Nature Conservancy donates 2 key areas to Wisconsin

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — The Nature Conservancy has donated two environmentally significant natural areas in Wisconsin to the state Department of Natural Resources.

One area is at Quincy Bluff in Adams County and the other is Chiwaukee Prairie in Kenosha County on the border with Illinois.

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports the package contains a total of 1,850 acres and includes an endowment worth $402,000 to help pay costs of property maintenance.

The state Natural Resources Board accepted the donation at its monthly meeting Wednesday in Madison.

Quincy Bluff is a sandstone mesa rising 200 feet above wetlands in central Wisconsin.

In southeastern Wisconsin, The Nature Conservancy 36 years ago began buying small lots along the Lake Michigan shoreline to help preserve a coastal wetland known as Chiwaukee Prairie.