The Spirit of the Wild Wildlife Management Area totals approximately 7,487 acres and consists of improved pasture areas with wetland and slough systems interspersed throughout. The hydrology of the site was altered by constructing drainage ditches and adjacent berms primarily to make the site suitable for agriculture. The overall goal of this on-going project is to restore hydrology of the project areas to pre-development conditions to the extent possible without affecting adjacent landowners.
Earth Resources is responsible for assisting in the design of the hydrologic restoration plan. Tasks include developing habitat maps for both historical and current ecological conditions with ArcGIS. Using aerial photo interpretation in conjunction with GIS data the approximate boundaries of wetlands are digitally delineated. The historic and existing water regimes of the wetlands were determined through analysis of recent and historic data. An ecological conditions report was prepared discussing the hydrology, wetland health, wildlife utilization and included recommendations for hydrologic restoration.