NEWS RELEASES

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Sustainable Forestry Initiative^® (SFI) welcomes new funding support from the National Fish & Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) to launch a new pilot project aimed at improving aquatic habitat quality and connectivity across SFI-certified forestlands in coastal Mississippi.

“The SFI Conservation Team is grateful for NFWF’s investment in expanding the evidence base for aquatic ecosystem health under SFI-certified sustainable forest management in these sensitive coastal forests” said Healy Hamilton, Ph.D., Chief Scientist at SFI, and the project lead. “With this additional funding from NFWF, SFI is strengthening its portfolio of biodiversity-related projects aimed at quantifying and improving the biodiversity and ecosystem service benefits of sustainably managed forests.”

SFI-certified organizations manage more than 22 million acres of forestland across the southeastern United States, creating a significant opportunity to improve aquatic ecosystem health at scale. This effort will help forest managers identify where targeted actions can deliver the greatest benefit for aquatic connectivity, sediment management, and biodiversity.

The project, titled: Improving Aquatic Habitat Quality on SFI-certified Forestlands: Piloting process and practice in coastal Mississippi, will launch in a specific region of lowland coastal Mississippi forests characterized by rivers and wetlands draining into the Gulf. The goal is to assess improvements in aquatic community health and connectivity from aquatic remediation projects in forestry operations along Gulf coastal lands.

SFI is pleased to lead a team of project partners with deep and diverse experience, including forest managers, scientists, and practitioners from SFI-certified organizations Molpus Woodlands Group and Resource Management Service (RMS), The National Council for Air and Stream Improvement, Inc. (NCASI), Tangled Bank Conservation, and SFI. Following a GIS and mapping assessment, biologists from Tangled Bank Conservation will evaluate water crossings and collect field samples at sites aligned with aquatic remediation projects planned by Molpus Woodlands Group and RMS. Environmental DNA (eDNA) and other emerging monitoring tools will be used to assess aquatic community health before and after restoration activities, providing insight into ecosystem condition and connectivity.

“Working forests play a vital role in supporting both economic and environmental values, including clean water, healthy aquatic ecosystems, and wildlife habitat. Molpus Woodlands Group is proud to partner with SFI and NFWF to help advance science-based approaches that aim to strengthen aquatic biodiversity across our SFI-certified coastal Mississippi forests” said Tiffany Roddy, Vice President of Sustainability at Molpus Woodlands. “The lessons learned from this work are expected to help inform effective habitat restoration and stewardship strategies that benefit sustainable working forests and watershed health throughout the Gulf region.”

The project advances key priorities of the Longleaf Forest and Rivers Business Plan, including improving stream crossings, restoring aquatic systems, and strengthening planning and outreach capacity. Findings from the project will help inform future forest management practices across SFI-certified lands and across the broader Southeast. This work also supports the goals of the Wildlife Conservation Initiative (WCI), a collaborative private-public effort focused on conserving fish and wildlife species on private working forests. SFI has supported the WCI since its inception and is pleased to contribute this project to a broader portfolio of biodiversity-focused initiatives across the Southeast.

“Improving our science-based understanding of contributions to biodiversity on private, working forests is fully aligned with WCI objectives” said Dr. Darren Miller, Vice President of Forestry Programs at NCASI. “The WCI is pleased to include this SFI-led effort on aquatic systems in coastal MS forests to our already strong portfolio of research projects across the US.”

By connecting science, on-the-ground action, and collaborative partnerships, the project will help strengthen aquatic ecosystems and inform sustainable forest management across the region.