Boosting the Bottom Line Could Help Restore Bottomland Forests

Bottomland hardwood forests were abundant in the Lower Mississippi region with about 24 million acres. Today, fewer than five million acres remain

Prior to European settlement, bottomland hardwood forests were abundant in the Lower Mississippi region with about 24 million acres. Today, fewer than five million acres remain.

The Conservancy’s long-term goal is to restore between one and two million acres of bottomland hardwood forest in the Lower Mississippi Valley.

Lee Moore, director of the Conservancy’s Lower Mississippi River Program, and Bruce McKenney, senior economic advisor for the Conservancy, are exploring whether an ecosystem services strategy can be developed to help restore the valley’s bottomland forests.

Ecosystem services are benefits that natural areas provide including clean air and water, prevention of soil erosion, flood mitigation and carbon storage.

Moore and McKenney are looking into various scenarios to determine whether landowners can make enough money from conserving and restoring bottomland forests to make it financially advantageous for them to do so.

“It’s really about setting the stage for valuing nature,” Moore said. “As we look to the future, some of these areas will be valued for the services provided by functioning ecosystems.”

Moore and McKenney are exploring ways to encourage landowners in the Lower Mississippi Valley to manage some of their land for conservation purposes.

“For the most flood prone lands, conservation may be an attractive alternative to agriculture,” McKenney said.

By converting marginal farmland back to bottomland forest, landowners might be able to profit from providing access for recreation, selling carbon credits or allowing timber to be removed on a sustainable basis.

Landowners with the best wildlife habitat make money by leasing their land for outdoor recreation including duck hunting, so anyone who wants to improve the natural condition of their property already has an economic incentive to do so.

Converting marginal farmland to bottomland forest would unquestionably store a large amount of carbon, but before anyone can cash in on carbon credits, the market and science need to develop further, McKenney said.

Sustainable timber harvesting is a financial strategy that would not necessarily provide immediate returns but it could add some extra income over time as trees mature.

“Where profits from agriculture are low, can we combine some of these services to make conservation a more attractive option?” McKenney asked. “With market and policy development, the Lower Mississippi has great potential.”