In the interior arch of Michigan’s “thumb” lays the Saginaw Basin Land Conservancy, a group dedicated to protecting and restoring surrounding natural areas. 

The conservancy currently owns and manages 9 properties in the region. One property, the Sand Point Nature Preserve, was recently recognized by the Old Growth Forest Network for its potential. 

As a well-established woodlot with trees over a hundred years old, Sand Point hosts migratory birds and and diverse species. Its wetlands aid in flood management. The property also has a rare grove of hemlock trees. 

Although the Old Growth Forest distinction doesn’t immediately grant the property strong legal protections, it does aid the Saginaw Basin Land Conservancy when they work to apply for grants and the like. And any additional support to protect the unique ecosystem right off the shores of Lake Huron is welcome. 

Beyond the ecological, the Saginaw Basin Land Conservancy continues to protect the surrounding areas for the community to have access to the green space. Executive Director of Saginaw Basin Land Conservancy, Zachary Branigan emphasizes the importance of preserving nature.

“ Having access to high quality outdoor recreation spaces is important, for any community. You know, that’s one thing that, that the highest quality communities in the nation have in common,” says Branigan. And nature preserves like Sand Point provide a space for hikers and dog-walkers, as well as a glimpse into more heavily wooded past. 

Exploring Sand Point

The Saginaw Basin Land Conservancy gained ownership over the 220 acres of undeveloped land through a series of land acquisitions between 2008-2012. 

Sand Point is the largest of the properties they oversee, and includes a wide range of features that make it a gem in the region that was hit hard by deforestation in the logging boom. Program Director Trevor Edmonds highlights some of the features on property.

 ”There’s some pretty dense mature forests. Like kind of open meadow areas, and then some, various types of wetlands on the property. There’s a lake, there’s kind of like a seasonal pond, on the property as well,”” says Edmonds. He adds that because of the diverse array of habitats, there’s diverse fauna, including reptiles and amphibians.

As a part of their mission to maintain high quality natural areas the Saginaw Basin Land Conservancy takes inventory of signs of health and potential threats to the established landscape. 

Signs of ecological health at Sand Point include different species of trees—Edmonds points out maple, black cherry, and paper birch in the immediate area. He also looks for indicator species, which foreshadow what kinds of vegetation will thrive in the future. 

Understory vegetation is another noted feature. “There’s a very robust canopy throughout much of this preserve’s acreage, which really kind of speaks to the overall health of the forest on this preserve.”

Caretaking in nature

Edmonds then got into the weeds of property management at Sand Point. 

Since acquiring the property in full, the conservancy has become experts on the wetlands and woods that make up Sand Point, as well as the pests, diseases, and invasives that threaten them. 

The most present invasive on the property is phragmites, which Edmonds generally treats with hand-swiping—placing herbicide on a glove and targeting the undesirable plants in order to leave “the lightest touch possible” on the landscape. 

A deep knowledge of the environment helps Edmonds monitor for invasive species and disease in the areas they are most likely to appear in, and the places they can do the most harm. 

Eastern Hemlocks

One of the key features that garners attention at Sand Point is the Eastern Hemlocks. They aren’t a common tree throughout Michigan, and especially not in the thumb. Part of that is because they need a healthy tree canopy above them to grow. 

Branigan describes the hemlock groves as dark and brooding, and Edmonds say that they’re a part of why Sand Point is his favorite property— in addition to its reliable five lined skink sightings. 

However, hemlocks face a threat in the hemlock woolly adelgid. 

 Edmonds shares how the conservancy monitors for the threat. “You’re actually trying to look specifically at like the undersides of the needles. And if you actually see, like at the base of the needles where they connect to the branches, it basically will look…almost like kind of a white cottony mass that starts to like develop at the base of the needles, under the branches.”

Thankfully, Sand Point hasn’t caught any sign of the harmful pest so far. Edmonds says that its more present in the west side of the state. 

But, if woolly adelgid does appear, there are ways to treat it if its detected early. “You can do like a treatment around the base where the, the roots will bring it up into the canopy of the tree and basically like eliminate the infestation.”

For now, he and other conservationists in the area maintain a careful watch. 

Safeguarding access to a healthy environment

Conserving a large undeveloped land like Sand Point provides space for recreation, mitigating effects and causes of climate change, and a place for wildlife to thrive. 

It’s also an education in nature. Saginaw Basin Land Conservancy’s restoration and conservation efforts uplift their preserves as healthy ambassador landscapes, environments that serve as an example of what natural areas should be at their best. “While it does obviously serve an important purpose in and of itself, hopefully the people that come and visit our properties, across all the counties that we work in… take a little something home from that as well,” says Branigan. 

Additionally, it provides another place for people to fall in love with the environment.

Edmonds reflected on what it means to him as a new parent to see his daughter’s connection to nature grow. Although it’s more common to fall in love with the outdoors in one’s youth, he notes that it’s never too late for someone to click with nature. 

“Nature’s always here, and we want to be an entity that makes it be the case. We want nature to be here for people and then when they’re ready to receive it and you know, be a part of it and do what they can to protect it, then like that’s on them. But we just want to be facilitators for those times when they become receptive and ready for it.”

This story is a part of WDET’s Detroit Tree Canopy Project

Michigan’s conservation districts are raising concerns as they face increasing financial challenges and potential cuts in federal funding. 

Officials from the Michigan Association of Conservation Districts are asking lawmakers in Lansing to boost state funding to help support the many environmental programs managed by these local groups. 

“The main goal of conservation districts is to provide locally led efforts to protect and manage natural resources in each community,” said Rivka Hodgkinson, director of the Michigan Association of Conservation Districts. “One of the strengths of these districts is that they can respond to the specific needs of their local areas.”

Michigan has 75 conservation districts that work to connect private landowners with state and federal resources. Their work covers urban areas, farmland, forests, and shoreline environments. Since more than half of Michigan’s forests are privately owned, educating and supporting landowners is very important.

For example, in the Herman Vogler Conservation Area along Lake Huron, forester Jacob Grochowski helps landowners manage their land responsibly. Grochowski says most of his time is spent talking with landowners.

“My main job involves visiting their land, discussing their goals, and exploring management options,” he said. “I then put together reports to help guide their decisions.” 

He also assists landowners in qualifying for programs like Michigan’s Qualified Forest Program, which offers tax benefits to landowners who manage their privately-owned forests in sustainable ways.

“This program gives a tax break and exemption from certain school taxes to encourage active management of their forests,” Grochowski said. “The idea is to make it more affordable for people to keep their land as forests rather than developing it.”

However, conservation districts often don’t have enough staff to do all the work they need. 

“I have my full-time job helping landowners with forest management, but I also try to handle other district tasks to keep services running,” Grochowski said.

Currently, districts get about $40,000 a year from the state to operate, but Hodgkinson says that’s not enough.

“Our biggest challenge is that we have a lot of work to do across the state, but not enough funding to do it,” she said. “We’re required to do this work, but there’s no guarantee we’ll get the money to cover it.”

There is also concern about funding cuts at the federal level, specifically from the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS). 

“Reducing staff at NRCS and USDA offices doesn’t reduce the need for conservation efforts in those communities,” Hodgkinson said. “Unless they receive more money to support their work, they’ll be asked to do more with less.”

In Lansing, Hodgkinson is pushing for an additional $10 million in state funding. 

“Having stable staffing in key positions would make conservation efforts more consistent and effective throughout the state,” she said. 

She warns that if support isn’t increased, there could be long-term problems. 

“If we don’t take early steps now to conserve resources voluntarily, we’ll face bigger costs in the future,” she said. “It’s cheaper to prevent problems now than to fix them later.”

This story is part of WDET’s ongoing series, The Detroit Tree Canopy Project.