Central
Coursing through the heart of the Central Region, both the mighty Mississippi River and the storied Missouri River are rich in historical, cultural, ecological, and economic significance. They provided both the starting point and guiding path for the Lewis and Clark Expedition to the Pacific Ocean. Their adjacent rolling hills, forested bluffs, and expansive floodplains are the ancestral lands to dozens of tribal communities, such as the Sioux, Osage, Chickasaw, and Natchez.
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American Rivers
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These rivers also form a globally important flyway for roughly 60% of all North American birds, including raptors, waterfowl, songbirds, and other species that nest, migrate, and winter from the Arctic down to the Gulf. The entire 31-state Mississippi River Basin produces approximately 95% of U.S. agricultural goods each year. The Mississippi River alone generates over $400 billion each year in commercial shipping.
The outdoor recreation economy in this region supports more than 400,000 jobs and generates $25 billion annually. The communities of the Central Region, whose homes and livelihoods have been impacted by flooding, are familiar with the potential risks of living and working along its rivers. Now, however, these river systems are facing changes in the timing, duration, and intensity of floods, intensity of precipitation versus extent of drought, and aging water infrastructure. As American Rivers looks to the future of the Central Region, we are committed to working with the communities, agencies, and all others who are interested in the long-term sustainability of its rivers.
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Key Issues Facing the Rivers of the Central Region
Floodplains
Floodplains are an integral part of healthy rivers, and floods are a natural occurrence on rivers. Floods are very important to the health of a river and the land around it. Functional floodplains that are connected to their rivers provide numerous benefits, including room for floodwaters to dissipate, nutrient filtration that improves water quality, recharging groundwater, and storing floodwaters that may otherwise flood local communities. They nurture life in and around rivers. However, when larger floods occur and their floodwaters cannot spread out across the floodplain, damage to towns and infrastructure, impacts to businesses and crops, and potential for the loss of life are all drastically increased by higher levels, longer duration, and more seasonal variability of these flooding events.
American Rivers is focused on the integration of natural infrastructure opportunities into the long-term management, conservation, and restoration of the floodplains in the Central Region. This includes projects that better connect and/or restore historic floodplains with their rivers, using such techniques as levee setbacks, passive-operation infrastructure, full wetland restoration and bottomland hardwood reforestation, and conservation programs that engage private floodplain landowners and businesses in these efforts.
Clean Water
Whether for urban, municipal, or rural use, the river communities of the Central Region depend upon clean water from rivers. They use it in their homes, for their businesses, and for recreation. However, there are wide detrimental impacts to the quality of that water which they all depend upon, including consolidated stormwater and sewer systems, aging or non-existent municipal water infrastructure, and inputs from agricultural, industrial, or other land uses. These impacts can all be further complicated by increasing precipitation events, extended river flooding, growing populations, and aging infrastructure.
American Rivers is dedicated to working with communities that depend on healthy rivers to provide them with the clean water they need to thrive. We will continue to expand our partnerships with cities, community organizations, government agencies, and other non-profits throughout the Central Region to identify clean water concerns, develop real-world solutions, and identify the steps to success.
Free-flowing Rivers
Few things have such a fundamental impact on a river as a dam. Dams block the movement of fish and other aquatic species, inundate riverine habitat, impair water quality, and alter the flow regime necessary to sustain river life. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has catalogued at least 90,000 dams greater than six feet tall that are blocking United States rivers and streams. There are tens of thousands of additional small dams that fall through the cracks of that national inventory. As these dams begin to age and decay, they can also become public safety hazards due to potential failure, injury to the public, and other unsafe conditions.
American Rivers is expanding the success of its National Dam Removal Program to the Central Region to help remove unsafe, outdated, and unnecessary dams, expand the miles of connected streams, improve public recreation and safety, and help re-establish aquatic wildlife habitat and populations. Through a combination of stream connectivity partnerships, knowledge and resource sharing, and on-the-ground project coordination, we are focused on expanding the network of dam removal experts working toward this common goal.
A History of Success & Vision for the Future
American Rivers has a long history of helping to build multi-partner coalitions of federal, state, and municipal agencies, local communities, non-profit organizations, and private citizens to enact positive, collaborative river conservation policies, programs, and projects across the Central Region. Some of the past partnership and coalition accomplishments include:
- Supporting the Endangered Species Act listings for the Piping Plover, Interior Least Tern, and Pallid Sturgeon.
- Advocating for the approval of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Missouri River Recovery Program with authority to acquire and restore over 160,000 acres of floodplain in NE, IA, KS, and MO
- Creation of the Water Protection Network in partnership with the National Wildlife Federation
- Advocating for strong river conservation funding and support in the 2007 Water Resources Development Act for the U.S. Army Corps’ Navigation and Ecosystem Sustainability Program (NESP) for the Upper Mississippi and Illinois Rivers
- Opposing federal projects that did not provide the best ecological impacts, or were not the fiscally responsible option, such as the Yazoo Backwater Project in MS
- Previously chairing the Nicollet Island Coalition for the Mississippi River
- Holding a position on the Steering Committee of One Mississippi, to expand public and private conservation efforts
- Ongoing engagement with the U.S. Army Corps on reach planning, project identification, and program efficiency within both NESP and the Upper Mississippi River Restoration Program.
- Ongoing expansion of on-the-ground partnerships and projects to increase the pace and scale of floodplain restoration, clean water solutions, and stream connectivity
As we look to the future, American Rivers will remain dedicated to tracking both federal and state policies that impact the health of our rivers and will actively work to expand its conservation network of government, non-profit, community, and private citizen partners. We will continue to collaborate with others in the world of river conservation to find solutions and opportunities to restore floodplains, improve water quality, and expand aquatic passage.
