Archive: Minnesota River Focus Area
Last updated: May 21, 2001
Background
The Minnesota River drainage basin represents 19 percent of the land mass of Minnesota, and includes small portions of South Dakota and Iowa. It begins near the South Dakota/Minnesota border and flows 333 miles through the riverbed of Glacial River Warren to join the Mississippi River in St. Paul. Three dams in the upper river create extensive headwater lakes, important wildlife management and public hunting areas, and a productive sport fishery. The lower 238 miles of river are free flowing and without significant modifications. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers maintains a nine foot channel in the lower 15 miles of the river for navigational purposes.
More than 90 percent of prairie wetlands in Minnesota have been drained, and many streams have been channelized and dammed. This speeds removal of water and sediments from the land, which in turn, destroys fish spawning sites and limits oxygen available to aquatic life. Flooding of urban and agricultural areas is a recurrent problem. Cultivation up to the river's edge causes slumping and erosion of river banks. Runoff from livestock feedlots and inadequately treated sewage often contains disease-associated bacteria that pose health risks.
Phosphorus and nitrogen are the two most important nutrients causing problems; both enhance excessive production of aquatic plants and algae. Nitrogen, in the form of ammonia, may accumulate in sediment and become toxic to aquatic organisms. High nitrate levels in drinking water may be dangerous to human health. Nitrogen has also been linked to the hypoxia problem occurring in the Gulf of Mexico near the mouth of the Mississippi River.
Activities
The Minnesota River Focus Area Team is working to develop a shared vision for the basin. The Corps of Engineers is conducting a basin-wide reconnaissance study (starting in April 2003) to coordinate with basin stakeholders, identify problems and opportunities related to water and environmental resources, and assess the Federal interest in finding solutions. The reconnaissance study will provide the resources for the Corps to meet with local and State stakeholders to understand visions, goals, and plans currently established for the Minnesota River Basin.
The Focus Area Team will evaluate Federal visions and goals in conjunction with the Corps reconnaissance study. These efforts will strengthen interagency networks; increase awareness of problems, opportunities, needs, actions, and plans; improve understanding of interagency compatibility, incompatibility, gaps, and overlaps; and increase the effectiveness of future Federal support. The cooperation between agencies to create one vision for the basin will lead to more efficient use of government resources, while also maintaining the individual Federal interests and improving the condition of the basin as a whole.
Partners
National Park Service, Natural Resources Conservation Service, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Federal Highway Administration, U.S. Geological Survey, Bureau of Indian Affairs, Minnesota Board of Water and Soil Resources, Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, Minnesota Pollution Control Agency
For More Information
Charles Spitzack
Chief, Project Management and Development Branch
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, St. Paul District
Phone: (651) 290-5307
e-mail: charles.p.spitzack@usace.army.mil