Services
Midwest Wetland Improvements offers comprehensive conservation evaluation, planning and design to improve the water habitats on your property. We specialize in landscape architecture, native restorations, and stream and wetland mitigation banking.
CONSERVATION solutions for your land
CREATE.
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Restoration Evaluations
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Property Master Plans
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Ponds & Water Features
RESTORE.
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Stream Restoration
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Wetland Restoration
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Native Vegetation
PROTECT.
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Stream Mitigation Banks
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Wetland Mitigation Banks
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Natural Resource Management Plans
Discover the Possibilities for Your Land
CREATE.
RESTORATION EVALUATIONS
Identify and understand the water-based resources on your property and their quality using scientific evaluations like the Stream Quantification Tool (SQT), Wetlands Health Floristic Quality Assessment (FQA), or Hydrogeomorphic Wetland Classification System (HGM).
Property Master Plans
We develop illustrated, graphic master plans to map and prioritize your projects. This plan allows us to unify a vision for your property, build it in multiple phases, ensuring efficient completion of each step with minimal rework.
PONDS & WATER FEATURES
Creating additional water features on your property may be classified as artificial water bodies. These water bodies can add a fishery, attract wildlife, retain runoff or provide a lovely location for swimming.
restore.
STREAM RESTORATION
Streams are dynamic ecosystems that move, change, and can be impacted by the watershed upstream of your property. It is important to understand how your project fits in the larger system while also addressing your project goals.
WETLAND RESTORATION
Restoring diverse and complicated ecosystems like wetlands comes with a lengthy approval process, challenging establishment, and long-term maintenance. We are your advocate and will work with you to see your project succeed.
NATIVE VEGETATION
We advocate for the restoration of native vegetation as much as possible and where it makes sense. This includes stream restoration, wetland restoration, prairie restoration or even accent planting to your property.
Return Your Property to Nature
Protect Your Investment
Protect.
WETLAND MITIGATION BANKING
When existing wetlands are altered, the group causing the unavoidable impact needs to offset the damage.
Wetland mitigation banking is well established in the Midwest, but there is still a need for more credits. Restoring a wetland on your property will create the habitat you desire and might offer a financial reward for the long-term maintenance and preservation of this habitat.
NATURAL RESOURCE MANAGEMENT PLANS
Your restoration project had specific improvement objectives for your land.
A detailed natural resource management plan prescribes the series of activities needed for managing and maintaining the restored habitat to keep meeting those objectives for the long-term.
STREAM MITIGATION BANKING
New regulation in Minnesota requires impact to existing streams to be mitigated. Other Midwest states are anticipated to soon have similar requirements.
When existing streams are altered, the group causing the unavoidable impact needs to offset the damage. Restoring a stream on your property will create the habitat you desire and might offer a financial reward for the long-term maintenance and preservation of this habitat.
WHAT IS WETLAND MITIGTION BANKING?
Wetland mitigation bank projects are wetland restoration projects completed to a very high level of standards. Once proven to have met those standards, they can generate sellable credits on an open market. These projects are protected by a permanent conservation easement and will provide habitat and environmental benefits for future generations.
Project investment.
Projects are partnerships and we can bring design, construction or financial partners to the table. Whether you’re ready to start a wetland mitigation banking project or interested in learning more about the potential of your land, together we can get your project finished.
Process overview
Restoration work involves many steps from identification of the problem to resolution. It takes time, especially when regulatory permits are required or when mitigation banking credits are pursued. We work with property owners throughout the project:
Identify Causes of degradation or impairment
Understand the current health of your resources and diagnose the causes of change, degradation, or impairment.
Identify solutions & prioritize options
Once the issues are known, identify solutions to stabilize, repair, or improve your resources. Each option will be evaluated so that they can be prioritized according to your goals.
design the project & develop plan
Put the project goals and options on paper to plan what the final project will look like, design the project in detail, and create a phasing plan for implementation.
create budget plan & review funding options
Apply estimated costs to the project plan phases and review and prioritize what fits your budget. Discuss if there are grants or other funding opportunities to help pay for your project.
begin build & oversee construction progress
Contracted out or self-performed, we oversee construction of project improvements, answer questions that might arise, and making sure the project is built to industry standards.
manage & coordinate required inspections
Ecological restoration can take many years of management after construction of project improvements. We will revisit your projects with you to inspect and monitor establishment and prescribe any follow up maintenance work needed.
let’s discuss your project:
call us at 952.261.9990