Tap on the title of each activity to get the details and find out more. Contact the lead if you are interested in working on a particular project.
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Start: January 2026 (earlier project planning)
Chapter Approval: November 20, 2025 (approval by Board vote)
End: December 2026
Lead person: Fritz Funk
Description: Support UW-L Recreation Management class in developing QR code based environmental interpretation materials for Hintgen Island. Support includes student transportation, teaching and mentorship.
Annual budget: One time project. 15% match share of Chapter funds ($441 estimated but limited to no more than $1,000) for $2,500 Wisconsin Division IWLA Hallstrom Grant.
Product/Outcome: Grant Report to Wisconsin Division; QR Code signs placed on Hintgen linking to website version of student materials.
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Start June 1, 2026
Approved April 2026
Ends Ongoing
Lead Brett Welch
Description Chapter volunteers’ staff four-hour shifts at public boat landings on both sides of
Pools 7 and 8 to collect fish catch and harvest information, along with general river-use data.
This effort supports long-term understanding of angler activity and recreational patterns on the
Upper Mississippi River.
Budget None
Outcome Still to be determined
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Start: October 2025
Chapter Approval: Uncertain
End: Ongoing
Lead person: Barry Drazkowski and Fritz Funk
Description: For decades, the direction of river management—the debate over which ecological
needs
should be prioritized and where specific infrastructure projects should be situated—has been
the near-exclusive domain of Federal and State agencies. While non-governmental
organizations (NGOs) such as the Izaak Walton League (Ikes), One Mississippi (OM), Audubon,
and The Nature Conservancy (TNC) have remained active participants, their roles have often
been limited to commenting during agency meetings or providing targeted funding for niche
workshops. This top-down structure has unfortunately silenced the average river citizen. During
the 1970s, programs like the Master Plan and the Great River Environmental Action Team
(GREAT) studies fostered significant public involvement. However, following the implementation
of major federal programs like the Upper Mississippi River Restoration (UMRR) and the
Navigation and Environmental Sustainability Program (NESP), a sense of complacency took
root. Many in the public and the NGO community believed the government had finally
responded and the river was on a permanent healing trajectory. In hindsight, that optimism was
naive.
The reality is stark: the river continues to lose critical habitat at a rate of approximately 3%
annually, according to the Long Term Monitoring Program (LTRMP). Agency officials themselves
admit they have struggled to facilitate effective public education and meaningful involvement in
management decisions. Recognizing this vacuum, the NGO community has mobilized over the
past year to spearhead a new movement for public engagement. Following a successful series
of workshops hosted by Audubon and One Mississippi in late 2025, the Ikes have proposed a
formal, multi-tiered NGO collaboration designed to re-empower the river citizens.
This new strategy is divided into four distinct tiers. The first provides direct field-level
support—utilizing chapters, river citizens, and "friends" groups to conduct surveys, observations,
and logistics that have been abandoned due to government budget cuts. The second tier
involves formal workshops designed to explain complex river functions and solicit direct public
input. The third tier focuses on "river rats"—the fishers, hunters, and paddlers who possess
deep, multi-generational cultural ties to the water. Finally, the fourth tier involves creating a
comprehensive information package that explains the river's history, ecology, and the impacts of
climate change. This collaboration represents the first steps toward a more democratic and
ecologically sound future for our river systems. Stay tuned as we follow this developing
process.
Annual budget: none anticipated
Product/Outcome: At the chapter scale support projects like Hintgen Island, the secretive marsh
nesting birds, and Osprey watch will continue to develop. Hopefully, other chapters and
conservation groups will develop similar support projects. This initiative is also developing a
collaborative multi NGO support project focused on public involvement and creating a
knowledge center to fuel the public involvement program. The goal is to create an informed
UMR public engaged in the democratic process of river management.
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Start: August 2025
Chapter Approval: September 2025
End: Ongoing
Lead person: John Sullivan
Description: The goal of this activity is to document osprey nesting activity along the Upper
Mississippi River Pools 4 to 9 following protocols established by the Osprey Watch program
website created by the Center for Conservation Biology at Williams and Mary University. We will
work with the Wapasha and Will Dilg chapters in engaging the IWL members, the public, state and
federal resource agency staff and other environmental organizations to help accomplish this
monitoring activity.
Annual budget: none anticipated
Product/Outcome: An annual report describing program participation and a summary of osprey
nesting observations.