The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service today published a proposed rule in the Federal Register to implement general recreation actions in the approved Comprehensive Conservation Plan (CCP) for the 240,000-acre Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge.
The public has 60 days to comment on the new regulations. Comments must be received by Dec. 17, 2007. The new rules are scheduled to take effect in spring 2008 at the start of the river recreation season.
Refuge Manager Don Hultman said the biggest change in the new rules is the establishment of four electric motor only areas totaling 1,630 acres (one area of 222 acres already exists) and eight new seasonal (March 16 – October 31) slow, no-wake areas totaling 9,370 acres. Airboats and hovercraft will not be allowed in slow, no-wake areas during the effective dates.
Collectively, these areas account for eight percent of the estimated 140,000 acres of surface waters of the refuge. The remaining 92 percent of waters will remain open to all watercraft without restriction.
“It’s important for people to realize that the electric motor areas and slow, no wake areas remain open to all uses, including hunting and fishing. Only the means of access changes,” Hultman said.
Hultman said these areas are designed to help limit disturbance to habitat, fish, and wildlife in sensitive backwater areas, and balance the needs of the refuge’s 3.7 million annual visitors who enjoy the refuge in a variety of ways.
Other regulations stemming from the CCP include a ban of glass food and beverage containers on beach areas and other lands of the refuge; clarifying the definition and requirements for camping and campsite sanitation; and clarifying the rules for watercraft mooring, firearms, vegetation cutting and use, and domestic animals.
“Most of these regulations have been in effect for years as described in brochures and on refuge signs. This new rule formalizes the regulations, and fine-tunes and modernizes the language for clarity, ease of enforcement, and consistency with sound wildlife and recreation management,” Hultman said.
The entire proposed rule, along with fact sheets and links to maps and the CCP, is available at http://www.fws.gov/midwest/UpperMississippiRiver/, or you may call (507) 452-4232 and request a copy.
Comments on the proposed rule must be received by December 17, 2007, and can be made via e-mail to: uppermississippiriver@fws.gov. Please include “Attn: Recreation Regs” and your full name and mailing address in your e-mail message.
Comments may also be sent by mail to: Refuge Manager, Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge, 51 East Fourth Street, Room 101, Winona, Minnesota 55987.
The refuge CCP was approved in October 2006 following four years of effort, including 46 public meetings and workshops attended by 4,500 persons. Final rules for hunting and fishing changes stemming from the CCP were published in early September.
In addition to being the most visited refuge in the country, the “Upper Miss” Refuge has the added complexity of a major navigation system, including 11 locks and dams, within its boundary. It is also a world-class fish and wildlife area which harbors 306 species of birds; 119 species of fish; more than 160 active bald eagle nests; thousands of heron and egret nests; spectacular concentrations of canvasback ducks, tundra swans, and white pelicans; and several threatened or endangered species.
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 97-million-acre National Wildlife Refuge System, which encompasses 547 national wildlife refuges, thousands of small wetlands and other special management areas. It also operates 69 national fish hatcheries, 64 fishery resources offices and 81 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 and Native American tribal governments with their conservation efforts. It also oversees the Federal Assistance program, which distributes hundreds of millions of dollars in excise taxes on fishing and hunting equipment to state fish and wildlife agencies.
