Ilia Fehrer Nature Preserve MCBP Role: Restoration and monitoring. Purpose/Benefit – Habitat conservation Restoration MCBP initial cost: $0 Nutrient reduction Total cost: $2,750,000 Passive use public access CELCP (Federal): $1,375,000 State: $500,000 Partners: Worcester County Donated land value: $875,000 Management Plan Committee includes: Public Use: Future passive recreation use MCBP, Worcester County Recreation and Parks, NRCS, planned FWS,DNR, MDE, and local residents. Size: 440 Acres Pine Rows Timber road Assate ague R oad Western Parcel: Pine monoculture mixed with a wide variety of wetlands. Eastern Parcel: Bound by Ayres Creek. The open field on the right side of the creek is the Lewis Road Kayak Launch. Ilia Fehrer Nature Preserve Objective: Restore parcels to a more natural ecosystem and develop a passive recreation plan for public use. Conservation Impact: These tracts, located in the Holly Grove Swamp Area, are important for water quality and habitat preservation. The Holly Grove Swamp, with nearly 4,000 acres of contiguous forest within its boundaries is one of last strongholds of forested wilderness in northern Worcester County. These flooded deciduous/pine mixed forests perform a variety of important services which include providing sources of clean, fresh water to the bays, and habitat for forest interior species. The area contains the largest documented concentration of red-bellied watersnakes, a state rare species, in Maryland. The protection of the Holly Grove Swamp Area may provide direct habitat resource benefits to 10 state and/or federally-listed rare, threatened, and endangered species. The Future: The draft management plan for this project has been written and is currently under review by the management committee. Some committee members have replied with suggestions and more response is expected. Timbering, Atlantic white cedar restoration, flooding of areas through ditch plugging, and public use will all probably occur, though the portions of the property for each use and the timeline are still subject to further discussion.