FWS Urban Projects

Coastal Program is a voluntary fish and wildlife habitat conservation program supporting restoration on public and private lands through partnerships with state, local, tribal and other federal agencies, NGOs, and private landowners. Technical and financial assistance is delivered through a network of 24 field offices nationwide. HYPERLINKUrban Wildlife Refuge Partnership is introducing new audiences to natural resource conservation, new aspects of outdoor recreation, and the mission of the National Wildlife Refuge System. This new FWS effort is establishing a refuge presence in ten cities. HYPERLINK

Endangered Species Program has stabilized and improved the status of many species and through the development of Habitat Conservation Plans, FWS has established a mechanism to design urban development strategies that can also conserve protected species. HYPERLINK

Conservation Planning Assistance Program provides technical assistance to developers, other agencies, municipal governments and a wide variety of other partners. CPA has taken the lead in providing technical assistance, and in some cases funding, to municipalities and others for the purposes of developing “Green Infrastructure” plans. HYPERLINK

Two urban initiatives in Ecological Services Field Offices: Portland/Vancouver and Chicago have developed new ways of integrating and expanding on traditional FWS programs and providing flexible resources to meet the conservation and re-greening needs of these metropolitan areas.

Partners for Fish and Wildlife is a voluntary program that provides technical and financial assistant to help private landowners improve habitat on their lands.

Wildlife and Sportfish Restoration Program oversees fifteen grant programs for states and the District to protect and manage fish and wildlife habitat while capitalizing on recreational opportunities.

National Fish Passage Program is a voluntary, non-regulatory initiative that provides financial and technical assistance to towns and cities working to reconnect their rivers and waterways.

Urban Conservation Treaty for Migratory Birds Program provides technical and financial assistance to conserve migratory birds through education, hazard reduction, citizen science, conservation, and habitat improvements in urban and suburban areas.

Environmental Contaminants Program comprises roughly 75 environmental contaminants biologists who focus solely on pollution impacts to fish and wildlife and their habitats and developing a better understanding of and solutions to threats such as medications, hormone supplements, industrial pollution, pesticides, and other human-made chemicals.

Schoolyard Habitat Program provides technical and organizational assistance to schools to create effective outdoor classrooms as educational tools, while creating sustainable habitats and instilling stewardship values.

Connecting People with Nature is an FWS initiative to promote a healthy lifestyle among the American public through Let's Go Outside—a website with information about how to explore the 97-million-acre National Wildlife Refuge system.

National Fish Habitat Action Partnership is a multi-agency collaborative effort to protect, restore, and enhance the nation's fish and aquatic communities. The first National Fish Habitat Assessment conducted in 2010 quantified the impact of urban areas on the condition of fish habitats.

National Fish and Boating Week—Washington, DC, Youth Fishing event is held annually at Constitution Gardens Pond on the National Mall and engages hundreds of youth from urban schools throughout the region with the goal of providing outdoor access to underserved youth and promoting stewardship.

Nation's River Bass Tournament at National Harbor, Maryland, provides hundreds of youth with fishing, conservation, and safe boating activities. FWS partners with multiple corporate sponsors and Living Classrooms.

National Fish Hatcheries has employed hundreds of youth through the Youth Conservation Corps to help build outdoor classrooms, plant pollinator gardens, and assist with maintenance and operations.

Watershed on Wheels Initiative, a new mobile visitor center, was launched in 2012 by FWS to providing 51 communities along the Connecticut River with a full-immersion trailer that lest people experience plants and animals found in the watershed.

Pollinators Initiative is part of a multi-partner effort to address the decline of pollinators by restoring habitat, conducting butterfly and native bee surveys, establishing pollinator gardens, and implementing educational events.