ALASKA—On the southern edge of Anchorage lies Potter Marsh, a popular destination for birders and critical habitat for wildlife. This coastal wetland park is home to 130 species of migratory and nesting birds, three species of spawning salmon and mammals from moose to muskrats. Its water source and habitat will now be protected, thanks, in part, to a $600,000 Community Forest Program Grant from the USDA Forest Service—the first grant of its kind to be awarded in Alaska.

The grant will fund the creation of Potter Marsh Watershed Park: a 303-acre municipal park, just upland from Potter Marsh, at the source of the mountain stream that replenishes it. This undeveloped land next to the city of Anchorage is the area’s only natural corridor for wildlife to travel between sea level and mountain tundra. The future park will also include several miles of recreational trails and support a spectrum of recreation opportunities, with many benefits to the community.

Great Land Trust, the nonprofit conservation organization leading the Potter Marsh Watershed Park project, helped facilitate the municipality’s Community Forest Program Grant process. Their efforts to protect the additional land will preserve this wildlife corridor as well as the marsh’s watershed and hydrology in perpetuity.

“We are excited to partner with the Forest Service and the municipality of Anchorage and to see the Potter Marsh watershed be managed for clean water, wildlife habitat and recreation,” said Great Land Trust Conservation Director Dave Mitchell.

Potter Marsh Watershed Park is an ideal match for the Community Forest Program, which helps entities protect predominantly forested areas that are threatened by conversion to non-forest use. The project is aligned with a top priority of the Community Forest Program: supplying benefits to the community.

Benefits of the new park go beyond preserving critical wildlife habitat and clean water—they include abundant recreation and educational opportunities afforded by its proximity to Alaska’s largest city. Access to the land, which is already used informally by the public, can now be improved through an established trail system. More than 200,000 people visit Potter Marsh each year, drawn in by abundant waterfowl and other wildlife.

The Community Forest Program serves the public beyond the bounds of national forests, providing funding for projects in communities that improve human health and quality of life. With the help of the Community Forest Program grant, combined with other funding, the Great Land Trust now has $2.6 of the $4 million it needs to complete the purchase. By 2025, the trust anticipates that the acquisition and transfer to the municipality of Anchorage will be complete, and the park will be open to the public.

The Community Forest Program is a competitive grant program that provides financial assistance to tribal entities, local governments, and qualified conservation nonprofit organizations to acquire and establish community forests that provide community benefits. Those benefits include economic outcomes through active forest management, clean water, wildlife habitat, educational opportunities and public access for recreation.