Conservation Opportunities

Potholes Plus Program

The prairie pothole region of North America is the most productive waterfowl habitat in North America and possibly the world. South western Manitoba has a portion of the prairie pothole region which can be generally defined as a landscape pot marked with wetlands (sloughs) that extends across the great plains of the US to the Canadian prairies. This region has seen immense landscape changes since its settlement and, as a result, waterfowl populations have been in decline, largely due to habitat loss.

In 1990, a continental-wide plan, The North American Waterfowl Management Plan was developed to assist in the recovery of waterfowl populations to the levels seen in the 1970s. A large component of this plan was, and continues to be, the protection of remaining wetlands in the pothole region. MHHC contributes to the implementation of this plan through the Potholes Plus Program – A program in which landowners who farm around wetlands (potholes) and sign an agreement stating they will not ever alter the wetland, receive a one-time cash payment.