The MNAC records are organized into three series: Administrative Files, Natural Areas Files, and Site Files. The record group documents the Michigan Natural Areas Council's activities and structure from 1934 to 2006, including some materials relating to the MNAC's administration and organization. The bulk of the files relate to the group's efforts to identify and dedicate natural areas in the state of Michigan. There is also some information relating to other Michigan naturalist groups that worked with MNAC members.
The Michigan Natural Areas Council was independently established on October 27, 1951, having operated as a group within the Southeastern Chapter of the Michigan Botanical Club since the mid-1940s. Composed of representatives from leading conservation and educational groups, the MNAC's purpose was to ensure natural areas' preservation and to provide guidelines for their protection.
Early in the MNAC's development, the late Percy J. Hoffmaster, then-director of the Michigan Department of Conservation, noted that State Parks and other state-owned units had incorporated many outstanding natural features but that the Conservation Department had neither the funds nor the trained personnel to make detailed studies of these areas. As the MNAC had members with ecological and scientific training fully qualified to carry out this work, Hoffmaster urged the MNAC to survey areas, incorporate their findings into reports, and make recommendations to the Conservation Commission for their dedication and preservation. The MNAC adopted this program; consequently, preservation of natural areas within state parks constituted a considerable portion of the Council's activities.
The newly formed Council incorporated into its constitution procedures for the study and dedication of natural areas. Once an area had been selected for consideration, a Reconnaissance Committee was appointed. This group made a thorough survey of the tract under consideration, noting its natural features, topography, geology, plant and animal communities, and scenic features. These findings served as a basis for a report, including recommendations for preservation, submitted to the Council. If accepted, the Council selected a Site Committee, which typically included members of the Reconnaissance Committee and at least two representatives of the agency that administers the land. This committee reviewed the findings of the Reconnaissance Committee, considered any necessary boundary adjustments, attempted to anticipate and eliminate any conflicting land-uses, and then made a final report to the Council. Upon acceptance, the MNAC submitted recommendations for dedication of the area to the administering agency.
The MNAC promoted natural areas as "outdoor museums" serving many purposes. Natural areas were important not only for the public's recreation and education but also for scientific research -- as controls for gauging the effects of land management policies (e.g. the use of insecticides) and to "study long-range changes in vegetative patterns and climate, collect data on plant success and distribution, and study the life cycles of the animals." Given this, the MNAC recognized six different categories of natural areas:
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Managed Tract-- managed to preserve certain stages of plant succession and to demonstrate the effect of management techniques on vegetation and wildlife.
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Natural Area Preserve--administered to give maximum protection and minimum disturbance. Research and educational studies permissible only if they do no damage to the area.
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Natural Research Area--adopted as a classification in 1960, land's use was primarily for scientific research.
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Nature Reservations--large areas reserved generally for protection of natural features and which may include tracts protected under other designations.
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Nature Study Area--included marked and labeled trails and public facilities (e.g., natural museums) for observation and scientific study.
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Scenic Site--protected scenic features, natural overlooks, and panoramic views.
Since the Council's first land dedication in 1951, it has helped to preserve over 100,000 acres of land in Michigan, 80% in the Upper Peninsula. Among its earliest were lands at Wilderness State Park, Haven Hill, and Tahquamenon Falls. Later work preserved portions of the Porcupine Mountains, South Manitou Island, Sleeping Bear Dunes, and Warren Dunes State Park. MNAC's efforts have protected bogs, swamps, woodland, ridges, lakes, and streams, all with a variety of plant and animal life and geological features. Its members have also worked closely with private citizens and schools to preserve private land.
As James R. Wells notes in his brief history of the MNAC, "Though it owns no land, and is a relatively small body of persons with slender financial background, the MNAC does constitute a vital force for Michigan's natural area preservation in this state -- its record attests to that."
