Number: 2016-12
WHEREAS, the Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge from the Minnesota-Iowa border upstream along the Mississippi River to Reads Landing, Minnesota has recorded 305 species of birds, including 29 shorebird species and 33 warbler species, including the rare Prothonotary Warbler; and
WHEREAS, the Upper Mississippi River Basin is home to Lake Pepin, a globally significant bird area, where the highest concentration of migrating Common Mergansers in the world occurs in November with counts of 20,000 to 70,000 each year; and
WHEREAS, Lake Pepin’s water quality is impaired and habitat has degraded as a result of sedimentation and turbidity; and
WHEREAS, the Minnesota Conservation Federation supports efforts of the Lake Pepin Legacy Alliance and Audubon Minnesota to restore habitat and water quality at the head of Lake Pepin; and
WHEREAS, a restoration project at the head of Lake Pepin will be considered a “new start” in 2016 under the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Section 204 program, which offers funding for ecosystem projects that provide beneficial use of dredged material; and
WHEREAS, the Upper Mississippi River Restoration (UMRR) program has been the typical source of funding for ecosystem restoration projects in the Upper Mississippi River.
WHEREAS, the Section 204 program and the Upper Mississippi River Restoration program both require participation of a non-federal sponsor and the signing of a Project Partnership Agreement (PPA) before an ecosystem restoration project may proceed; and
WHEREAS, vital fish and wildlife habitat, including extensive coastal wetlands, floodplain wetlands, backwater habitats, and diverse river habitats have been lost or degraded throughout the Mississippi River Basin and across the country; and
WHEREAS, the Mississippi River Delta in Louisiana is experiencing land loss at a staggering rate, necessitating urgent, large-scale restoration efforts to maintain the benefits the delta provides to wildlife and people; and
WHEREAS, ecosystem restoration projects to reverse such losses carried out under Army Corps of Engineers authorities also require participation of a non-federal partner and the execution of a Project Partnership Agreement; and
WHEREAS, it has become increasingly difficult for non-federal partners to enter into Project Partnership Agreements due to restrictive requirements imposed by the Army Corps of Engineers, including requirements related to indemnifying the Army Corps of Engineers, perpetual operations and maintenance, and crediting the value of donated goods and services to the cost-share provided by the non-federal partner; and
WHEREAS, these restrictions are undermining ecosystem restoration efforts nationwide by preventing non-federal partners, including non-profit organizations, from entering into the Project Partnership Agreements that are a prerequisite to construction of federal ecosystem restoration projects; and
WHEREAS, the Upper Mississippi River Basin Association (UMRBA) has provided recommendations to the U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works and the U.S. House of Representative Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure for modifying Project Partnership Agreements to facilitate the participation of non-federal partners; and
WHEREAS, the UMRBA suggested that these modifications, which would resolve the cost share and Project Partnership Agreement issues for projects on the Upper Mississippi River, be included in the 2016 Water Resources Development Act (WRDA); and
WHEREAS, passage of the UMRBA’s suggested modifications in the 2016 WRDA would allow greater access to funding for ecosystem restoration projects on the Mississippi River, including in Lake Pepin, and throughout the country.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the National Wildlife Federation, in its Annual Meeting assembled June 16-18, 2016 in Estes Park, Colorado, supports modifications to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Project Partnership Agreements for ecosystem restoration projects on the Upper Mississippi River, including those recommended by the UMRBA, that would facilitate the ability of non-federal partners to enter into such agreements; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the National Wildlife Federation calls upon the Army Corps of Engineers and Congress to help advance critical restoration efforts across the country by facilitating the ability of non-federal partners to enter into Project Partnership Agreements for ecosystem restoration projects; and
BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED that the National Wildlife Federation calls upon the Army Corps of Engineers and Congress to prioritize and advance federally funded ecosystem restoration projects across the country, including critically needed restoration to the Upper Mississippi River ecosystem and the Mississippi River Delta.