Trained young men and women use chain saws to cut through a large fallen tree trunk pinning one section of boardwalk against a rock. Other crew members use pry bars to extricate the boardwalk and move it back into place over the stream. Foot by foot and section by section, the WCC crew stationed at Devil s Lake State Park learns what teamwork is all about. The program's scope For 17 years the Wisconsin Conservation Corps has helped young adults learn job skills, build self-confidence and accomplish meaningful work for their communities in projects related to forestry, wildlife, fisheries, natural areas and energy conservation. The forestry work focuses on timber stand improvement brushing areas, thinning or pruning trees and creating optimal conditions for mixtures of species to grow.
Crews also plant trees, create firebreaks and collect seeds for nursery tree production.
Many WCC crews assist in tagging and banding programs for fish, game and nongame species. Crews stay busy summer and winter creating and improving fisheries habitat. Last winter many of our northern crews cut logs and lashed together between 300 and 400 fish cribs, which were left on the ice to sink to lake bottoms during the spring thaw. The cribs provide cover and artificial structure in lakes where natural shelter is scarce. Crews also build and install half-log structures, brush shelters and anchored tree drops to harbor baitfish and small game fish.