DELAWARE — DNREC has announced its plans to begin updating the Delaware Wildlife Action Plan for the next 10 years. The department says the revision process will involve federal, state, non-government conservation partners, wildlife experts, key stakeholders and the public.
The department says the 10-year conservation plan will guide the management of Delaware’s wildlife and habitats. DNREC says over the next six months, the revision will reassess the status of fish, wildlife and plant species. Officials say reassessing those species will identify current and future threats and provide conservation actions.
DNREC says the Division of Fish and Wildlife will use data from surveys, monitoring and research collected over the past decade to craft the revised plan. Some areas to be updated include species and habitat distribution, abundance and population status. DNREC says the data will be used to help address emerging threats such as new diseases or invasive species, as well as threats from climate change.
The revised wildlife action plan also fulfills a federal mandate that allows Delaware to receive conservation management funding under the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s State Wildlife Grant program. The department says each state must revise action plans every 10 years.
According to the department, DNREC will be seeking public input for the plan through information sessions planned for late July and August. DNREC says dates for the sessions are soon to be determined. Until those sessions, the public can submit comments for the revision process to DEWAP2025@delaware.gov. Further, DNREC says later this summer, draft versions of the revised plan will be available for review.
More information on the Delaware Wildlife Action Plan can be found online.