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<br />2. Provide for protection of wetlands and oxbows in the river corridor.
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<br />3. Promote river recreation and develop infrastructure to support recreation.
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<br />4. Protect sensitive privately-owned lands that require protection greater than zoning.
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<br />5. Publish an inventory of the natural, cultural, scenic, scientific and recreational values of the fust 400
<br />miles of the Mississippi River.
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<br />The fIfth item -- publication of the values inventory is the fU'St step that the MHB has undertaken in completion
<br />of this management plan (other than the implementation, administration, update and enforcement of its land use
<br />regulation program). Collecting information about the natural, cultural, scenic, scientific and recreational values
<br />was the first step in publishing this values inventory. Information was collected regarding threatened, rare and
<br />endangered species, and special land foons and vegetation communities, from the Minnesota Natural Heritage
<br />Program. The state archaeologist provided cultural sites in the river corridor. State and federal managers provided
<br />information about recreational resources. Citizens convened by the MHB provided information about scenic
<br />opportunities. Governmental and academic libraries were queried for research conducted in the region. As a result.
<br />a bibliography of information relating to the natural, cultural, scenic, scientific and recreational values was
<br />produced by the MHB.
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<br />The next step was publication of a systematic guide to these values. For this publication, the fust 400 miles of
<br />the Mississippi River was divided into nine sections, 30 to 60 miles in length. These sections have certain
<br />internal consistencies -- that is, the sections lie between major landmarks such as towns or large lakes. Each
<br />section is roughly similar in terms of vegetation, land forms and land use. Each section was then defined,
<br />inventoried and ranked for the presence of the natural, cultural, scenic, scientific and recreational values in the
<br />inventory.
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<br />For example, the first stretch is from the Mississippi River's outlet at Lake Itasca to the city of Bemidji, a 62-
<br />mile stretch. A diversity of vegetation communities can be found in this stretch, including sedge meadows,
<br />spruce bogs and upland mixed conifer forests. The origins of the topography during the glacial era is evident in
<br />the valleys cuts by streams, outwash plains where lake lakes lie and morainal hills. In the inventory
<br />publication, the typical plants and animals of the stretch will be represented in a four-color map.
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<br />A short essay will accompany the map, discussing how the stretch ranks for the five values, threats to the river
<br />and challenges for river stewards. Aerial photos of each river stretch will examined and ranked for natural,
<br />cultural, scenic, scientific and recreational values. River corridor was evaluated in two or four mile pieces. The
<br />rankings were averaged for each river stretch (there were 10 to 15 pieces for each of the nine stretches).
<br />Rankings were established to provide directives to river managers. Therefore, each value had a critical element
<br />that could be manipulated by river managers, operating at the local government level. The river was evaluated
<br />neutrally, without respect for ownership. However, as the following scale indicates, values lying on public land
<br />may receive a lesser ranking as the role of local government in preserving that values is less critical.
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<br />Rankings were made based on the appearance of the shoreline from the water. The critical area is considered to be
<br />the shorelines. The following scale was developed to evaluate its river stretch for natural, cultural, scenic,
<br />scientific and recreational values:
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<br />Natural Values: The goal is to understand and protect the natural diversity, including the typical and unique
<br />landscapes, of the Mississippi Headwaters region. The critical variable that can be controlled by river managers
<br />is the amount of disturbed shoreline. Therefore,
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<br />1 = shoreline more than 75 percent disturbed, with most of the original vegetation removed and the land
<br />developed for residence, transportation, municipal, industry. The river channel itself would be altered by
<br />human action.
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<br />2 = shoreline is less than 50 percent vegetated; the corridor is generally developed and the river channel
<br />itself may be altered.
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<br />3 = shoreline about 50 percent vegetated; the corridor shows development for residences, farms or
<br />forestry; the river channel is intact.
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<br />Rivers Without Boundaries 1994
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