The Department of Natural Resources will open to public use an additional 1,166 acres along the Wabash River with the start of spring turkey hunting season on Wednesday.

The land was acquired as part of the DNR's Healthy Rivers INitiative. HRI was launched in 2010 to secure permanent conservation protection of nearly 70,000 acres along Sugar Creek, the Wabash River and the Muscatatuck River.

The new lands are:

— 245 acres in Sullivan and Vigo counties that will be managed as part of Fairbanks Landing Fish & Wildlife Area.
— 815 acres in Vermillion and Vigo counties that will be managed as part of the Wabash River Conservation Area.
— 106 acres in Vigo County that will be managed as part of Wabashiki Fish & Wildlife Area.

These parcels will be managed in accordance with the rules for their associated fish-and-wildlife properties. For more information on Fish & Wildlife Areas and Conservation Areas visit wildlife.IN.gov/3077.htm.

The three openings increase the acreage that HRI has opened to public use since the conservation project began to 28,425 acres.

An additional 4,128 acres are enrolled in conservation easements, bringing the total of permanently protected land to 32,553 acres.

These lands have been protected through a combination of acquisitions from willing sellers, conservation easements and Wetlands Reserve Program enrollments.

To view all DNR news releases, please see dnr.IN.gov.



Media contact: Michelle Cain, DNR Division of Fish & Wildlife, (317) 234-8240, mcain@dnr.IN.gov.