The Lower St. Louis River Habitat Plan - Great Lakes Commission

The LowerSt. Louis RiverHabitat PlanA summary for citizensThe Blatnic Bridge, also known as the “High Bridge,” spans the St. Louis Riverbetween Connors Point in Wisconsin and Rice’s Point in Minnesota.Vision for the Lower St. Louis Riveris a thriving human communityconnected to the aquatic andterrestrial ecosystems of the river.

Welcome to the Lower St. Louis RiverMap showing project area ofthe Lower St. Louis RiverHabitat Plan.Flowing from its headwaters near the Mesabi IronRange to its mouth at the Duluth-SuperiorHarbor, the St. Louis River is the major U.S.tributary to Lake Superior, which is the largest anddeepest of the Great Lakes and contains 10% of theworld’s fresh surface water.The Lower St. Louis River, covering a distance ofapproximately 21 river miles from Fond du Lac to itsoutlet at Lake Superior, is a freshwater estuary, createdwhen the level of LakeSuperior rose following theretreat of the glaciers. Therising waters graduallydrowned the mouth of theSt. Louis River along withits lower tributaries. In thisarea the river channel marksthe boundary betweenMinnesota and Wisconsinand separates the Twin Portsof Duluth, Minnesota, andSuperior, Wisconsin.Protected from the waves ofLake Superior by abaymouth sand bar (known locally as Minnesota Pointand Wisconsin Point), portions of the estuary also serveas the Duluth-Superior Harbor, largest harbor on all theGreat Lakes.After more than 150 years of commercial andindustrial activity on and along the shore of the LowerSt. Louis River, ecological conditions vary greatly. Theupper portion of the estuary still retains relativelyundisturbed high quality ecological areas, while sectionsof the lower portion of the estuary and harbor have beendredged and modified since the mid-1800s toaccommodate shipping traffic, commerce, and industrialneeds.Despite this activity, the estuary as a whole, includingmodified as well as undisturbed areas, provides habitatfor a rich variety of fish, birds, aquatic invertebrates, andother wildlife.2 Lower St. Louis River Habitat Plan

An Ecosystem of Global SignificanceThe Lower St. LouisRiver’s diverseecosystems aresignificant both regionally andglobally. The uniquecombination of habitats foundwithin the Lower St. LouisRiver (estuarine wetlands andopen water areas, the baymouthbar complex of Wisconsin andMinnesota Points, and thesurrounding upland forests) isvery unusual, not only withinLake Superior, but also within the Great Lakes regionand even the world. This concentration of such diversehabitats, along with its location on the western end ofLake Superior, makes the estuary an important breedingarea for many species as well as a critical stopover fornumerous migratory species.PAT COLLINSESTUARINE WETLANDS:Great Lakes wetland systems areunique, and the St. Louis Riverwetlands are the largest suchsystem on the Lake Superiorshore, representing a significantsource of plant and animaldiversity and productivity for theentire Lake Superior ecosystem.ERIC EPSTEINESTUARINE OPEN WATERHABITATS: The estuary and itstributaries have a wide variety ofaquatic habitats that support alarge and diverse assemblage ofnative fish and mussel species.LYNELLE HANSONBAYMOUTH BAR COMPLEX: Minnesota Pointand Wisconsin Point form an unusual andcomplex baymouth bar system; similar systemsare known from only two other locations inthe Great Lakes. Not surprisingly, the plantcommunities supported by these baymouthbars exist only in the Great Lakes region.Lower St. Louis River Habitat Plan 3

UPLAND FOREST COMMUNITIES:The forests surrounding theestuary are part of the transitionzone between boreal forest,northern hardwoods forest, andGreat Lakes pine forest. TheGreat Lakes white and red pineforests are found nowhere else inthe world, and this particularconvergence of forest types,with its unique Great Lakeselement, is significant.NANCY NELSONDAVID NICHOLSSMALL TRIBUTARY SYSTEMS:The small tributary systemsinclude the many streams thatflow into the Lower St. LouisRiver, providing habitat for awide variety of the native fishfound in the estuary.The vision for the Lower St. Louis River is athriving human community connected to the aquaticand terrestrial ecosystems of the river. The riverecosystems are diverse, productive, and healthy, withnatural processes (such as hydrologic regimes,biological productivity, and nutrient cycling)operating within the natural range of variation.The diversity of plants and animals and thecomposition of natural communities present at thetime of European settlement are reflected in thesustainable ecosystems of today.4 Lower St. Louis River Habitat Plan

What is the Habitat Plan?The Habitat Plan for the Lower St. Louis Riveris intended to serve as a dynamic, coordinated,and comprehensive guide for all those whocare, decision-makers, and resource managers in bothMinnesota and Wisconsin as they work towardmaintaining a healthy river ecosystem that is connectedto a thriving human community.Reaching this goal will involve themanagement, enhancement, creation,restoration, and reclamation of amixture of habitats.It is not the intent of this HabitatPlan to recommend the restorationof the estuary and its surroundingsto a presettlement condition.Rather, by setting conservationgoals that will achieve a mix ofecological and social benefits, theHabitat Plan presents a new visionof the St. Louis River ecosystemtoward which communities,organizations, and individualscan work in cooperation andpartnership.By highlighting theinterconnections between thehuman community and the riverecosystem, the Habitat Plan can also help remind usthat even small, seemingly isolated human actions canbecome cumulative impacts that result in unexpectedand unintended problems for the ecosystem.Because the Twin Ports human community is anintegral part of the river ecosystem, the 260,000 acreHabitat Plan project area includes the city of Superiorand much of Duluth along with numerous ecologicallysignificant areas that remain within the urban landscapesurrounding the estuary.Lower St. Louis River Habitat Plan 5

“Habitat” is a broad termmeaning the environmentwhere an organism lives.This environment may bedescribed by physical orbiological characteristics, ora combination of both. Forexample, the “LargeRiverine Reach” is a habitatwithin the river that isdefined by its physicalcharacteristics—it has highwater velocity, a riffle-poolrunstructure, and does notoften experience the effectsof the changing water levelsof Lake Superior. The“spruce-fir forest” habitat isdefined primarily by itsbiological characteristics—spruce and fir are thedominant tree speciesfound in the habitat. An“emergent marsh” suggestssomething about both itsphysical and biologicalcharacteristics—itis dominated by plantspecies such as cattails,bulrushes, and otheremergent vegetation, and itis located in a shallowwater setting. An“ecosystem”includes manyhabitats, so it refers to theinteractions among manydifferent living things andtheir physical environments.The loss or impairmentof one habitat cancause impacts to anentire ecosystem.Guiding PrinciplesThe Habitat Plan for the Lower St. Louis River isguided by the following principles:• Promote stewardship of the resource by localresidents, users of the resource, and thoseconcerned with it.• Recognize that what is to be managed is not theenvironment but the actions of humans operatingwithin the environment.• Protect, enhance, and restore ecological functionsand maximize biodiversity without seeking torestore the estuary to its presettlement condition.• Conduct the planning process within the contextof similar planning efforts for the St. Louis Riverwatershed (including the Nemadji Riverwatershed), the Lake Superior Basin, andthe Great Lakes.PAT COLLINS6 Lower St. Louis River Habitat Plan

What Are Conservation Targets?Conservation targets are the habitats, plantcommunities, and specific animal andplant species that are the focus formanagement activities.The conservation targets identified for the LowerSt. Louis River can be broadly grouped into five generalcategories: estuarine wetlands, estuarine open waterhabitats, baymouth bar communities, upland forestcommunities, and small tributary systems. Theseconservation targets include some habitats where humanactivities have resulted in highly modified plantcommunities as well as some habitats that areconsidered to be relatively “natural” or unalteredby human activities.PAT COLLINSLYNELLE HANSONThe estuarine wetlands of theSt. Louis River form one of thelargest complexes of estuarinewetlands found in the LakeSuperior Basin; only the BadRiver-Kakagon Sloughs ofWisconsin are comparable.Although there are manydifferent types of wetland,sheltered bays have beenidentified as the most significantwetland type in the estuary.Located along the Minnesota andWisconsin shorelines betweenNekuk Island and Stryker Bay,many of the sheltered bays support the highestdiversity of plant and animal species of any habitattype in the estuary. Sheltered bays provide spawningareas for many species of fish and support a highdiversity and abundance of invertebrates. Theextensive emergent wetlands in the sheltered baysare very important for waterfowl and wading birds.Wild rice, an aquatic plant of significant ecologicaland native cultural importance, grows in somesheltered bays. North Bay, located on theMinnesota shoreline east of Fond du Lac, is one ofthe finest remaining sheltered bays on the river.Lower St. Louis River Habitat Plan 7

A wide variety of estuarine openwater habitat exists in the LowerSt. Louis River between the Fonddu Lac dam and Lake Superior.Some areas are vegetated, others arenot. Some areas have fast-movingor deep water; other areas haveslow-moving shallow water.Industrial and commercial activitieshave heavily impacted some areas,while others are relativelyunaltered. Upstream areas provideprime spawning habitat forwalleye, lake sturgeon, and otherfish. Undredged river channels arerich in fish species, home to highnumbers of native mussels, and may be an importantwintering habitat for fish. Dredged channels are usedby some fish as wintering habitat and serve as animportant feeding area for fish-eating birds.The baymouth bars ofMinnesota Point andWisconsin Point are hometo a variety of plantcommunity types and alsoprovide important habitatfor many species of shorebirds. The older, morestable dunes sustainforests of old growthwhite and red pine as wellas a shrubby juniperlichencommunity.Embedded within the forest and shrubland communities are avariety of wetland types, including sedge marshes and alder thickets.Active dunes closer to the lakeshore are dominated by beachgrass.The varied plant communities of Minnesota and Wisconsin Pointsare found only in the Great Lakes region, and they form one of onlytwo examples of such plant communities around Lake Superior. Inaddition, no other freshwater estuary/baymouth bar systems arefound anywhere in the interior of North America.LYNELLE HANSONAMY TRANGER MARK STENSAAS8 Lower St. Louis River Habitat Plan

NANCY NELSON DENNIS PRATTThe upland forests surrounding the estuary includea unique mixture of boreal forest, northernhardwoods forest, and Great Lakes pine forest. Theyprovide habitat for a wide variety of nesting andmigrating birds as well as numerous mammals andamphibians.Forest vegetation also helps to slow downstormwater runoff and helps hold soil in place.Because the sediment, nutrients, and pollutantscarried by stormwater runoff from upland areasaffect the water quality of the estuary, the presenceof upland forests directly influences conservationtargets within the estuary.The tributary systems includesmaller streams that flow intothe Lower St. Louis River. Thesestreams, which travel throughlacustrine red clay deposits onthe Wisconsin side of the riverand over crystalline bedrock onthe Minnesota side of the river,provide habitat for many of thenative fish and birds found inthe estuary.Lower St. Louis River Habitat Plan 9

Challenges to the Conservation TargetsOver 230 native birdspecies have beendocumented in the LowerSt. Louis River andsurrounding areas. Theestuary is both animportant breeding areaand a critical migratorystopover location. Severalfactors make the LowerSt. Louis River animportant stopover site formigrating birds, includingthe abundance of food andshelter in the estuary (manymigrating birds avoid flyingover large bodies of water).In the spring, birdsmigrating north from acrossthe central United Statesencounter the south shore ofLake Superior and travelwestward until they reachthe estuary. In the fall, birdsmigrating south arechanneled along the westernedge of Lake Superiorthrough the estuary. Duringmigration, waterfowl,raptors, gulls, terns,shorebirds, and wadersare concentrated in arelatively small area.Some years, observershave reported seeing tensof thousands of birds.Many natural and human processes andevents can have a direct impact on thehealth of the conservation targets.• Water quality deteriorates when contaminantssuch as grease, oil, road salt, pesticides, fertilizers,animal droppings, and excess sediment are carriedinto the river by stormwater runoff. Thesepollutants can cause short-term die-offs as well aslonger-term health problems for fish, birds, andother animals.• Excess sediment, carried into the river bytributaries, accumulates in sheltered bays and otherestuarine habitats and slowly fills the wetlands anddestroys the vegetation that provides necessaryfood and shelter for many fish, insects, and birds.• Habitat loss occurs when land is converted toother uses, such as filling wetlands for roads,parking lots, and buildings.• Competition from undesirable exotic species,such as the zebra mussel or purple loosestrife,threatens the survival of native species and plantcommunities.• Exposure to contaminants left behind by previousindustrial and commercial practices in areas likeStryker Bay continues to impair the healthof many animals that live in the LowerSt. Louis River.10 Lower St. Louis River Habitat Plan

Conservation Targets of theLower St. Louis RiverConservation targets are the habitats, plant communities, and specific speciesthat guide conservation efforts. The following conservation targets wereidentified for the Lower St. Louis River.Estuarine AquaticHabitat TargetsLarge riverine reachUpper estuarine (undredged) river channelLower estuarine (dredged) river channelUpper estuary flatsSheltered baysClay-influenced river mouthsIndustrially-influenced baysLower estuary (industrial harbor) flatsIndustrial slipsClay-influenced bayClay-influenced tributariesBedrock-influenced tributariesEstuarine PlantCommunity TargetsGreat Lakes coastal wetland complexBaymouth BarCommunity TargetsBeachesBeachgrass dunesDune shrublandsInterdunal wetlandsDune pine forestsUpland ForestCommunity TargetsWhite pine-red pine forestNorthern conifer-hardwoods forest/Northern hardwoods forestSpruce-fir boreal forestOther Inland PlantCommunity TargetsEroding clay bluffsClay seepsConifer swampsHardwood swampsShrub swampsInland marshesWet meadowsFensCliffs and rock outcropsSpecies TargetsNative fish assemblageLake sturgeonNative mussel assemblageMigratory and breeding bird aggregationsPiping ploverCommon ternWild riceDUANE RAVER12 Lower St. Louis River Habitat Plan

What Can We Do?As stakeholders, there are a number of things we cando to help protect, maintain, enhance, and restorethe ecosystems of the Lower St. Louis River.Protect water quality by minimizing stormwater runoff,preventing erosion, and eliminating pollutants. Most stormsewers carry rainwater, along with its load of sediment andpollutants, directly into the St. Louis River or Lake Superior.To help protect water quality, you can:• Cover bare ground as quickly as possible withvegetation and mulch so the soil is not carried away bystormwater runoff.• Establish deep-rooted native plants on hillsides tohelp prevent soil from washing away.• Develop and implement remedial alternatives forareas of contaminated sediment and restore theaffected resources according to the appropriateconservation goal for the area.• Maintain buffers of native vegetation (not mowedgrass) along streams and rivers to reduce runoff andhold soil in place.• Don’t dump debris or garbage into ravines or creeks.The material may kill fish or block the stream andcause flooding.• Encourage the protection of remaining high qualityhabitat areas through effective long-term landprotection programs and guidelines (see map onpages 16-17).• Support efforts to control the spread of undesirableinvasive species and to eliminate existing populationsof undesirable invasive species (for example, zebramussels) in the Lower St. Louis River. If you are aboater, angler, water-skier, scuba-diver, sailor, orcanoeist, follow recommended procedures to helpprevent the transport of these species.Lower St. Louis River Habitat Plan 13

What Can We Do?• Encourage the restoration of modified sites that stillprovide important ecological functions. Restoration canbe appropriate in a wide variety of sites that vary fromslightly to highly disturbed.• Encourage the modification of local regulationsrelated to zoning, shoreland development,stormwater management, and erosion control. Theseregulations can be modified to ensure appropriate landuses that protect ecosystems by preventing the increasein stream flow rates, runoff volumes, erosion, andsedimentation that often result from inappropriate landuse patterns.• Support improved management of recreational trailsand increased regulation of recreational motorizedvehicles with the goal of controlling erosion andminimizing impacts on public and private land andwater resources.• Keep leaves, yard clippings, trash, and soapy waterout of street gutters, storm drains, and ditches.Don’t sweep or rake yard debris into the street; instead,collect it and compost it or use it to fill low spots.• Minimize impervious surface (rooftops, driveways,roads) on your property.• Capture rainwater in a rain barrel or rain garden tohelp minimize stormwater runoff and increase theamount of water that soaks into the ground.14 Lower St. Louis River Habitat Plan

Sweep up sand from sidewalks and driveways to keep itfrom getting into storm drains, where it could end upin our river and streams.LYNELLE HANSONSet up a rain barrel to capture water and slowthe flow from your yard. Fast moving waterfrom your yard carries soil and other pollutantsinto the river.DIANE SODEN-GROVELYNELLE HANSONInstall pervious surface drivewaysthat allow polluted water to soakinto the soil to filter it before itreaches streams and the lake. Thisalso reduces the volume of runoffduring storms.Lower St. Louis River Habitat Plan 15

Highest Quality Habitat Areas in theLower St. Louis River EstuaryDuluth,MinnesotaClough Island(Wisconsin)Magney-Snively Forest(Minnesota)Sheltered bays betweenthe Fond du Lac dam andSpirit LakeOliver MarshAreas surroundingPokegama Bay and otherclay-influenced bays(Wisconsin)St. Louis River and Red River Streambank Stabilization Area (Wisconsin)16 Lower St. Louis River Habitat Plan

Publicly owned recreation areas onMinnesota Point and Wisconsin PointPublicly owned beach front on MinnesotaPoint and Wisconsin PointSuperior,WisconsinPine forests of Minnesota Pointand Wisconsin PointAllouez BayNote: The St. Louis River Citizens Action Committeeguided the preparation of this Habitat Plan and willcontinue to work with all stakeholders to protect theconservation targets of the Lower St. Louis River.Lower St. Louis River Habitat Plan 17

Historical Development of theLower St. Louis RiverPrior to the 1850s, the Lower St. Louis River washome to a small population of Lake SuperiorChippewa and served as an important centerfor the European fur trade. Once the LaPointe Treatywith the Chippewa was signed in 1854, the area beganto change rapidly as thousands of European immigrantsarrived.When first charted by William Hearding in 1861, theLower St. Louis River was relatively shallow and wasbordered by a varietyof wetlands and forestcommunities.According toHearding’s 1861 chartof the estuary, the areaupstream of Rice’sPoint/ Connors Pointwas less than 15 feetdeep. Marsh vegetationand floating islands ofpeat covered so muchof the estuary that theriver channel was oftendifficult to followbecause of theextensive vegetation. The forests of the surroundinguplands were dominated by coniferous and mixeddeciduous/coniferous stands. A variety of fish, waterfowl,mammals, and other wildlife used the area for breedingand migration.Development of the river shoreline andreconfiguration of the Duluth-Superior Harbor began inearnest in 1872 when a ship canal for Duluth was cutthrough the baymouth bar that had separated the riverand Lake Superior. The next quarter of a century sawboth the Duluth and the Superior entries entirelyreconstructed, and the basins and channels in bothSuperior Bay and St. Louis Bay dredged into the basicCOURTESY OF MN SEA GRANT18 Lower St. Louis River Habitat Plan

contours they possess today. Dredging had significanteffects on both the shoreline and the riverbed.According to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers,between the late1800s and 2002,over 69,500,000cubic yards ofclay and mudmixed with sandwere dredgedfrom the riverand used as fill tocreate docks, toreplenish erodedareas onMinnesota andWisconsin Points,and to form newislands. It hasbeen estimated thatsince Hearding’s time, approximately 3,000 acres ofshallow wetland habitat have been lost as a result ofintentional filling and approximately 4,000 acres of theestuary have been dredged or deepened for navigation.Despite these significant changes, the Lower St. LouisRiver still provides vital habitat for fish, nesting colonialwater birds and waterfowl, migratory shorebirds andsongbirds, and many other animals. The estuary supportsa large, diverse warm-water fish community ofapproximately 45 native species. Recent studies (basedon air photos from 1997 and 1999) indicate thatapproximately 2,000 acres of vegetated wetlandsremain in the estuary.COURTESY OF MN HISTORICAL SOCIETYLower St. Louis River Habitat Plan 19

St. Louis River Citizens Action Committee394 Lake Avenue SouthSuite 303BDuluth, MN 55802Phone: (218) 733-9520Fax: (218) 723-4794E-mail: slrcac@stlouisriver.orgWeb: www.stlouisriver.orgThis booklet was produced with funds provided by a grant from theGreat Lakes Basin Program for Soil Erosion and Sediment Control, Great Lakes Commission;the Duluth-Superior Area Community Foundation;the State of Minnesota Community Technical Assistance, Department of Natural Resources.Cover photo: Lynelle Hanson