March 1997
The monthly newsletter for people who live, work and play on the Upper Mississippi River
Vol. 5, No. 3 $2.75
Developing the River Blufftops
Sizing Up Opinions
by David Syring
By Reggie McLeod
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tanding at the picture window in your new home, you look out at the river unfolding below. Silver ribbons of water alternate with green islands. Across the valley you see the sun rising above beautiful limestone bluffs. The Mississippi Queen steams its way upstream, and you occasionally see an eagle hovering over the water at a height lower than your blufftop home. Now, picture a different view. Looking out the window of your riverside home, past the dock where your canoe lies moored in the water, beyond the river, the green islands and the far shore, you see eroding bluffs and what you consider to be an ugly house built in a cleft cut into the rock by heavy machinery. Depending on where you live on the river, one of these two views might be yours. The Upper Mississippi blufflands is the fourth fastest growing region in the nation, according to a recent study by University of Wisconsin professor,
Phil Lewis. Growth brings opportunities for businesses and increased property tax bases, but also a number
Tbe Upper Mississippi bluff/ands is the fourth fastest growing region in the nation, according to a recent study by University of Wisconsin professor, Phil Lewis.
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nvironmental protection is usually more important than economic development. We need to take care of the river so that future generations can enjoy it. We need to reduce industrial pollution in the river. Environmental regulations have not gone far enough. While these conclusions may sound like part of the mission statement for an environmental group, they are actually the strongest messages to emerge from a recent telephone survey of 2,500 ran-
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of potential problems, including soil erosion around blufftop development, gradual degradation of the scenic character of the bluffs, destruction of blufftop prairie habitat, loss of agricultural land and increased infrastructure costs to local governments.
Grants & Campaigns "This region is rapidly changing," (River Bluffs continued on page 2)
What's Inside.
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Current Events Paddlefish Slaughter, Zebra Wars, Bass Camp ................... 5 River Calendar & Almanac Maple Syruping, DNR Hearings, Book Signing, River Quiz ...... 8
(River Bluffs continued from page 1)
observes Anita O'Gara, director of communications for the Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation (INHF), one of many nonprofit groups that focuses on river issues. "Either you find your partners now, and work together to protect the blufflands or you've lost your opportunity." INHF, in conjunction with the Minnesota Land Trust, the Wisconsin Farmland Conservancy and the Natural Land Institute in Rockford, ill. recently received a grant from the McKnight Foundation to work on preserving the natural and human environment of the Upper Mississippi and its tributaries. INHF also received the prestigious "Renew America" award for its work along the Iowa stretch of the river. Many of these organizations specialize in helping landowners develop strategies for preserving the natural integrity of their lands. According to O'Gara, adding people to an area does not always add income to a community, especially when new growth takes place on blufftops. "Haphazard development often drains a community. Building a few big houses on the blufftops increases the demands for services such as roads and fire departments. The increased revenue from property taxes does not always equal the costs for these services," O'Gara says. She also cites the potential negative impact on tourism, which by most estimates generates more than a billion dollars annually for local economies on the river.
A Tale of Two Counties At the center of the debate are zoning ordinances, which vary from state to state, county to county and even township to township along the river. In Wisconsin's Pepin and Pierce counties, which are adjacent to one another and exposed to moderate-tointense development pressure, zoning ordinances are very different for the blufflands. Pierce County currently has no specific zoning for development 2
along the river, according to zoning administrator Jim Kleinhans. A county bond passed in the summer of 1996 addresses housing density, allowing each township to decide what density to allow, based on the services townships feel capable of providing. Typical densities prior to the bond were set at a one-acre minimum lot size. Since the bond was passed, townships seem to be increasing minimum lot sizes. No other specific restrictions exist, and with what Kleinhans identifies as "intense pressure" to develop, individual proposals for developments are being considered on a case-by-case basis. Pepin County zoning administrator John Egli says township officials
"People cherish the scenic beauty of the bluffs," observes Hendee. "Scenic beauty is rated the number-one reason for why people live here." in his county pushed for a specific blufflands zoning ordinance, which went into effect in 1993. He says pressure for ch<U1ge was sparked by rumors that a state ordinance was in the works. Local officials wanted to preempt attempts by the state to control local policy. The 1993 ordinance creates a separate overlay district along the river with more restrictive requirements. It includes a five-acre minimum lot size, no building or earthwork modification on slopes 30 percent or steeper, a 40-foot set-back from the bluff edge and several vegetation requirements to reduce erosion. Even though the zoning was designed to protect the blufflands, Egli cites the positive impact of housing developments on local economies and says the ordinance was not designed to discourage development.
Covenants & Guidelines In Stockholm Township, Fred Richter, a Minneapolis-based architect
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and developer, created Pepin Pava after being inspired by environmentally sensitive development on the Pacific coast north of San Francisco. Though Pepin Pava preceded the county's restrictive ordinance, Richter designed the community with many of the same concerns in mind. Pepin Pava meets or exceeds almost all of the 1993 zoning requirements. After arranging with his father to purchase the 600-acre parcel, he immediately planted pine trees, both for conservation and to enhance potential building sites. He also set guidelines for construction. "It simply is in our interests to set some parameters," Richter says. "It adds value to the residential sites." Using the legal tool of covenants (deed restrictions requiring buyers to meet certain requirements for building) Pepin Pava gives landowners an attractive setting while preserving the blufftops from erosion. Additionally, the covenants limit tree cutting to reduce visibility of the development from the river. Richter suggests that Pepin Pava and other developments "customized" to the bluffs offer important advantages to local communities. "We've been a real boon to the tax base. We didn't require the township to add any roads, the houses are on private wells, and we pay pretty stiff taxes," Richter says. "In environmental terms, we're much better off getting the first hundred feet of the blufftops into trees. It's virtually stopped erosion on the bluffs here. I think in the long run, blufftop development is really a plus for many of these communities." Stockholm Township chairman, Roger Stewart, is cautiously optimistic about the long-term economic consequences of developments like Pepin Pava. Stewart says Pepin Pava property taxes generate slightly more than 20 percent of the township's revenue, and since most of the 23 homes in the development are second homes, service demands have not increased tremendously. . "But we'll see more down the road March 1997
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how it's going to impact us," Stewart says. "People may retire and become full-time residents and demand more services, then things might change." As an example, Stewart says the township has gotten some complaints about dust rising from the township road leading to Pepin Pava's private road. Full-time residents or new residents might want the road paved. "And there's also the possibility that rising maintenance costs might lead the people there to ask that the township take over the maintenance of their private road."
Less Pressure, More Time As compared to the Twin Cities area, communities in the reaches of the river below Red Wing, Minn., and into Iowa and Illinois face slightly less intense pressure, and consequently, have more time to think about how they would like development to happen. "We're fortunate that we have time so we can be more proactive about some of these issues," says Korelle Hendee, assistant coordinator of Common Visions for Minnesota Blufflands in Wmona County and La Crescent. "But we're definitely seeing the impact of incremental growth in the area. Over time, this kind of growth alters the way a region looks." The Common Visions project, with three offices in eastern Minnesota, has been working for the past two years to help communities along the river understand how changes are affecting the area, and to develop tools for local communities to meet and manage that change. "People cherish the scenic beauty of the bluffs," observes Hendee. "Scenic beauty is rated the numberone reason for why people live here. There is a strong consensus in that area. We're trying to help people create a vision of how to manage change so that scenic beauty and a high quality of life in the area will remain." Feelings about how to manage blufftop development run high. Local officials do not want to tell individual landowners what they can and can-
March 1997
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' " ' ~....
~ation easements mean excellent way of guaranteeing that the good stewardship y<>U'Ve practiced will continue into the future. You still own and enjoy the Jand, but you get to protect it, too," says Anita O'Gara, director of communications at the Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation (INHF). As an example, O'Gara describes "Faraway Farm," 145 acres of bluffland south of Dubuque, Iowa. Jane and Dick Worm put their woodland and prairie into a conservation easement that places certain land uses, such as development, into the hands of the INHF. The foundation takes on the responsibility of ensuring that future owners do not build, mine or disrupt the land's natural features, as outlined in the agreement. The Worms reserved the right to build a small house on the parcel, away from the river, as well as the right to add foot trails to the
not do with their property. Despite the fact that the Upper Mississippi region as a whole has been undergoing population growth for some time, many local governments are only now developing zoning ordinances for blufftop development. County governments sometimes adopt strict rules, only to find such ordinances are
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The Iowa Natural Heritage Fnd. 505 Fifth Avenue, Suite 4444 Des Moines, IA50309 (515) 288-1846 Minnesota Land Trust 70 N. 22nd Ave. -Minneapolis, MN 55411 (612) 522-3743
WJSConsin Farmland Conservancy 500 E. Main Street, Suite 307 Menomonie, WI 54751 (715) 235-8850 Natural Land Institute 320 South Third St.
Rockford, IL 61104 (815) 964-6666 The Conservation Fund 70 N. 22nd Ave. Minneapolis, MN 55411 (612) 545-4503 m
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hard to enforce, especially in the face of potential lawsuits for hindering property uses. "We want to give people their property rights, but still plan for the future," says Judy Gilow, one of five commissioners on the Wmona (Minn.) County Board and a lifelong
(River Bluffs continued on page 4) 3
Survey continued from page 1) domly selected households in the five states on the Upper Mississippi - Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa, Illinois and Missouri. The survey was conducted from September 7, 1996, to October 24, 1996, by the Army Corps of Engineers as part of the Long Term Resource Monitoring Program (LTRMP). Interviewers asked whether people were most familiar with the Illinois or Mississippi river. The Mississippi was most familiar to 2,297 respondents and the Illinois to 210. When asked, "When it is impossible to find a reasonable compromise between economic development and environmental protection, which do you usually believe is more important, economic development or environmental protection?" 75 percent picked environmental protection. A series of 10 questions asked people why they consider the river important.
strongly disWhen it is impossible to find a compromise between economic development and environmental protection, which do you usually believe agreed with is more important, economic development or environmental protection? that stateeconomic development environmental protection ment. Miss. R. - St. Paul to Guttenberg When Miss. R. - Guttenberg to Hannibal asked to rate Miss. R. - Hannibal to C a i r o - - - - - - - - - - â&#x20AC;˘===::a their supMississippi River - no segment port for 26 possible Ill. R. - Lake Mich. to Joliet management efforts Ill. R. -Joliet to LaSalle on a scale of Ill. R. - LaSalle to Grafton 1 (no supIllinois River - no segment port) to 5 (strong supTOTAL port), 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100% "efforts to reduce Environmental concerns again got industrial pollution on the river" garthe strongest response when surveyors nered the most support: 71 percent asked whether laws and regulations rated it a five and 16 percent rated it a related to the environment, recreation four. Receiving the least support, "Inior commerce have gone too far, struck tiatives to remove the locks and dams about the right balance or not gone far and return the river enough. Fifty-five percent said laws and to its natural state." regulations related to the environment In thinking about the river, at the present time, do you think laws and 16 percent rated it a have not gone far enough, while 39 perregulations related to ... gone five and 12 percent struck about the cent said they had struck the right balright balance. not gone far enough . 100 ,.,. rated it a four. the environment have .. . ance and seven percent said they had The survey did gone too far. commerce have .. Bruce D. Carlson, who works for the recreation have... not ask people what Corps of Engineers' St. Paul District, 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% so% 60% 10% s o% 90% 100% purpose the locks and dams serve. managed the survey for the LTRMP. He The largest majority, by a good margin, (Many mistakenly believe they are used will continue to analyze the data and agreed with "It is important to take care for flood control. Actually they have no release more detailed reports on relaof the river so that we are able to pass it effect on flooding, because they are tionships between people's attitudes along to future generations for their completely open during flood condiabout the river and other factors. ~ enjoyment." Seventy-one percent tions.) Perhaps a future survey will strongly agreed and 28 percent agreed. explore peoples' beliefs about the purReggie McLeod is editor of Big River. Only about one percent disagreed or pose of the locks and dams.
(River Bluffs continued from page 3) resident of the region. "Our current land use plan is complicated, so we're working on simplifying it. As far as the bluffs are concerned, we want to let people build on them, but we want to encourage them to build with scenic beauty in mind, and with thought for those who might build around or below them. We don't want to end up like California or Washington." Aside from a shoreland district, which prohibits development on 30 percent slopes within 1,000 feet of the
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river, Winona County has no specific restrictions for the blufflands. One house currently being built in the county lies on a slope that easily exceeds 30 percent, but which is just beyond the 1,000-foot boundary. According to planning director Todd Bram, much of the county's blufftop does not fall within the shoreland district. Development in these places is currently restricted only by engineering limitations. "And somebody once said to me that you could put a house on a fishook with the right engineer-
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ing," Bram observes. Current Winona County lot-size minimums for parcels created after 1989 require 40 acres per non-farm dwelling in the agricultural district. The Planning and Zoning Commission may change this to allow more concentrated development, especially on marginal farmland, so that prime agricultural land can be preserved. County commissioner Gilow observed that current restrictions make it difficult for individual
(River Bluffs continued on page 5)
March 1997
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Current Events
By Molly McGuire, Reggie McLeod and David Syring
Cleanup Resource If your stretch of the river could use a good cleanup, consider registering your group with America Outdoors and get free trash bags and a video on organizing a cleanup. Register before April 1 by calling (423) 558-3595, or emailing to amoutdoors@aol.com, or visit their Web site at <http:/ /www.a mericaoutdoors.org>.
Zebras vs. Natives Moving mussels is proving more difficult than expected, and according to reports in the Sea Grant Network's Zebra Mussel Update Ganuary 1997) zebra mussel infestation in the Mississippi adds to the problems. An attempt last summer by divers to move 10,000 mussels four miles upstream to protect them from damage during riprap construction near
La Crosse, Wis., ran into zebra mussel trouble. According to Marian Havlik, of Malacological Consultants, more than 80 percent of the native mussels had up to 120 adult zebras attached, making identification difficult. Scrubbing away the zebras greatly increased processing time. A study by Virginia Polytechnic graduate student Matt Patterson suggests that even the best-scrubbed efforts appear inadequate. When Patterson tried to move native mussels in the Ohio River to uninfested waters he found that scrubbing away all visible zebras did not rid natives of the invasive species. 1hirty days in quarantine tanks revealed a fresh outburst of zebras. After scrubbing and another 30 days of quarantine, zebras were again found. Biologists speculate the zebra mussels hid in damaged parts of the shell, and then emerged as they outgrew these crevices. Patterson observed that moving infested native mussels
would be "a potential relocation disaster." The prospect of 60 to 90 or more days in quarantine greatly reduces the feasibility of transporting natives to uninfested water. Such news does not bode well considering the rapid spread of zebra mussels in the Mississippi. According to Mike Davis, Minnesota Department of Natural Resources river ecologist, zebra mussel densities in Lake Pepin have tripled in some locations to around 30,000 per square meter. In 1996 the density pattern of zebra mussels followed that of 1995 with a gradual increase from north to south. Davis expects to see greater reproduction and higher densities of zebra mussels in 1997, depending on overwinter survival. More drastic measures are needed to keep zebra mussels from infesting the St. Croix River, according to the Minnesota-Wisconsin Boundary Area Commission. At a meeting in Onalaska, Wiscon(Current Events continued on page 6)
(River Bluffs continued from page 4)
landowners to subdivide parcels of their land in order to give children a place to build a home. "It's difficult to preserve the bluffs and farmland and still help your kids by giving them a place to build. How do you tell your kids, 'No, we can't help you, because the zoning won't let us'?" Winona, like most other river cities, face population pressures with scarce developable land other than the surrounding blufflands. "Winona's got nowhere else to grow," observes Andy Kronebusch, a dairy farmer who works 330 acres eight miles from the river, near Ridgeway, Minn. "You've got the riverbank, then the town, the road, and then there are the bluffs. People are moving here, and they are building. I don't like to see farmland taken out of
March 1997
productivity for houses, so if building on the bluffs is a way to keep farmland in production, then I have no problem with it. I wouldn't want to see a spot leveled and a trailer house put in there, but to put in a nice house and landscape to prevent erosion, I don't see anything wrong with that." No matter what you see when you look out your window, the future of development on the blufftops is under a complex cloud of questions. As expanding information networks allow more individuals to work urban-based jobs from remote locations, many more people will be looking for their own view of the great river.= David Syring is associate editor of Big River.
Big River
Big Riverâ&#x201E;˘ Big River (ISSN 1070-8340) is published monthly by Big River, 701/2 East Fourth Street, Suite 203, Winona, MN 55987; (507) 454-5949;/ax: (507) 454-2133; email: bigriver@aol.com; web site: <.http://www.big-river.com> Reggie McLeod editor/publisher Molly McGuire assistant editor ' David Syring associate editor Pamela Eyden contributing editor Jayne L. Stokke graphic artist Mary Feathergill bookkeeper Joshua Jacobs systen1S analyst Subscriptions are $28 for one year, $50 for two years or $2.75 per single issue. Send subscriptions, single copy orders and change-of-address requests to Big River, PO Box 741, Winona, MN 55987. Second-class postage paid at Winona, MN. POSTMASTER: send change-of-address requests to Big River, PO Box 741, Winona, MN 55987. Big River, Volume, 5, Number 3, copyright Š March 1997. Reproducticm in whole or in part without written permission of the publisher is prohibited. Printed on recycled paper.
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(Current Events continued from page 5)
sin, on February 13, the commission passed a resolution to ask both states to keep boats from entering the St. Croix from the Mississippi River unless they can prove that they carry no zebra mussels. The Upper Mississippi is already infested with zebra mussels. The St. Croix contains a good variety of native mussels and few zebras. Steve Johnson, of the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, warned that blockading the busy confluence of the two rivers, at Hastings, Minnesota, would be expensive and probably illegal. Current laws against transporting zebra mussels will be enforced more strictly next summer, he told the commission. More boats will be inspected and fines levied. Young zebra mussels the size of a pinhead often attach themselves to boat hulls. They are hard to see and can live for days out of water, so it is difficult to remove or kill them all.
Camp or Park? Minnesota City, Minn. - Plans by the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) to buy a 120-acre riverfront property known as Bass Camp near Minnesota City has met resistance from the Winona County Board. The DNR hopes to combine the parcel with 400-acre John A Latsch Park across Highway 61. Citing a potential loss to the county in property tax revenue, the board voiced its resistance to the plan at a February meeting. Bass Camp's current owner, Bob Rolbiecki, paid $11,700 in property taxes last year, while the DNR would pay three dollars per acre, or about $360 per year. County commissioners say the DNR already owns about 33,000 acres in the county. However, the expanded park could attract hundreds of thousands of visitors a year and generate millions of dollars of revenue for local businesses, according to the DNR. Bass Camp, which is on the Mississippi below Lock and Dam 5, includes a restaurant, bait shop, 6
campground, trailer park and a mile of riverfront. Early DNR plans include leasing the restaurant to someone and developing boating, swimming,fishing,hiking,camping and picnicking. Twenty-seven trailer homes at the site might be grandfathered in or phased out. Steve Kirch, regional parks director, says the DNR plans to be sensitive to the needs of the owners, and will talk to them directly, according to The Winona Daily News (2-5-97).
Shot Approval With test results showing that bismuth-tin shot is nontoxic when eaten by waterfowl, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) has given final approval for its use. Such approval brings bismuth-tin shot into the same standing as steel shot, which in 1991 became the only legal shot for waterfowl hunters. Lead shot is toxic to ducks and geese that consume it. The USFWS also proposed temporary approval for tungsten-iron shot for the 1997-1998 season, pending completion of toxicity tests. The decision on tungsten-iron shot will be issued this spring after a 60-day public comme1lt period ending April 1. Comments can be sent to: Chief, Office of Migratory Bird Management, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 1849 C St. NW, Mail Stop 634 ARLSQ, Washington, DC 20240.
Spills & Kills Iowa - In Iowa, fish kills in the Upper Mississippi and its tributaries destroyed more than 730,00 fish valued at $88,400 during 1996. Of 10 fish kills in Iowa with identifiable, human causes investigated by the Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR), one was on the Mississippi, while several others occurred in tributaries. Of the 10 kills, seven were caused by livestock manure, two by agricultural fertilizer spills and one by an industrial chemical spill. In July, dairy manure killed 23,379 fish valued at $6,210.59 in the Little
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Wapsipinicon in Fayette County. In August, cattle manure killed 5,670 fish valued at $6,978.89 in Buffalo Creek in Jones and Linn Counties. A September agricultural ammonia spill killed 10,716 fish valued at $2,7777.93 in the North Fork Maquoketa River in Dubuque County. In October, industrial ammonia killed 12,000 fish valued at $960 in a drainage basin to pool 12 of the Mississippi in Dubuque County.
New Riffles To enhance fish habitat and increase angling opportunities, the Iowa Department of Natural Resources is proposing to construct rock riffles at 96 locations on 19 streams. Riffles are rock constructions that reach across the width of a stream to create a deep pool that provides habitat for walleye, smallmouth bass, and channel and flathead catfish. Funding for construction comes from fishing license fees and the federal Sport Fish Restoration program. For a listing of proposed riffle locations, and for public comment, contact: Martin Komad, DNR Riffle Project, Wallace State Office Bldg., Des Moines, IA50319, (515) 281-6976. Iowa -
Carp Club Carp anglers take heart! A two-yearold organization, the Carp Anglers Group, has more than 500 members in the United States, Canada and Western Europe and publishes a bimonthly newsletter, The American Carp Angler. The Illinois-based organization can be reached at: Carp Angler's Group, P.O. Box 69, Groveland, IL 61535.
Safer Boaters Minnesota - Only 12 people died in Minnesota boating accidents last year, an all-time low. Department of Natural Resources officials attributed part of the reduction to Minnesota's new life jacket law, which went into effect on May 1, 1996. Capsizings or falls overboard accounted fot all of the year's deaths, and alcohol use con-
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tributed to the majority (58 percent). Non-boating drownings took 48 lives last year, which is up 12 from 1995. Falls into the water and drownings while swimming each accounted for 13 deaths, while falls through ice and jumping or diving each took eight people. Three people died in rescue attempts, two while hunting, and one person perished in a whirlpool.
Metal Shredder Minneapolis, Minn. - Though issues have not yet been resolved by the city of Minneapolis and American Iron & Supply Co., the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) announced it will begin developing two environmental permits for a proposed metal shredder on the company's scrapyard site in northeast Minneapolis, near the Mississippi. Drafts of air-quality and stormwaterrunoff permits will be available for public comment this spring. MPCA board members approved an Environmental Assessment Worksheet in June of 1996, and recommended waiting to begin work on permits until after the city and American Iron & Supply Co. resolved landuse and legal disputes. The MPCA says it appears unlikely that the two parties will reach a negotiated settlement. Based on the findings on last June's worksheet, the MPCA is not requiring an Environmental Impact Statement. For more information contact Susan Brustman at the MPCA: (612) 296-7796, or 1-800-657-3864.
Frog Deformities Minnesota - While the discovery by school children of extra or missing legs in Minnesota frogs grabbed headlines last year, deformities in bones, cartilage, jaw structure and internal organs also seem to be increasing, according to studies by several researchers. While the cause of the deformities is still unknown, pesticide contamination is the leading theory. Other possible explanations include parasites, viruses, other fac-
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tors or some combination of causes. Officials in Minnesota and elsewhere are monitoring the situation for possible affects on humans. According to David M. Hoppe, herpetologist and biology professor at the University of Minnesota-Morris, one of the most unsettling aspects of the deformities is their "recent, rapid on-set." In a paper delivered at a recent "cyberconference" of the North American Amphibian Monitoring Project (NAAMPA), Hoppe notes that between 1975 and 1995 he saw only two examples of deformities in the course of handling thousands of frogs. In 1996 alone, he found more than 200. Hoppe speculates an environmental agent in the water could be the cause, according to a report in Scientific American (March 1997).
Paddlefish Slaughter Prairie du Sac, Wis. - Three La Crosse commercial fisherman have been charged with destroying up to 10 percent of the threatened paddlefish population on the Wisconsin River. Paddlefish, a 300 million-year old species, are found only in the Mississippi and some of its larger tributaries. A Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) investigation led by Sauk County warden John Buss cited Jeffrey Morrison and two crew members, Harold and Mark Lynch, with three separate charges: violation of the threatened species act; failure to return paddlefish safely to water from a gill net; and unreasonable waste of a natural resource. Morrison had an exclusive commercial fishing contract with the DNR to seine carp and other rough fish from the Wisconsin River below the Prairie du Sac dam. The contract stipulated he release endangered and game fish immediately. According to the Baraboo News-Republic (2-7-97), Morrison and his crewmen disregarded the stipulation and destroyed about 50 paddlefish in addition to game fish, including channel catfish, white bass and walleyes. Morrison's
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contract with the DNR has been suspended. The three fishermen face approximately $15,000 in fines. According to the La Crosse Tribune (2-8-97), Buss received a phone tip that Morrison was "throwing them (paddlefish) around like bales of hay." Despite warnings to Morrison from Buss, complaints continued, forcing investigation. The case goes to Sauk County Court on March 10.
Another Restructuring Vicksburg, Miss. - The newest Army Corps of Engineers restructuring plan would group all the Corps' districts on the Mississippi River within the same division. The St. Paul and Rock Island districts would move from the Chicago Division to the Mississippi Valley Division (now the Lower Mississippi Valley Division) in Vicksburg, Miss. The Missouri River and North Pacific divisions would be combined into a new Northwestern Division. Several Ohio River and Great Lakes offices would be combined into a new Great Lakes and Ohio River Division.
Tasty Tap Water Dubuque, Iowa - Dubuque's tap water was judged the tastiest from a field of 40 samples from 16 states at the "Toast of the Tap: International Water Tasting and Competition" in Berkeley Springs, West Virginia, in late February.
Flood Watch Frozen North - Heavy rains on frozen ground and ice jams triggered flooding on the Rock River in northern Illinois in late February and threatened flooding along the Illinois and other rivers in the center of the state. Meanwhile, very deep snow cover in northern Minnesota and North Dakota poses a risk of flooding to several rivers, including the Upper Mississippi.=
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Special Events & Festivals March 1-2 Eagle Watch, Wmona, Minn., Friday evening program, Saturday bus trip, 1800-657-4972 or (507) 452-2272. 7 Big River Reader book signing, 7 p.m., Red Oak Bookstore, La Crosse, Wis., (608) 782-3424 or 1-800-303-8201. 7-9 Sports and Travel Show, St. Cloud, Minn., (320) 255-7272. 8-10 Effigy Mounds National Monument Film Festival, A Sand County Almanac and
The Indian and His Homeland, 1590-1876, Marquette, Iowa, (319) 873-3491. 14-23 Northwest Sportshow, Minneapolis, (612) 827-5833. 15 Mississippi Valley Archaeology Ctr. artifact show, 10 a.m. - 5 p.m., Valley View Mall, Onalaska, Wis., (608) 785--8454. 15-16; 22-23; 29 Maple syruping in your backyard, Ft. Snelling State Park, St. Paul, Minn., (612) 726-9247. 16 Soar with the Eagles, Wabasha, Minn., viewing deck staffed 1 p.m. - 3 p.m. Sundays through March, 1-800-565-4158 or (612) 565-3918.
April 19 Spring Raptor Release, French Regional Park, Plymouth, Minn., Hennepin Parks, (612) 559-6769.
5 p.m., Muscoda, 1-800-221-3792. 13 Dubuque Audubon Society, 7 p.m., American Trust & Savings, Dubuque, Iowa. 15 Mississippi Corridor Neighborhood Coalition, 9:30 a.m., Bottineau Park, Minneapolis, (612) 781-1191. Hearings on Wis./Minn. clamming rule changes for 1998 season. In question: closing the season one month early, increasing some minimum size requirements. (608) 326-2718. 18 Prairie du Chien, Wis., 5 p.m., Prairie City Bank. 21 La Crosse, Wis., 5 p.m, WWTI, Rm. 103, Bus. Ed. Bldg. Wis. DNR hearings on giving the timber rattlesnake protected or threatened status in Wisconsin. (608) 266-2925. 18 La Crosse (Wis.) County Courthouse, 5:30p.m. 19 Ferryville, Wis., 6:30 p.m., Community Bldg.
April 24-25 Mississippi River Research Consortium annual meeting, La Crosse, Wis., (608) 783-7550.
Workshops & Conferences March
River Cleanups April 12, 19, & 26, Dubuque, sponsored by Mississippi River Revival, (319) 557-1777. May 10-17 National River Cleanup Week, (423) 558-3595. May 17 Minneapolis, 9:30 a.m., Father Hennepin Park near the Stone Arch Bridge, sponsored by Mississippi Corridor Neighborhood Coalition. June 21 Wmona, Minn., sponsored by Mississippi River Revival, (608) 687-8152.
Meetings & Hearings March 5 Hiawatha Valley Audubon Society, 7:30 p.m., Lake Park Lodge, Winona, Minn. 6 Public meeting on draft Environmental Impact Statement, Savanna Army Depot, 7 p.m., Dubuque, (815) 273-8311, (334) 690-2729 for EIS. 10 St. Croix Valley Group Sierra Club, 6:30 p.m., Stillwater, Minn. 11 Mississippi River Parkway Commission of Minnesota, 4 p .m. - 6 p.m., St. Paul, (612) 224-9903. 13 Lower Wisconsin State Riverway Board,
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1 Tri-State Fmest Steward Conference, management and care of woodlands, Sinsinawa (Wis.) Mound Center, $18, (608) 266-2388. 9-10 Student Congress and Clean Water Celebration, Peoria, ill., sponsored by the Rivers Project, (309) 246-8403.
11-13 Upper Mississippi River Conservation Committee, Wmona, Minn., (612) 345-3365.
15 Safety in Paddlesport Conference, resources and education for canoe and kayak trip leaders, 8 a.m. - 4:45 p.m., College of DuPage, Glen Ellyn, ill, (630) 9422356. 21-22 Restoring Our Urban Waters, Citizens for a Better Environment watershed conference, Science Museum of Minnesota and Hamline University, register by March 12, (612) 824-8637, or cbewkelly@igc.apc.org.
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Test Your River IQ 1. What two counties bordering the navigable Upper Mississippi share the same name? 2. Name three places where the river has changed course between Illinois and Missouri, leaving orphaned land on the opposite side of the river. -~:) aAoqc 1aAµ <llfl JO ap)S l8aM <llfl uo puc1s1 l<llS!S µnoSS!W ,S!OUffiI puc '.·Ill 'l<lMOl puc19 MOl<lq lSTI( '·ow 'pucySJ 1aMol puc19 :·ow 'aAa!Aaua9 ·als Moyaq sarrw flCl[ C puc <lA!f '·rn 'C~SIDJSC)I ·z ·sarrw ll lOf ap)S Aq ap)S tnU 'S)OUffil ¼lune:) <l){!d puc '!IDOSS!W 'J\llffiO:) <l){!d ·I :Sla.Msuy
Geography information courtesy of Kathy Flippo, Morrison, Missouri, river person and author of Beaver Island Remembered.
March Almanac
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By Kenny Salwey It's warm, then cold; sUT1Shine then clouds; big black storm clouds boiling over hilltops, bringing rain and snow; high winds, then dead quiet. A week's worth of weather? No, my friends, one afternoon - it's March, a month of transition and change. The big river takes two steps toward spring then a step back to winter. The snow and ice is disappearing. Creeks swell and overflow their banks as they hurry down the valleys. River folks begin speculating how high the water will be. Will dikes and levees be strong enough? Are the pumps ready? Do we need more sandbags? The critters seem indecisive, too - out and about one day, sleeping and hiding the next. Walleye and sauger are feeding big time in the fast current of the main channel. A few adventuresome plants poke out tentatively, as if peeking at the reawakening world. Spring comes one hour at a time. The circle of life turns very slowly but very surely. What's that I hear? A red-winged blackbird! It's perched atop a cattail swaying back and forth. Now I must watch for a robin! Spring is here! How do I know? The big river and the wild things there told me so.
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Big River
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March 1997