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North American Waterfowl Management Plan
Migratory waterfowl have traveled the North American continent for thousands of years. They have awed many who have seen their great winged migrations. Waterfowl inspire many to watch them, hunt them, and study them intensely. Wetlands are among the most biologically diverse and productive environments in nature. Waterfowl depend on wetlands and their upland habitats for breeding, migrating, and wintering. Waterfowl managers in the United States and Canada recognized that the recovery and perpetuation of waterfowl populations depends on the long-term protection, restoration, and management of habitat on an ecosystem basis (NAWMP, 1986). To accomplish these goals on a continent-wide scale called for an ambitious, comprehensive and revolutionary plan. The led to the creation of the North American Waterfowl Management Plan (Plan), which was signed in 1986 by the U.S. Secretary of the Interior and the Canadian Minister of the Environment.
The Wildlife Habitat Council entered into a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in an effort to enhance wetland ecosystems and wildlife populations. Considered by many to be the most successful international conservation initiative in existence, the Plan lays out a strategy to restore continental waterfowl populations by enhancing, restoring, and protecting the habitats waterfowl and other wetland wildlife depend on for survival. The North American Waterfowl Management Plan is an international action plan to conserve migratory birds throughout the continent. The Plan's goal is to return waterfowl populations to their 1970s levels by conserving wetland and upland habitat.Canada and the United States signed the Plan in 1986 in reaction to critically low numbers of waterfowl. Mexico joined in 1994 making it a truly continental effort. The Plan is a partnership of federal, provincial/state and municipal governments, non-governmental organizations, private companies and many individuals, all working towards achieving better wetland habitat for the benefit of migratory birds, other wetland-associated species and people. The Plan's unique combination of biology, landscape conservation and partnerships comprise its exemplary conservation legacy. Plan projects are international in scope, but implemented at regional levels. These projects contribute to the protection of habitat and wildlife species across the North American landscape. In fact, the North American Waterfowl Management Plan is considered one of the most successful conservation initiatives in the world.
The success of the Plan lies in the hands of regional public-private partnerships, called Joint Ventures, which were established to implement the Plan. Joint Ventures are non-regulatory, voluntary public/private partnerships composed of individual, corporations, conservation organizations and local, state and provincial agencies drawn together by common conservation objectives. These regional partnerships contribute to the North American Bird Conservation Initiative, which includes the Plan, Partners in Flight, U.S. Shorebird Conservation Plan and others. Joint Ventures implement the goals of the Plan by developing and funding hands-on conservation projects, and also benefit other wetland wildlife species. There are currently 11 Plan committee-endorsed habitat joint ventures in the United States and 4 in Canada. One of the habitat joint ventures has international status (Canada/United States). Partners from Canada and the United States also jointly support three species joint ventures. These partnerships can help maximize conservation project potential and success on corporate lands, while effectively increasing the amount of quality wetlands and their associated habitat and wildlife. For more information, please contact Whc@wildlifehc.org. Related Links Bird Studies Canada
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