Wildlife Management Program

About the Program

Category: Parks and Recreation (Best in Category)

Year: 2016

Public parks are intended to preserve the beauty of nature. But what happens when invasive species of plants and animals move in and take over? Gwinnett County (GA) developed a Wildlife Management Program in 2014 in response to large flocks of Canada Geese that had adopted our parks as their year-round home. Since then, the program has expanded to deal with invasive overpopulations of everything from vultures to pine bark beetles. The goals are to reduce conflicts with humans and other wildlife, mitigate potential health and safety hazards, and protect habitat and water quality on the lands under our stewardship. In some cases, a more proactive approach was legally necessary due to binding conservation easements on the land.