We have worked closely with the states involved to enable their project to proceed while protecting the wildlife values and resources of the St. Croix River, said U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Regional Director Bill Hartwig.
The Opinion was prepared as part of the consultation procedures that are required under the Federal Endangered Species Act to determine whether major construction by, or directed by, a Federal agency would adversely affect listed or proposed species. In the past five years, this is the seventh biological opinion prepared by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) for a project in Minnesota and is the first jeopardy opinion. In Wisconsin, there have also been seven opinions issued in the past five years, one of those was a jeopardy opinion. No projects have been stopped by jeopardy opinions, however, measures were taken to allow projects to continue while minimizing impacts to threatened and endangered species.
The Service opinion further states that harm to the endangered mussels would be primarily due to construction barges inadvertently bringing zebra mussels into the St. Croix River. To allow the project to move forward while avoiding the likelihood of jeopardizing the existence of those species, the Minnesota Department of Transportation and the Federal Highway Administration agreed to require rigorous decontamination of construction barges to ensure that zebra mussels are not brought into the St. Croix River.
The Minnesota Department of Transportation plans to open construction bids for the project November 22, 1996, and award the construction contract in December. Construction of the bridge is tentatively schedule to begin in the Spring of 1997.
The Higgins eye pearly mussel is found in the Mississippi River from Minnesota to southern Iowa. It is also in the Wisconsin and St. Croix Rivers. Unfortunately, all the waters that support Higgins eye have been contaminated by zebra mussels, except for the St. Croix River. The winged mapleleaf mussel is even more critically endangered; it is found only in the St. Croix River.
Zebra mussel infestation can cause large-scale die-offs of native mussels. Zebra mussels have caused the elimination of native mussels in Lake Huron and portions of the Detroit River. No one yet knows the degree of impact that zebra mussels will have on native species in the Mississippi River, but large numbers of zebra mussels encrusted most of the native mussels that were pulled from the Mississippi River near Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin, during a recent mussel survey. Experts expect that zebra mussel infestation will cause, at a minimum, increased mortality at most of the mussel beds in the upper Mississippi River. Experts also predict that neither the Higgins eye nor the winged mapleleaf would survive over time if the St. Croix River becomes contaminated with zebra mussels.
Nick Rowse, Service biologist for the project, said, The St. Croix River watershed is the premier mussel watershed of the Upper Mississippi River, and one of the premier mussel watersheds of the world. The river is considered a sanctuary containing the very best preserved pre-settlement (least human-impacted) aquatic community in the Upper Mississippi drainage. Prevention of zebra mussel contamination will not only protect the two endangered mussel species but will also protect the rich diversity of aquatic life that is found in the St. Croix River.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is the principal Federal agency responsible for conserving, protecting and enhancing fish, wildlife and plants and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people. The Service manages the 93-million-acre National Wildlife Refuge System which encompasses more than 530 national wildlife refuges, thousands of small wetlands and other special management areas. It also operates 66 national fish hatcheries, 64 fishery resource offices and 78 ecological services field stations. The agency enforces Federal wildlife laws, administers the Endangered Species Act, manages migratory bird populations, restores nationally significant fisheries, conserves and restores wildlife habitat such as wetlands, and helps foreign governments with their conservation efforts. It also oversees the Federal Aid program that distributes hundreds of millions of dollars in excise taxes on fishing and hunting equipment to state fish and wildlife agencies. For further information about the programs and activities of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in the Great Lakes-Big Rivers Region, please visit our home page at: http://midwest.fws.gov
