The Minnesota DNR has completed one of its largest land acquisitions in decades — nearly 16,000 acres of forested land across ten northern Minnesota counties are now permanently protected.
The project preserves critical habitat, expands recreation access, and ensures the land remains forested for generations. It stems from years of collaboration between the DNR, The Conservation Fund, Northern Waters Land Trust, and multiple counties.
To help explain the scale of the purchase, I spoke with DNR Northeast Regional Communications Specialist Ingrid Johnson, who says mapping the land is challenging because of how spread out the parcels are.
She says the DNR’s GIS staff is already working to create a public-facing map of the tracts.
The acquisition includes over 10 thousand acres purchased with Outdoor Heritage Funds in counties such as Aitkin, Becker, Cass, Crow Wing, Hubbard, Itasca, Koochiching, and Wadena. These lands will expand wildlife management areas, scientific and natural areas, and state forests.
Another 51-hundred acres in St. Louis County were purchased with Reinvest in Minnesota dollars, helping consolidate state forestland and preserve large, continuous habitat blocks.
Johnson says the effort has been many years in the making.
DNR Northeast Regional Communications Specialist Ingrid Johnson.