Jessica Belcher - New Habitat Conservation Specialist

By Wayne Hildebrand Submitted

Manitoba Habitat Heritage Corporation is pleased to announce that Jessica Belcher will be replacing Wes Pankratz (retired) as the Habitat Conservation Specialist out of Minnedosa.

“Jessica is a perfect fit for the position and Minnedosa office,” said Curtis Hullick, Field Manager with Manitoba Habitat Heritage Corporation (MHHC). “MHHC strives to hire local staff to fill our regional offices throughout rural Manitoba to support delivery of our conservation programming.”

Jessica was raised on Bos Family Farms, a cattle farm along the Little Saskatchewan River near Rapid City. She has a biology degree from the University of Regina and a variety of environmental work experience from across the prairies.

“I am excited to get started in my new role and to build on all the great work Wes did in the region,” said Jessica. “It is a great opportunity to work with landowners in a landscape that I am familiar with. My role is to meet with landowners to deliver conservation programs that support wildlife habitat, water quality, biodiversity and healthy watersheds.”

“My first priority is to get out on the landscape and interact with landowners,” Jessica said. “Engaging with landowners and producers and building relationships is vital to the success of habitat protection and stewardship in Manitoba.”

Jessica started with MHHC in 2019 as a technician surveying protected habitat lands across most of agro-Manitoba. “In the past few years as the monitoring specialist, I have seen how both flooding and drought has impacted farms,” said Jessica. “I am excited about conservation programs that MHHC offers that can moderate some of the negative impacts of climate variation. I also like that MHHC pays farmers to protect and conserve habitat that may otherwise be lost.”

Jessica’s office is right beside Tanner’s Crossing Park, located at 30 Main Street in Minnedosa. Her region generally includes Erickson, Nee - pawa, Gladstone, Forest, and Rivers, centered by Minnedosa and Rapid City. She encourages anyone interested in conservation opportunities to drop by the office, call/ text at 204 573 4840, or email her at jbelcher@ mhhc.mb.ca.

MHHC is a Manitobabased charitable organization dedicated to conservation, restoration and enhancement of fish and wildlife habitat. MHHC works primarily with farmers on agricultural landscapes.