By Cody Fongemie, Contributor at Wild Nexus

Why it’s called the Duck Factory

The PPR includes Iowa, Minnesota, Montana, North Dakota, and South Dakota. It is not one large wetland but millions of small ones. Glaciers left behind thousands of shallow potholes, most under an acre and less than two feet deep, packed closely across the landscape. That density is what makes it a factory. More potholes per square mile mean more nesting sites, more brood rearing habitat, and more ducks produced per acre than almost anywhere else on the continent.

Hens arrive in the spring, the potholes provide nesting cover and food, ducklings grow on that water, and by fall those birds fill flyways across the country. This region alone produces roughly one half to three quarters of North America’s ducks.

Many of these lands have been protected through two primary sources. The first is Duck Stamp revenue. The Duck Stamp you buy each year to hunt helps fund waterfowl conservation across the country. The second is land preserved and managed by organizations such as Delta Waterfowl and Ducks Unlimited. All of these efforts share one purpose: providing habitat for waterfowl for generations to come.

Why setbacks matter

Drain tile can destroy a wetland without ever touching it. Tile buried in a farm field next to, rather than inside, a protected wetland can lower the water table enough to reduce how long that pothole holds water each spring, exactly when nesting hens need it most. That is why USFWS restricts tile even on land outside the easement boundary. The goal is to prevent indirect drainage from damaging wetlands that conservation dollars were used to protect.

Why USFWS is reviewing the rule

USFWS only pays landowners for the wetland itself, but to keep that wetland functional, it also restricts tile placement on nearby land that the landowner still owns and was never compensated for restricting. Many of these setback distances were not disclosed when the easements were originally purchased, so landowners have discovered no tile zones on their own property years later without compensation for the lost use.

That tension led USFWS to finalize a rule in 2024 that formalized how setbacks are calculated. Now, two years later, the agency is asking whether the rule is working and whether the calculation method should change.

How could this affect ducks?

If setbacks are weakened, there will be fewer wet potholes, which means fewer nesting hens, and fewer nesting hens mean fewer ducks in the fall. This is not an abstract concern. It is basic waterfowl biology. Hens need water on the landscape throughout the nesting and brood rearing season. Without it, nests fail and ducklings do not survive to fledge.

Multiply that impact across thousands of easements in a region that produces one half to three quarters of the continent’s ducks, and even a small change in setback regulations becomes a population issue. Drought years already reduce duck production in the PPR. Pintail and mallard populations rise and fall with annual conditions. Weaker setbacks combined with drought could create years of poor breeding conditions that eventually lead to lower bag limits and quieter marshes long after the rule itself is forgotten.

My take

As of now, USFWS has not changed the regulations. This is a request for information, not a final rule. The agency is asking whether the 2024 setback calculation should change and, if so, how.

That is the opportunity. Nothing has been decided. The outcome depends on who participates in the public comment process. Right now, many of the loudest voices favor reducing setbacks rather than maintaining them. If duck hunters remain silent, that silence could be interpreted as agreement.

We continue to face challenges to the traditions and conservation programs that make our outdoor heritage possible. This is the latest chapter, and we cannot afford to stand by. If these protections are weakened, generations of conservation work and the future of duck hunting could be at risk.

By submitting a public comment and making your voice heard, you can help defend that legacy. Whether you are a New England sea duck hunter or an Alaskan waterfowler, this issue matters. If we lose the Duck Factory, the effects will ripple across waterfowl populations throughout North America. Just as importantly, success here could encourage similar efforts elsewhere. Take a few moments to submit a comment, spread the word, and help protect the Duck Factory.