Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever’s Public Access to Habitat Program Announces Nationwide Expansion This weekend at National Pheasant Fest & Quail Classic, Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever were joined by national sponsor onX Hunt to announce the expansion of its?Public Access to Habitat?(PATH) program to a national scale. Piloted in South Dakota and Nebraska over the past year, the program established 65,000+ acres of access to private lands featuring quality habitat and increased hunting opportunity for upland birds, waterfowl, and big game species. In South Dakota and Nebraska, The PATH program provides a financial incentive for ranchers, farmers and landowners to voluntarily enroll high-quality CRP, rangeland, shelterbelts, wetlands and other habitat types into a multiyear (variable per state), walk-in hunting agreement. Landowners are compensated with a sign-up incentive directly from Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever. At its core, the program supports a very simple equation: More Habitat & Access = More Hunters = More Dollars for Local Economies. The PATH program can also be tailored in various ways to address specific access barriers - willing landowners, funding, or staff capacity - in states throughout the pheasant and quail ranges. “Our track record for year one of the PATH program was nothing short of incredible,” said John Laux, habitat protection programs manager for PF & QF. “The feedback we received from landowners, hunters, and local businesses was a proof statement supporting our expansion for the future. Thank you to onX Hunt, local chapters, state agencies, and other partners who have invested in their communities through the PATH program. We are currently discussing the expansion of PATH with partners in other core pheasant and quail states, and funding is now available for expanding access opportunities thanks to our tremendous partners at onX Hunt.” Read the full story at https://lnkd.in/gX8g6vA6 w/ onXmaps, Inc.
