Ducks and the North American Wetlands Conservation Act

 
 Migrating ducks must be able to find high quality food every 50 to 70 miles along their migration route. For that they must be able to find wetlands every 50 to 70 miles along their flyways. They can be in public wildlife refuges or in private waterfowl clubs. As I noted in an earlier post [...]

Ecosystems as Infrastructure–The Stimulus Bill

I am so glad to find I am wrong. There is money in the stimulus bill for the Upper Mississippi Navigation and Ecosystem Sustainability Program, $8,604,000 to be exact.
The stimulus bill will fund first phases of construction of new 1,200-foot locks on the first five dams north of St. Louis. It will implement small-scale navigation aids, [...]

Illinois Wetlands Short on Ducks in Fall 2008

 
Four million ducks fly over the Confluence of the Mississippi and Illinois Rivers, and the Confluence of the  Mississippi and Missouri Rivers a few miles downstream.
There are plenty of geese in Illinois this fall and winter, but the geese will make do with a golf course. Ducks need wetlands and Illinois wetlands were short on [...]

Back to the Atchafalaya

 
You may have seen this image a few weeks ago, before I got diverted by something else. 
Then, I noted that about a third of the Mississippi is diverted to the Atchafalaya to keep the latter from taking over the former. And, I noted that that is a source of opportunity for the Louisiana Coast.
 
 
The Atchafalaya [...]

A Meandering River

 
To see how a river meanders, go to the headwaters of the Mississippi at Itasca State Park. This oxbow is a miniature of an oxbow on the Lower Mississippi. Here the scale is observable. In the image above the inside bends are to the right and left.
A meandering river shaves sediment from the inside of [...]

Straight Canals and Meandering Bayous

 
Water doesn’t run in a straight line, not even on your windshield.  
Through coarse sediment, sand and gravel it can run in a braided pattern, but through soft, fine alluvial soil it runs in a meandering pattern. 
Tim Carruthers made this aerial of a navigation canal cutting through the meandering bayous in the Louisiana marshes. I [...]

Infrastructure–The Stimulus Bill

 
The Corps will receive $4.6 billion nationwide, including $2 billion for waterways construction of which $500 million will go to repair locks and dams and $200 million for dam safety.
Only projects that have received previous funding are eligible for stimulus funds. The Corps lay out priorities and accelerate existing contracts or fund projects that can [...]

Castor River Glade

 
The soil on the Castor River Glade is thin and rapidly drained and the rocks exposed. It almost desert-like and it supports drought-tolerant trees, grasses, sedges, and wildflowers.
At least three different moses and one lichen carpet the pink granite bluff on which a cedar has taken root in a crevice in in the rock.
The Caster [...]

Castor River Shut-ins

 
The Castor River Shut-ins are on the border of Bollinger and Madison Counties, Missouri. The shut-ins are a natural area within the Amidon Conservation Area. 
 
 I call this a side channel. It is as interesting as the main channel, quite and laying above the rapids.
 
 

A Complete History of the Old River Control Structure and the Flood of 1973

For those who are curious about the Old River Control Structure, the relationship between the Atchafalaya and the  Mississippi, and the Flood of 1973, read John McPhee’s wonderful article, “Atchafalaya.”