JACKSON, Miss. (AP) - The Mississippi Department of Transportation is giving 2,700 acres along the Pearl River in Rankin County to a private land conservation group.
Wildlife Mississippi, which took over the property Thursday, says it will be used for recreation and keep serving as a wetland mitigation bank, offsetting losses of wetlands from road construction projects.
The site will be named the Fannye Cook Natural Area, after the woman who helped create what became the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks and the department’s Mississippi Museum of Natural Science.
Mississippi Transportation Commissioner Dick Hall says the land will continue to provide flood relief for the city of Flowood.
Wildlife Mississippi says the property is one of the 20 largest urban green spaces east of the Mississippi River, but is easily accessible.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.