© Mark Godfrey

Working for People & Nature:Integrated River Basin ManagementGlenn Prickett, The Nature Conservancy * AGWI Summit, Sept. 26-27

Global Challenges

• Population

• Water

• Population

• Water

• Energy

• Food

•Climate

• Energy

• Food

•Climate

Global Solutions

CLIMATE RESILIENCEWATER SECURITY

FOOD SECURITYSUSTAINBABLE INFRASTRUCTURE

Natural Capital

Society Economy

People Products Financial Systems

HUMAN WELL BEING

Natural Capital

Natural Capital on the Miss. River

Great Rivers Partnership

Ecological Concerns

1. Flow and flood patterns2. Erosion and sediment

transport and delivery3. Nutrients from

agricultural and urban runoff

4. Connectivity– Up/Downstream Connection– River Connection to

Floodplain

1. Governance2. Sustainable Infrastructure 3. Floodplain Integration4. Tributaries and Sustainable Agriculture

Reconnected side channel Mainstem Mississippi River, Arkansas

Restored wetlands Pecatonica River, Wisconsin

Our Priorities

04/20/23 10

Field-to-Market

Keystone Alliance for Sustainable Agriculture

Field-to-Market on Mackinaw River, Sept. 2008

Members represent: • Producers• Agribusiness• Food companies• Retailers• Conservation

groups

Our Ag Tributary Projects

Mackinaw River, IL Pecatonica River, WI

Boone River, IA Root River, MN

Progress: Pecatonica River, WI

Water quality & biodiversity surveys

Targeted work Source of funding

U.S. Farm Bill

Floodplain Restoration in Louisiana

Sustainable Infrastructure

The Gulf

Mississippi - Ohio confluence, low waterLate April 2011, during floodEarly May 2011, floodway activated

Other Efforts

“Mayors are in the best position to treat the River the way it should be treated - as an essential resource of our economy, environment, and culture.” ― Mayor Francis Slay, St. Louis, MO

Mississippi River Cities and Towns

Initiative

The EcoPartnershipon the Yangtze River

Facing the risks of cooperation in International Waters

World Bank—March 2012

Summary of risks most relevant to AGWI:

•Accountability and Voice: Trust established and there is deliverability of strategies; process is fair with everyone having a say in decision-making in the governing structures.•Stability and Support: Longevity of any plans or agreements; support of agreement with staff capacity and funding

Reaching Across the Waters