Contacts

Dick Steinbach, 217/224-8580

 U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Releases Draft Comprehensive Conservation Plan for Mark Twain National Wildlife Refuge Complex

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is seeking public input on a draft plan that will help guide management of the Mark Twain National Wildlife Refuge in Illinois, Missouri, and Iowa. The draft Comprehensive Conservation Plan and Environmental Assessment for the Mark Twain National Wildlife Refuge Complex is available for public review, and comments will be accepted through September 30, 2003. In addition, the Service will host a series of public open houses in August and September to further encourage public involvement in the planning process for the Mark Twain Complex.

The draft plan outlines the goals and objectives for managing the five national wildlife refuges that make up the Mark Twain Refuge Complex over the next 15 years. The complex includes Port Louisa NWR, Great River NWR, Two Rivers NWR, Clarence Cannon NWR, and Middle Mississippi NWR. Among the topics addressed in the draft plan are public use, habitat management and wildlife management.

While the plan establishes goals, Refuge Complex Manager Dick Steinbach said that it also acknowledges that uncertainty part of the challenge of managing land along the Mississippi River.

“The Mississippi River does not lend itself to long range planning, but by developing a vision for the refuge complex and identifying steps for achieving that vision, this plan lets our neighbors, local communities, and people interested in the future of the refuges know what we are working toward,” Steinbach said. “We know the river might dictate a few changes in how we go about achieving that vision.”

The plan describes a 27,659-acre boundary expansion proposal. Much of the land within the proposed boundary expansion is in the area of the Middle Mississippi River reach of the Upper Mississippi River, where there is presently little public land. Acquisition would occur over several years, and all acquisition would be from willing sellers only.
Involving other people and agencies has been an important part of the planning process. The draft plan was prepared with the input from other federal agencies, state agencies, non-government organizations and individuals.

Summaries of the draft plan have been mailed to everyone on the refuge complex’s CCP mailing list. Full copies of the plan are available at area libraries and on the Service’s web site for the planning project, which is http://midwest.fws.gov/planning/marktwaintop.htm

Copies are also available by calling the refuge complex at 217/224-8580.
Public review of the draft CCP begins August 1, 2003. Comments are welcome anytime throughout the planning process, but to be considered as the final CCP is prepared, comments must be received by September 30, 2003. Comments can be submitted electronically (http://midwest.fws.gov/planning/marktwaintop.htm) or can be mailed to the Service’s Regional Office at:

U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
Branch of Conservation Planning
Attention: Mark Twain NWR Complex CCP
BHW Federal Building
1 Federal Drive
Ft. Snelling, MN 55111

Several open house style meetings have been scheduled to provide an opportunity to talk to refuge complex staff about the draft plan. Meetings are scheduled as follows:
August 20: 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the Great River/Clarence Cannon NWR Headquarters in Annada, Missouri.

August 21: 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the Holiday Inn in Quincy, Illinois.
August 26: 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the Briggs Center in Wapello, Iowa.
August 27: 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the Keithsburg City Hall in Keithsburg, Illinois.
September 4: 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the Randolph County Courthouse in Chester, Illinois.
September 8: 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the Two Rivers NWR Headquarters in Brussels, Illinois.

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 95-million-acre National Wildlife Refuge System, which encompasses 540 national wildlife refuges, thousands of small wetlands and other special management areas. It also operates 69 national fish hatcheries, 64 fishery resource 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 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.

-FWS-

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