Since 1968, Conservation Resource Alliance (CRA) has been a leader in river and habitat restoration, removing aging dams, improving undersized or failing stream crossings, and creating essential habitats. As hands-on conservationists, we take on the most pressing ecological challenges in watersheds and surrounding landscapes, ensuring the long-term health and resiliency of the Great Lakes.
Many of our projects depend on federal support from important partner agencies such as the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, USDA Forest Service, Natural Resources Conservation Service and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. We are closely monitoring the status of federal conservation and infrastructure funding to determine its impact on CRA’s work plans.
Current Status
Regionally, CRA has over $6 million in obligated federal funding. Some of the grants providing this funding have been paused, while many remain active with work proceeding.
CRA has also been awarded an additional $5 million in pending federal grants, and the status of those is unclear. Beyond federal funds directly granted to CRA, our ambitious work plan involves federal funds awarded or pending for partners in 2025 and beyond. The status of that funding is also unclear.
Two stream crossing replacements in the Cedar River Watershed (Leelanau County), originally scheduled for 2025 and partially funded through USDA’s NRCS Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP), have been delayed by at least one year due to a pause in funding.
Additional projects in our work plan may also face delays, depending on the timing and outcomes of ongoing federal funding pauses and reviews.
These delays could lead to increased costs, contract disruptions, and the risk of structural failures or changes in site conditions—potentially requiring updated designs and new permits.
Cedar Run Creek & Alpine Road—one of two critical projects in the Cedar River Watershed delayed for at least one year.
What’s at Stake?
Funding and CRA’s work with federal partners are key to efficient, cost-effective restoration and conservation that all local northern Michigan communities and visitors rely on.
The Great Lakes make up the biggest freshwater system on Earth, providing drinking water to more than 30 million people. Restoring and protecting them is a universal priority. CRA leverages federal funding, combined with substantial private and other public investments, to carry out proactive restoration work—saving rural communities significantly more in costly emergency repairs and reversing ecological impacts. The return on investment – whether public or private – is huge.
Our projects provide family-wage jobs for construction workers, engineers, bridge suppliers, and equipment operators in rural northern Michigan, where communities need healthy rivers and habitats to fuel the recreation-based economy.
We invest millions of dollars into local economies to complete projects that restore natural flood control, remove hazardous dams, enhance rural transportation systems, and improve water quality as well as fish and wildlife habitats.
The Great Lakes are only as healthy as the rivers and watersheds that feed them. According to well-established science, restoring rivers and habitats is the most effective way to build resilience across the Great Lakes system.
Projects at risk due to uncertainties with federal funding are marked in yellow on the 2025-2027 River Care Workplan.
Our Plan Forward
Conservation Resource Alliance has always found a way. We are agile, and your support diversifies our funding so that we can continue to protect and restore the precious waters and lands that define Michigan. While the current challenges are unprecedented, strategic efforts to address uncertainties and fill funding gaps have already begun.
• Advocacy & Policy Engagement: We are actively working with congressional representatives and agency partners to monitor and activate timely conservation funding.
• Diversifying Funding Sources: We are engaging our trusted state, local, private foundation, and individual supporters while also exploring new funding sources.
• Strengthening Partnerships: We are reinforcing collaborations with local organizations, businesses, and conservation organizations to maximize impact and secure additional resources.
• Public Awareness & Support: We are amplifying our outreach efforts to ensure that practical, pro-active conservation remains a priority for private and public investment.
How You Can Help
Contact Michigan’s Congressional Delegation
We urge our supporters to reach out to your congressional representatives, , share what you know of CRA’s impactful work in our region, and advocate for federal agencies to expedite their review of conservation programs. Swift action is needed to allow restoration projects to move forward, supporting the rural communities that depend on them.
U.S. Senate: Contact
U.S. House of Representatives: Contact
Donate
Your support is more critical than ever. With your help, we can continue advancing our mission to restore and revitalize rivers and habitats—ensuring a thriving Michigan and a healthy Great Lakes.
If you’d like your gift to help CRA address current federal funding challenges, please write “Fill the Gap 2025” in the memo line.
Donate: HERE