Bay of Green Bay soon to be federally protected. Here’s what that means | Green Bay Press Gazette

GREEN BAY — The bay of Green Bay is another step closer to becoming a federally protected National Estuarine Research Reserve site.

On Jan. 25, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration accepted the bay’s nomination to join 30 other coastal NERR sites spanning from Alaska to Florida. The effort, led by the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay, would protect three key areas in the bay of Green Bay for long-term research, education, training and stewardship.

Here’s what to know about how becoming a National Estuarine Research Reserve (NERR) site will impact Green Bay:

What is a National Estuarine Research Reserve?

NERR sites create a partnership between the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and coastal states to protect estuaries and coastal habitats, according to UWGB.

Estuaries are where rivers meet the sea, and fresh river water mingles with tidal seawater. Freshwater estuaries, such as those along the Great Lakes, are where river water meets lake water. They act as natural filters for runoff and as nursery grounds for many species of birds, fish and other animals, according to the Office for Coastal Management.

As the world’s largest freshwater estuary, Green Bay is where the nutrient-rich water of the Fox River meets Lake Michigan, creating an incredibly productive ecosystem, according Matt Dornbush, the dean of UWGB’s Cofrin School of Business. His research focuses on the use of native plant restorations to improve ecosystem services.

Becoming a NERR site will secure the bay about $1.25 million annually in funding for research, wildlife monitoring and educational programming for the public.

This would be Wisconsin’s second NEER site. There’s one in the northwestern corner of the state along the St. Louis River, bordering Minnesota and Lake Superior.

What areas of Green Bay will be part of the NERR site?

There are three areas that would be included in the site:

• A section of the lower bay going from Ken Euers Nature Area up to Green Bay Shores State Wildlife Area and across to Point au Sable.
• Part of the Peshtigo River south of U.S. 41 down to the Peshtigo River Delta Marshes State Natural Area and out to Peshtigo Point and into the bay.
• An area spanning from the eastern edge of the Sturgeon Bay Ship Canal west to State 42 and up to Michigan Street in Sturgeon Bay.

The total acreage of land and water is 20,000. Half of the site would be land with 8,000 acres of Wisconsin Department of Nature Resources property, according to Dornbush.

“The rest of that land is owned by counties or municipalities, universities and land trusts — it’s land that’s already been set aside and invest in for the public use,” he said.

What will becoming a NERR site do for Green Bay?

As a NERR site, the state gets to decide what the key research and protection priorities will be. UWGB is currently working on those priorities and will be seeking public input.

“We could decide in this process, with public input, that … we really want to focus on the northern pike populations that move up into streams and back out or whatever,” Dornbush said. “You set priorities, and then your monitoring programs and so forth, are designed around them.”

The funding and expertise associated with becoming a NERR site will help Wisconsin better mange changing water levels, flooding, coastal erosion and harmful algal blooms in Green Bay, according to UWGB’s website.

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The public can attend a meeting hosted by NOAA and UWGB on March 19 to provide comment on a draft environmental impact statement. A virtual meeting will be at 10 a.m. via Zoom, and an in-person meeting will be held at 1:30 p.m. at the Brown County STEM Innovation Center on the UWGB campus.

The NERR designation will provide funding to do the research and then create infrastructure to translate that to the residents of the area, Dornbush said.

He describes creating a national park-like experience for residents and tourists to access and enjoy the bay. That’s where the visitors center comes in.

“When we as citizens in the Green Bay metropolitan area think about accessing water, we think about (going) up to Door County, you go to the west shore, you go to lakeshore,” he said. “There’s very few points of contact between our citizens and the bay itself in our major metropolitan area.”

The NERR designation and visitors center would provide classrooms for education on the bay as well as a way to connect visitors with fishing services or kayak rentals, so they can get out on the water. The location of the visitors center has yet to be determined.

When will Green Bay officially get its designation?

The designation process began in 2016, and Dornbush expects it to be fully completed by May 2025. Most site designations take four to six years, according to UWGB’s website.

There are six official steps to become a NERR site, and Green Bay is currently on step three: drafting an environmental impact statement and management plan.

Once the plans are drafted, they will have a public comment period on the Federal Register. Revisions will be made based on the public comment and the drafts will be finalized.

NOAA will then make the designation official and hold a ceremony. Once the designation is finalized, researchers can get to work and the visitors center can be built.

Source: Bay of Green Bay soon to be federally protected. What that means