Page 72 - South Mississippi Living - April, 2020

LEISURE
CELEBRATE NATURE
story by Lynn Lofton
photos courtesy of The Nature Conservancy
72 | April 2020
www.smliving.net | SOUTH MISSISSIPPI Living
The Nature Conservancy, a conservation focused
non-pro t, works to achieve tangible, lasting results. Their mission – to conserve the land and water on which all life depends – is positive for one and all.
The organization, which works in all 50 states and nearly 80 countries around the world, was o cially established in 1951 and came to Mississippi in 1976.
One of their local projects is conserving more than 30,000 acres of Pascagoula River bottoms. “It’s one of the greatest conservation success stories in the U.S.,” says State Director Alex Littlejohn. “Since then we’ve helped to conserve a total
enhance one of the state’s native trees, the Longleaf Pine habitat, across the base and Desoto National Forest.
Littlejohn points out another project, the Phil Bryant Wildlife Management Area, 18,000 acres comprising the newest state wildlife management area which came
about through a partnership of TNC, the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. “Ownership of such properties lends itself
to real world experiences that strengthen our conservation e orts,” he said.
TNC has been involved in oyster reef restoration across the Gulf for the past
10 years. “Just recently we announced a
$2.8 million project to expand our oyster restoration e orts in Bay St. Louis. This work is funded through the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation’s Gulf Environmental Bene t Fund, a portion of the BP settlement,” Littlejohn said.
He says everyone can become involved with the organization as a member and by introducing family, friends and colleagues to its work.
The Nature Conservancy
www.nature.org/mississippi Twitter: @ms_nature Facebook: @MississippiTNC Instagram: @nature_mississippi
of 80,000 acres along that river, an e ort that continues today. We’re proud of what this river means to us locally but also its prominence nationally as the largest undammed river in the lower 48 states. That just goes to show
you that conservation and industry can
work together when you think about Ingalls Shipyard and Chevron’s operations located at the mouth of the river.”
Alan Sudduth, Corporate A airs Manager for Chevron in Mississippi, said, “Protecting people and the environment is a core value for Chevron. The Nature Conservancy has a long history of protecting the unique natural resources of our state, and we are proud to support this organization’s important work.”
The Nature Conservancy (TNC) has worked with the Department of Defense and U.S. Forest Service at Camp Shelby to restore and