Upper Mississippi floodplain becomes wetland of international importance

Environment News Service: Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar has designated portions of the Upper Mississippi River, including the largest national wildlife refuge in the Midwest, as a Wetland of International Importance under the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands. The designation includes about 470 square miles of federal and state lands and waters of the Upper Mississippi River floodplain from near Wabasha, Minnesota to north of Rock Island, Illinois.

It includes all of the 375 square mile Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge headquartered in Winona, Minnesota and the adjacent 10 square mile Trempealeau National Wildlife Refuge in Wisconsin. In making the announcement, Secretary Salazar said, "The ecological, social, and economic values of the Upper Mississippi River make it one of the crown jewels of this nation's wetlands.

"This marks the 27th U.S. wetland designated under the Convention on Wetlands," said the secretary. "It’s certainly fitting that this area has now officially received international recognition." The designation proposal was endorsed by the Departments of Natural Resources of Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa, Illinois, and Missouri; the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers; and seven members of Congress from the respective states….

The source of the Mississippi River, in Lake Itasca, Minnesota, shot by Christine Kar, Wikimedia Commons, under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.2