New Nature Preserve in Van Buren County Aims to Protect Diverse Ecosystem
A newly established 135‑acre nature preserve in Van Buren County aims to protect rare oak savanna habitat and more than a mile of Paw Paw River frontage, bolstering biodiversity, water quality, and long‑term conservation in one of southwest Michigan’s most intact ecosystems.
SWMLC (Southwest Michigan Land Conservancy) recently acquired a new property in Van Buren County that was previously owned by one of their founders, Gary Stock, who sadly passed away in 2023. Good Fire Woods is located within the Paw Paw River Watershed, which is known to be one of the most intact and diverse watersheds remaining in southern Michigan. It includes 175 miles of rivers and streams, 5,800 acres of lakes and ponds, and flows more than 60 miles from its headwaters in Kalamazoo County to its end in the St. Joseph River near Benton Harbor. This huge, important area drains, filters, and recharges groundwater from 445 square miles. Good Fire Woods includes more than 1.5 miles of stream frontage on the Paw Paw River’s East Branch and another coldwater stream that begins upstream in a privately-owned prairie fen wetland that’s protected by SWMLC with a conservation easement.
Learn More: Good Fire Woods | SMLC