DTE Energy

Belle River Mills Compressor Station

China, Michigan, United States

Certified through 2023

Project Name
Project Type
Nesting Boxes
Avian
About the Program
The DTE Belle River Compressor Station is located in Michigan, approximately 60 miles north of Detroit. The program is situated near the Belle River, a tributary of the St. Clair River which runs along the United States-Canada border. The site contains 40 acres of grassland habitat, as well as ponds and landscaped gardens that have been planted with native species to improve their habitat potential. For cavity-nesting birds, nest and roosting sites in the region are disappearing due to habitat loss and a reduction in suitable naturally occurring cavities. In order to address these threats, the team maintains bird boxes throughout the site and performs regular monitoring. 

Practices and Impacts
  • Bluebird and duck boxes provide roosting and breeding spaces for the eastern bluebird and wood duck. The boxes were built based on specification from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology NestWatch and Ducks Unlimited.
  • Other species, including ground-nesting birds such as killdeer and woodcock, as well as Canada geese, have also been observed successfully nesting across the site. 
  • Nests are monitored by photography and protected from disturbance. 
Skip to content