DECISION SUPPORT SYSTEM FOR AQUATIC RESOURCES IN THE MIDDLE MISSISSIPPI RIVER.

Steven J. Zigler1, Jason Rohweder2, and Robert A. Hrabik3.
1 U.S. Geological Survey, Upper Midwest Environmental Sciences Center, 2630 
Fanta Reed Rd., La Crosse, Wisconsin 54603, 2 U.S. Geological Survey, Upper 
Midwest Environmental Sciences Center, 575 Lester Ave, Onalaska, Wisconsin 
54650, 3 Missouri Department of Conservation, Fisheries Research, Assessment, 
and Monitoring Section, Open River Field Station, 3815 East Jackson Boulevard, 
Jackson, Missouri.

The Middle Mississippi River and its floodplain have been substantially modified 
to accommodate multiple human uses that include urban development, navigation, 
and agriculture.  There is growing need for a framework to synthesize biological 
and physicochemical data layers to guide decisions about aquatic resources made 
by managers and policymakers in state and federal agencies.  In particular, 
fisheries resource issues including endangered species (e.g., pallid sturgeon), 
habitat availability and modification, and navigation effects have become 
significant topics of discussion.  We are developing a GIS-based decision 
support system (DSS) to provide decision-makers with a spatially explicit tool 
for inventorying existing knowledge, developing models to investigate potential 
effects of management decisions, and developing scientifically defensible 
studies and monitoring.  To facilitate development of the DSS, an interagency 
workshop focusing on hydrologic and other potential system drivers of aquatic 
habitats was held during winter 2002.  We discuss the results of the workshop, 
and the process of constructing the DSS for the Middle Mississippi River. 

Keywords: Middle Mississippi River, decision support, GIS, aquatic resources