Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar announced today that the Migratory Bird Conservation Commission has approved more than $26 million in grants to protect and restore more than 200,000 acres of wetland areas and wildlife habitat in the United States and Mexico, but no money looks bound for Patoka River National Wildlife Refuge and Wildlife Management Area.

The commission awarded the grants under the North American Wetlands Conservation Act (NAWCA). They also approved $11.5 million in Federal Duck Stamp funds to add more than 3,500 wetland acres to seven units of the National Wildlife Refuge System.