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FY 1999 State Partnership Grant
Missouri River Communities Network
Manitou Bluffs Project
TITLE
Utilizing the Missouri River InfoLINK in the Manitou Bluffs Project
1. PROBLEM STATEMENT/JUSTIFICATION
Need
The Manitou Bluffs Project began in January 1999 with the goal of establishing a sustainable development planning effort in a 50-mile reach of the Missouri River and its associated counties. This planning will be done by a newly developed Public/Private Partnership consisting at a minimum of sixty local stakeholders representing the many diverse river interests. The initial activity of the group will be to research and publish a Community Profile that classifies the cultural, environmental, and economic conditions in the area. Information and maps for the Community Profile will be acquired from a variety of sources including the Missouri River InfoLINK.
It is a goal of the Manitou Bluffs Project to increase the capability of local stakeholders to utilize new technologies and information available, to prepare data they generate locally in a manner consistent with metadata standards, and to access new sources of data for the Community Profile from such sources as the National Biological Information Infrastructure (NBII) and the National Spatial Data Infrastructure (NSDI).
Background
The Manitou Bluffs Project is a program of the Missouri River Communities Network (MRCN), a Missouri non-for-profit corporation and a 501(c)3 Federal non-profit. Its mission is to enhance stewardship of the Missouri River by forming partnerships that provide information for better decision-making and conducting water quality improvement projects.
The Manitou Bluffs Project is a regional planning initiative in four counties bordering the Missouri River between river mile 140 and 190 in the USGS Lower Missouri-Moreau watershed unit #10300102. It is here that Lewis and Clark and other explorers encountered the "manitou" images on the limestone rock bluffs towering over the river, where some images are still visible. The Manitou Bluffs region encompasses 200 square miles and has a combined population of 250,000 people. Since 1970, the area has experienced a 24% increase in population causing rapid urban growth and associated loss of farmland and green space, especially between Jefferson City, the state capitol, and Columbia.
Since the Midwest Flood of 1993, close to 11,000 acres of former floodplain agricultural land have been purchased from willing sellers by the government. Four agencies, called the Partnership for Riverlands, coordinate land purchases and management: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Big Muddy National Fish and Wildlife Refuge), U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Natural Resources Conservation Service, and Missouri Department of Conservation. How the wetlands are managed is of significant concern for both resource managers and the local communities. There has been no effective method for involving all stakeholders in decisions related to how the public lands will be managed and protected. Agencies who require public input for their management plans have been thwarted in the past by the small percentage of people untrusting of the government who block reasonable discussion.
The Manitou Bluffs Project hopes to reverse this trend by using its Public/Private Partnership to bring citizens together with local, state, and federal government agencies to assess the area and plan for its future. The Project will create a structure for stakeholders to work together. Developing the Community Profile will promote collaboration and the development of effective communication within the Public/Private Partnership. The group will be prepared to plan and facilitate the expected increase of use in the Manitou Bluffs area during the upcoming Lewis and Clark Bicentennial Commemoration beginning in 2003.
II. OBJECTIVES
III. PROCEDURES/METHODS
Over the course of 1999, the MRCN will hold monthly meetings to establish the Public/Private Partnership and to develop the Community Profile, which consists of historical, environmental, cultural, economic, and political information. Maps of the area created by the CERC will be used at the first meeting on February 16 to increase people’s awareness of the changes in land ownership and to gain a spatial perspective of the area. The InfoLINK Information Specialist will demonstrate the InfoLINK at the March 16th meeting and request that stakeholders test it from their computers.
At subsequent meetings, the Information Specialist will track the usability of the InfoLINK by the group to determine how well the information meets their resource planning needs and can be accessed and used over the Internet. She will provide metadata training for the group so additional data they acquire for the Community Profile can be tracked properly and subsequently utilized by the InfoLINK, NBII, and NSDI.
IV. SPECIAL PROVISIONS
Not applicable
V. INFORMATION MANAGEMENT PLAN
Expected Products
Community Profile: A Community Profile will be developed that includes information and maps on the cultural, economic, and environmental conditions of the Manitou Bluffs river reach.
Federal/NGO Partnership: The partnership developed between the CERC InfoLINK and the MRCN Manitou Bluffs Project fits into the newly announced Community/Federal Information Partnership, a part of the Administration’s Livable Communities Initiative. The goal of this partnership is for the Federal government to help communities develop the ability to create and use geospatial data and technologies to make informed land use decisions. The Missouri River InfoLINK was developed to aid in this type of process. The Manitou Bluffs Project provides a perfect opportunity to develop a strong connection between Federal resources and the local people who need them for sustainable development. An added benefit will be to add information generated through the local group to Federal information clearinghouses.
Data/Metadata Management
The MRCN is unfamiliar with documenting how data is archived and how to make it obtainable. Metadata record keeping will be introduced to the MRCN by the InfoLINK staff, so the Community Profile will be compliant with NBII and NSDI standards using the BRD Metamaker. In this way, additional information generated through development of the Community Profile can be added to the InfoLINK and NBII clearinghouse.
Technology/Information Transfer
The Community Profile will be served on the InfoLINK or linked from it. The Community Profile will be used as the basis of a long-range sustainable development plan for the area as well as a template for other Missouri River community groups to follow in assessing and planning for their individual river reaches.
VI. PERSONNEL
Project Manager – Steve Johnson
Cooperators/Partners
National Park Service
The MRCN formed a partnership with the National Park Service (NPS), Rivers, Trails, and Conservation Technical Assistance Program to begin the Manitou Bluffs in late 1996. Since then, the MRCN has been developing its contact list, initiating partnerships, and raising funds for the Project. Contact: Mark Weekley, National Park Service, Midwest Region, 1709 Jackson, Omaha, NE 68102, 402-221-3483, fax 402-221-3465, mark_weekley@nps.gov
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Region 7
EPA Region 7 is providing the base funding for the Manitou Bluffs Project through its Community-based Environmental Protection Program (CBEP). Contact: Joe Cothern, EPA, Region 7, 726 Minnesota Ave., Kansas City, KS 66101, 913-551-7148, fax 913-551-7765
Riverlands Partnership
The Manitou Bluffs Project has received support from the Riverlands Partnership. Contact: JC Bryant, Refuge Manager, USFWS, Big Muddy National Fish and Wildlife Refuge, 4200 New Haven Road, Columbia, MO 65201, 573-876-1826, jc_bryant@fws.mail.gov
VII. QUALIFICATIONS OF PROJECT PERSONNEL
Steve Johnson, Manitou Bluffs Project Manager
Planning/Administration
Management
Public Relations/Marketing
Education
Master of Arts in Urban Studies; School of Urban Studies; University of Texas-Arlington; Arlington, Texas; 1992. Bachelor of Arts; Central Methodist College; Fayette, Missouri; 1973.
Principle Contact
Steve Johnson, Project Manager, Missouri River
Communities Network, 203 Outdoors Building, 200 Old 63 South,
Columbia, MO 65201, 573-256-2502
Facilities/Equipment/Study Areas
The MRCN has an office in Columbia with new computers able to access the InfoLINK and manage the data that will be contained in the Community Profile.
VIII. LEGAL AND POLICY-SENSITIVE ASPECTS
The government agencies that own land in the Manitou Bluffs region want to have local stakeholder involvement in the planning and management of the new public wetlands. In the past this has sometimes proved problematic as demonstrated in the abandoned Coordinated Resource Management Program, an attempt to conduct long-range resource planning by a consortium of agencies. This has left agencies concerned about how to best accomplish needed stakeholder involvement. They feel a non-profit group such as the MRCN has the best chance of bringing diverse interests together. The process the MRCN has planned is an attempt to bring good information into a difficult debate and to include stakeholders from the beginning in the discussion.
IX. FY 99 BUDGET
No state partnership funds are requested by the MRCN from the state partnership grant. The following budget is what the MRCN is using to accomplish the first year of the Manitou Bluffs Project with funds received by EPA, Region 7. The MRCN is offering this as a match for the state partnership grant.
ITEM COST INCOME
EPA Grant $35,000
Personnel $12,000
Fringe Benefits $ 3,000
Travel $ 2,000
Equipment $ 5,000
Supplies $ 2,300
Contractual $ 5,000
Other $ 1,500
Total Direct $30,800
Indirect costs $ 4,200
Total Costs $35,000
X. WORK PLAN AND REPORTING SCHEDULE
TASK |
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
5 |
6 |
7 |
8 |
9 |
10 |
11 |
12 |
| Finalize grant | x |
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| Recruit project manager | x |
x |
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| Hire project manager | x |
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| Develop web page | x |
x |
x |
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| Web page activated | x |
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| Create maps | x |
x |
x |
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| Recruit public/private partnership steering committee | x |
x |
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| Monthly meetings | x |
x |
x |
x |
x |
x |
x |
x |
x |
x |
x |
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| Recruit additional stakeholders | x |
x |
x |
x |
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| Meetings of expanded public private partnership | x |
x |
x |
x |
x |
x |
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| Create Community Profile | x |
x |
x |
x |
x |
x |
x |
x |
x |
x |
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| Publish Community Profile | x |
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| Determine future capabilities of PPP | x |
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| Report to EPA | x |
x |
x |
x |
U.S. Department of the Interior | U.S. Geological Survey
URL: http://biology.usgs.gov/cro/infolink.htm
Page Contact Information:
tlwilliams@usgs.gov
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