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rocks, Cretaceous shale and sandstone, and Pleis- tocene glacial deposits for 286 k:m in a southeast- erly direction. At Mankato, Minnesota (rkm 178), the river makes an abrupt turn to the northeast to the confluence with the Mississippi River. Here, the channel is cut through lower Paleozoic sand- stone, shale, dolomite and limestone, and overly- ing glacial deposits. A unique feature of the watershed is the Coteau des Prairie in the southwest sector of the basin. The Coteau is a plateau that rests on the remains of an ancient mountain range. This plateau is 150-250 m higher than the otherwise flat to gently rolling prairie. The original vegetation in the western two- thirds of the basin was tallgrass prairie and prairie wetlands. The eastern third of the basin was cov- ered with hardwood forests~ Floodplains of the Minnesota River and the lower reaches of the tributaries were forested with cottonwood, willow, and silver maple. Existing Conditions Today, the Minnesota River and its watershed are in some ways similar to the area in presettle- ment days and in other ways very different. The lower 384 k:m of the river are free from major modifications and are free-flowing. Atrkm 408 and 413 there were small waterfalls that had been dammed for hydroelectric generation. The natural dams created by sediment deposition at Big Stone, Marsh, and Lac Qui Parle lakes were further devel- oped with larger structures. Land use in the basin has changed to predomi- nately agricultural and urban use. Wetlands have been drained by installing drain tiles and ditches, and streams have been channelized and dammed. Today, the Minnesota River has a serious nega- tive effect on water quality in the Mississippi River. . State and federal water quality standards for turbidity, unionized ammonia, and dissolved oxygen are frequently violated in the lower Minne- sota River. These violations are probably due in large part to nonpoint pollution ~urces. Restoration Planning Comprehensive planning for the restoration of the river began in 1989 with the initiation of the Minnesota River Assessment Program (MRAP). Before 1989, data collection, and resource man- CHRISTOPHER M. KAVANAUGH 7 agement activities and responsibilities were frag- mented and often contradictory. The mission of the MRAP is to assess water quality, water quan- tity, sediment chemistry, aquatic communities, and current land uses in the Minnesota River basin. One objective of the project is to develop specific water quality goals and then to implement programs and Best Management Practices (BMP's) throughout the basin to achieve those goals. The MRAP is a cooperative project funded pri- marily by the Minnesota State Legislature through the Legislative Commission on Minne- sota Resources. Additional funding has come from the following cooperators: U.S. Geological Survey, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, U.S. Soil Conservation Service, Minnesota Pollution Con- trol Agency, Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, Minnesota Board of Water and Soil Resources, Minnesota Extension Service, Mankato State University, Gustavus Adolphus College, St. Olaf College, University of Minnesota, University of Minnesota-Duluth Natural Re- sources Research Institute, Soil and Water Con- servation Districts, Metropolitan Waste Control Commission, Metropolitan Council, and several joint powers, boards, and other local units of gov- ernment (water management organizations, wa- tershed districts). The structural organization of the MRAP con- sists of a steering committee that coordinates and directs the activities of four subcommittees. Each of the four subcommittees is further divided into specific components. The MRAP is in its fourth and final year of assessment. Results presented in this paper are preliminary, as data are still being collected and analyzed. The final project report will include a synthesis of all components presented in a Geo- graphical Information System (GIS) database with analysis and recommendations. Restoration efforts will be coordinated by the Minnesota River Implementation Program (MRIP). The Minnesota River Implementation Program is composed of a Citizens Advisory Com.- mittee and a Technical Advisory Committee; each is made up of a diverse membership, representing the entire basin and a multitude of interests. This report is a compilation of progress reports submitted by principal investigators of each of the study components (Table 1).