, and how this agreement was developed. We will also highlight what conservation improvements are included within the Nationwide Candidate Conservation Agreement with Assurances for Monarch Butterfly on Energy and Transportation Lands, and discuss ways that conservation partners can engage in this broad-scale conservation effort.
