The purpose of Big Stone Wetland Management District is to acquire and manage Waterfowl Production Areas in Lincoln

Lincoln County, Minnesota

As of the census of 2000, there were 6,429 people, 2,653 households, and 1,785 families residing in the county. The population density was 12 people per square mile . There were 3,043 housing units at an average density of 6 per square mile...

 and Lyon Counties

Lyon County, Minnesota

As of the census of 2000, there were 25,425 people, 9,715 households, and 6,334 families residing in the county. The population density was 36 people per square mile . There were 10,298 housing units at an average density of 14 per square mile...

. District staff also serve private land resource interests by providing technical assistance for United States Department of Agriculture

United States Department of Agriculture

The United States Department of Agriculture is the United States federal executive department responsible for developing and executing U.S. federal government policy on farming, agriculture, and food...

 programs and restoring wetland

Wetland

A wetland is an area of land whose soil is saturated with water either permanently or seasonally. Wetlands are categorised by their characteristic vegetation, which is adapted to these unique soil conditions....

s on private lands.

Currently there are eight Waterfowl Production Areas, two FmHA conservation easement

Easement

An easement is a certain right to use the real property of another without possessing it.Easements are helpful for providing pathways across two or more pieces of property or allowing an individual to fish in a privately owned pond...

s and six wetland or habitat protection easements in the district, totaling approximately 3000 acres (12.1 km²). The area remains a critical waterfowl

Waterfowl

Waterfowl are certain wildfowl of the order Anseriformes, especially members of the family Anatidae, which includes ducks, geese, and swans....

 breeding and migration area and offers great potential for a large number of resource protection/enhancement projects within several watersheds that empty into the Minnesota River

Minnesota River

The Minnesota River is a tributary of the Mississippi River, approximately 332 miles long, in the U.S. state of Minnesota. It drains a watershed of nearly , in Minnesota and about in South Dakota and Iowa....

.