Upper Mississippi River restoration history: From dam planning to partnership success

Most people have a mental picture of the Mississippi River shaped through the writings of Mark Twain, media images of floods, school lessons in geography, and/or personal experience. Many, however, are not aware of how extensively humans have altered the river’s ecosystem and what it takes to make a large floodplain river like the Mississippi a more sustainable ecosystem. Mississippi River habitat restoration is an art that blends an understanding of historical events, science, insight, communication, and societal desires. In this presentation, Mississippi River Habitat Specialist Jeff Janvrin will touch on these topics and highlight examples of progress through partnerships in recent decades.
 
Jeff Janvrin, Wisconsin DNR

Recorded July 8, 2022.

Jeff Janvrin has 31 years of experience as Wisconsin DNR’s Mississippi River Habitat Specialist. He coordinates Wisconsin’s involvement in the selection, planning, design, construction, and monitoring of habitat rehabilitation and enhancement projects as part of the Upper Mississippi River Restoration Program. He has worked on more than 35 habitat rehabilitation and enhancement projects in 3 different states and on several other state- and federally-funded habitat projects. Jeff holds a bachelor’s degree in wildlife from UW-Stevens Point and a master’s degree in wildlife from the University of Missouri-Columbia.