Every county in northern Michigan (and the rest of the state) is served by a conservation district. But confusion over how the districts are funded and what purpose they serve - they're completely separate from nonprofit conservancies - has posed challenges for the government offices tasked with maintaining healthy and productive soil, water and air quality, and wildlife landscapes.

In this week's Northern Express - sister publication of The Ticker - investigative reporter Patrick Sullivan goes inside the fight for funding and awareness among area conservation districts. After Michigan lawmakers voted a decade ago to eliminate funding for the state's 77 conservation districts, the offices have turned to public millages and increased grant-writing to try and make up the shortfall. Benzie County became the second county in the state in 2010 to successfully go out for a millage; the public renewed funding for the department in 2014.

This August, both Antrim and Kalkaska counties will join the growing list of conservation districts seeking funding support through a public millage. Kalkaska Conservation District Executive Director Mark Randolph explains that the departments are the first line of defense against environmental threats, such as hazardous waste material and invasive species. Among the many tasks his office handles, Randolph says helping land owners manage their woodlands and targeting forest threats - like the Asian longhorned beetle and emerald ash borer - are key.

“We know (those species) would come into the area in firewood or in raw wood products, so if you know the vectors, you can anticipate where it’s most likely to start, and you can monitor those areas and nip that infestation in the bud,” Randolph says.

The Grand Traverse Conservation District is unique in its mission. In addition to acting as the official stewards of the Boardman River - an intense responsibility as dams are removed and the flow of the river is rerouted to its natural place - the department also manages 3,000 acres of parkland for Grand Traverse County and surrounding townships. Only five percent of GTCD's $800,000 annual budget comes from the county, with the rest coming from grants, contracts, program fees and donations. Accordingly, the district has also discussed the possibility of going out for a millage at some point in an effort to secure a more stable funding source.

“Many people believe that the conservation district is funded by the state, and there’s a line item in the budget, and that we have money, so why would we need money, because we already get money,” explains Executive Director Marsha Clark. “We don’t get any money at all.”

Read more about the services provided by conservation districts and their fight to secure sustainable funding in this week's Northern Express, available online and at more than 600 distribution spots across 14 counties. And, stay connected with the Northern Express throughout the week on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Photo credit: Grand Traverse Conservation District