Nature Conservancy Celebrates 25th Anniversary of Brule River Conservation

Madison, Wisconsin—20 September 2006—This year marks the 25th anniversary of the joint effort between local landowners and The Nature Conservancy to conserve the beauty and natural diversity of the Bois Brule River. Together we have conserved almost 5,000 acres along this fabled stream.

Brule River
© Robert A. Kleppin

The Brule River, located in Douglas County in northwestern Wisconsin, flows north for 44 miles through the Brule River State Forest and drains into Lake Superior. The surrounding region harbors a relatively extensive northern hardwoods forest, remnant old-growth white and red pine forest, boreal and pine barrens communities, and important cedar swamp wetlands known as the Brule Bog. It is home to several rare species including swamp pink and small yellow lady’s-slipper orchids, osprey, and wood turtles.

Habitat preservation and protection of the unique character of the Brule River have been hallmarks of private property ownership in the upper river region for generations. More than 50 years ago, private landowners banded together to form a corporation to purchase and hold a large parcel that was up for sale to protect it from any future residential or commercial development.

In the early 1980s, searching for a stronger means of protecting the river from development and increased recreational pressures, local landowners launched a conservation easement program with The Nature Conservancy. Today, conservation easements protect more than 90 percent of the privately-owned habitat along the upper stretch of the Brule River.

A conservation easement is a voluntary, legally-binding agreement between a landowner and a state agency or private organization like The Nature Conservancy that limits certain types of uses or prevents development from taking place now and in the future.

"The Brule River is a pristine, one-of-a-kind resource,” said Roger Anderson, Brule River landowner and caretaker. “One can travel worldwide and not find a river like the Brule. We have to protect it because it is not possible to repair damages that are made to a river as unique as the Brule."

Each year, a Nature Conservancy representative visits the Brule landowners to walk the property with them and ensure that the terms of the easements are being met. Becky Sapper, the Conservancy’s Chequamegon Bay watershed project director, coordinates the easement monitoring program for the Brule River area.

“Each year, on my visits to the Brule, I am greeted by landowners who have a deep respect for their land and the river,” Becky commented. “I’ve enjoyed walks with landowners who originally signed the easements, their adult children, caretakers, and landowners who bought the property with easements in place. These people eagerly reminisce about their childhood and family history on the Brule, the secret fishing holes, picnic areas, eagles, and the multitude of wildlife.”

The Bois Brule River is a national treasure, rich in history and natural diversity. It has been protected, in large part, by the foresight and private conservation action of local landowners. The partnership between landowners along the Brule and The Nature Conservancy will ensure that the Brule will continue to be protected for wildlife and for future generations to cherish and enjoy.

For more information about the Bois Brule River, see the Brule River State Forest page on the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources Web site.