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MissouriResources

Winter 2014 • Volume 31 • Number 1

MissouriResources

40 yearsMissouri Department of Natural Resources

State of Missouri, Governor Jeremiah W. (Jay) Nixon

Department Director Sara Parker Pauley

Director, Division of Administrative Support Lori Gordon

Director, Division of Environmental Quality Leanne Tippett Mosby

Director, Missouri State Parks Bill Bryan

Director, Missouri Geological Survey Joe Gillman

Director, Environmental Improvement and Energy Resources Authority Karen Massey

printed on recycled paper

EditorStuart Westmoreland

Design DirectorBelinda Hughes

PhotographerScott Myers

Public Information CoordinatorAndrew Richmond

CirculationLuke Petree

Editorial BoardLarry ArcherAndrea BalkenbushHylan BeydlerRenee BungartSteph DeidrickStuart Westmoreland

MISSOURI RESOURCES is published quarterly by the MissouriDepartment of Natural Resources to inform readers about important natu-ral resource issues and how they are being addressed. Any correspon-dence should be directed to the editor at the Department of NaturalResources, Publications, PO Box 176, Jefferson City, MO 65102-0176, or call 800-361-4827. Email address: [email protected]. MoDNR home page: dnr.mo.gov. To subscribe or unsubscribe online:dnr.mo.gov/magazine/subscription.htm.

MISSOURI RESOURCES is available in alternative formats.

As a recipient of federal funds, the Department of Natural Resources can-not discriminate against anyone on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion, age, sex, disability, sexual orientation or veteran status.

If anyone believes he or she has been subjected to discrimination for anyof these reasons, he or she may file a complaint with either theDepartment of Natural Resources or the Office of Equal Opportunity, U.S.Department of the Interior, Washington, D.C., 20240.

Missouri Resources is printed with soy ink on recycled paper at Walsworth Publishing Co., Marceline, Mo.Mission Statement

The mission of the Missouri Department of Natural Resources is to protect, preserve and enhance Missouri’s natural, cultural and energy resources.

Winter 2014Volume 31 • Number 1

Additional content available forthis story – go todnr.mo.gov/education.

P icture a clear winter’s day withnot a cloud in sight – it must

mean we are breathing clean, healthyair. How about a crystal clear Ozarkstream of sparkling water – it mustmean it is clean enough to drink.Sounds picture perfect – right? Well,not necessarily. Decades ago, we couldsee the visual impacts of pollution toour air, land and water quality. Our airquality was so contaminated metro-politan areas once urged people tostay home because the air was unsafeto breathe. The water in our lakes andrivers was littered with trash and pol-lutants, looking more like murky mugshots than picturesque portraits.

It was time to improve our nation’s nat-ural resources. In 1970, the nationalEnvironmental Protection and CleanAir acts and later the Clean Water Act in1972 were among the first environmen-tal laws created that built the legalfoundation for a healthier America. In1974, the people in our great state recog-nized the need to protect and preservetheir resources and created the MissouriDepartment of Natural Resources.

During the last 40 years, we have madesignificant improvements to our state’sair, land and water quality. We’ve prop-erly disposed of nearly 17 million scraptires in Missouri. With your help, thedepartment has enacted state plans toaddress poor air quality and reduceemissions from permitted facilities.We’ve improved water quality by issuingpermits to point sources to control thequality and amount of pollutants thatenter our waters. Lest we not forgethow science and technology have devel-oped and improved over time, and haveallowed fair and enforceable federalstandards to be strengthened. Labequipment once measured sample con-stituents in parts per thousand; nowwe measure parts per billion.

You have joined with us to improveMissouri’s natural resources and publichealth, giving us all great reason topause and celebrate a successful 40th

director’s

MissouriResources

Sara Parker PauleyMissouri Department of Natural Resources

anniversary. While we no longer see thedark, polluted skies or the streamslined with waste – we now know thatlooks can often be deceiving. Thedepartment’s increased data and moni-toring document this fact. Our next setof environmental challenges willinclude some obstacles we will have toidentify, through due diligence, and fix,with sound science. With your help, wewill continue to work together to pro-vide all Missourians a healthy environ-ment in which to live, work and recreate.

This southwest Missouri stream is impaired bybacteria, ammonia and dissolved oxygen.

Above: Missouri limestone provides a permanent monument to a variety of extinct marine animals. DNR photo by Scott Myers.Front Cover: A grazing bison at Prairie State Park, near Lamar. DNR photo by Scott Myers.Back Cover: A bluff-top trail at Castlewood State Park offers a birds-eye view of the Meramec River. DNR photo by Tom Uhlenbrock.

departments18 Explore Missouri 20 DNR News 22 Top Spots 25 … But not Least

2 Capitol Fossilsby Patrick Mulvany

Paleontologists say there are two places to find a fossil – in the field and in a museum. Missouri’s State Capitol is clearly both the seat of government and a museum. The walls and floors made of Missouri limestone are filled with fossils, embedded and polished for your viewing pleasure.

8 Winter Fun in Missouri State Parksby Tom Uhlenbrock

Missing are the spring peepers, summer whip-poor-wills and crunching fall leaves. The sensory extravaganza that awaits you during winter activities in a Missouri state park is breathtaking. The crisp silence seems to beckon sounds from miles away.

13 A Silver Celebration25 years – Missouri Stream Teamsby Susan J. Higgins

Founded in 1989, the first Stream Team hauled 14 tons of trash out of Roubidoux Creek in Pulaski County. Today Missourians join the 96,000 volunteers and 4,800 Stream Teams in celebrating their service and success.

40 yearsMissouri Department of Natural Resources

2 Missouri Resources

C ountless fossils are on permanentdisplay inside the Missouri StateCapitol. The impressive assort-

ment of fossils is embedded in the marble-like limestone throughout the building. Theword “fossil,” comes from the Latin word“fossilis,” which means “dug up.” Fossilsthat call the Capitol home represent a vari-ety of extinct marine invertebrate lifeforms, including brachiopods, bryozoans,clams, corals, crinoids, nautiloids andsnails. Hunting for them provides a chal-

lenge that is entertaining and educational.It’s good exercise, too.

“The stone used in the Capitol providesan excellent glimpse into the abundant ma-rine life that once covered Missouri. Fossiltreasures can be found in the Missouri lime-stone throughout the Capitol in the walls,floors, rotunda and even in the treads of thestairways,” said Carey Bridges, who servesas the Geological Survey Program directorof the Missouri Department of Natural Re-sources in Rolla.

by Patrick Mulvanyphotographs by Scott Myers

(Inset) This fossil revealsinformation about the

relations and interactionsbetween two living organ-isms. This Bryozoan en-

crusted a living crinoid col-umn and radiated outward.Note the sediment-filled,

star-shaped, central open-ing of the crinoid column.

Winter 2014 3

Capitol Was Built WithMissouri Limestone

The current Missouri StateCapitol was constructed between1913 and 1917. The exterior andinterior of the building were builtfrom limestone that was quarried,shaped and dressed in southwest-ern Missouri at Carthage, in cen-tral Jasper County, and at Phenix,near Ash Grove, in northwesternGreene County.

For more than a century, Mis-souri’s robust limestone industryhas mined the rock and processedit into a variety of useful prod-ucts, including building stone, forMissouri, the nation and theworld. Limestone is the state’smost abundant commercial miner-al. The limestone in the Capitol’sinterior is polished to a glossy, re-flective finish. It was during theconstruction of the interior thatthe polished Missouri limestonegained the distinction of beingcalled “marble.”

What is Marble?Marble is calcium carbonate

(CaCO3) rock that takes a polish and can beused as architectural and decorative stone.Two kinds of rock qualify for use as marble– limestone and true marble. Limestone is asedimentary rock that usually contains fos-sils. True marble is a metamorphic rock thatforms when limestone is subjected to ele-vated temperatures and pressures in Earth’scrust. True marble typically contains no fos-sils because the metamorphic process oblit-erates them from the rock. The marble-likerock in the Missouri State Capitol was cut

(Right) Limestone at the Phenixquarry, near Ash Grove. Stone fromthis quarry was used in the con-struction of the Missouri State Capi-tol. The production of limestonecontributes about $1 billion annuallyto Missouri’s economy.(Bottom right) Nautiloids are amongthe group of animals known ascephalopods, an advanced class ofmollusks. They have a straight orcoiled shell, divided internally into aseries of chambers of increasingsize connected by a central tube.

(continued on page 6)

Winter 2014 5

1 Rugose corals are so named because their exteriors have a wrinkled ap-pearance. The overall shape of some species is that of a single horn. Theshape of others is that of a stack of horns inserted into one another. There-fore, both types are informally referred to as “horn corals.” Rugose coralshave septae radiating from the center (like bicycle spokes) when observedin cross-section. This horn coral (oblique cut) contains crinoid pieces.

2 Brachiopods are small marine animals that have two hard valves. Theyoften have an extended hinge line that is so wide they look winged. Thestone mason’s blade cut right through both valves of the shell of this Spiriferid brachiopod.

3 Gastropods are invertebrate animals that include snails and slugs. Thissnail fossil is accompanied by many broken pieces of crinoids.

4 Brachiopods such as these once dominated the seafloor. Note the brokenpieces of windowed bryozoan fronds that accompany the two fossils.

5 Attached to and branching outward from the crinoid column is a tabulateauloporid coral named Cladochonus. Note the sediment-filled, star-shaped,central opening of the crinoid column. This fossil also reveals informationabout the relations and interactions between the living organisms.

6 Bryozoans like this corkscrew-shaped, windowed or lacy (fenestrate) bry-ozoan named Archimedes can be found throughout the Capitol. Funnel-shaped, fenestrate fronds coil spirally around the central screw axis.

7 This rugose coral (transversecut) contains crinoid pieces andother small pieces of fossil de-bris. Note the septae (spokes).Large single-horn rugose coralfossils were referred to as “petri-fied buffalo horns” by settlers,due to their shape.

(Right) Geologists with the Mis-souri Geological Survey, PatMulvany, Ph.D., and DavidBridges, Ph.D., investigate andidentify fossils in the limestonewalls, floors and stairways ofthe Missouri State Capitol.


from fossiliferous limestone. True marble isnot known to occur in Missouri.

Capitol “Marble” Formed in Ancient Sea

The Phenix stone came from the Burling-ton-Keokuk Limestone sedimentary rockunit. The Carthage stone came from theWarsaw Formation sedimentary rock unit.Geologic formations typically are namedfor the geographic area in which they werefirst described. Burlington-Keokuk gets itsname from Iowa cities and the Warsaw forthe city of Warsaw, located in Benton Coun-ty, Mo. The Warsaw Formation immediatelyoverlies the Burlington-Keokuk. Both wereformed in a warm, shallow, equatorial seathat covered Missouri during what geolo-gists identify as the Mississippian Subperi-od of geologic time, about 335 million yearsago. Fine particles of calcium carbonateconstantly precipitated from the seawaterand eventually accumulated on the seaflooras lime mud.

The sea teemed with invertebrate lifeforms, including corals, bryozoans, bra-chiopods, snails, clams and crinoids. Thehard parts of dead organisms also accumu-lated on the seafloor and mixed with thelime mud. Over time, this layer of sedimentmeasured 50 feet thick, or greater. Furtherburial beneath hundreds of feet of sedimentcaused the lime mud to compact and turninto a limestone that contains many fossils.

Parts of a Crinoid

– Missouri’s Official State Fossil

Crinoids often ap-

pear as tiny discs of

stone that may have a

hole (often star-

shaped) in their cen-

ter. Loose pieces of

stem often can be

strung like beads. The

fossil also is pre-

served as sections of

stems with distinctive

segmentation marks.

Occasionally, it is pos-

sible to find the “cup”

or “calyx,” which pro-

tected the animal’s

soft body with a sym-

metrical “petal pat-

tern” of calcium-rich

plates atop the stem.

The bottom of the

stem of a crinoid was

equipped with a fin-

gered holdfast that

was used to attach

the animal to some-

thing on the seafloor, including rocks, firm sediment, coral

colonies and bryozoan colonies. Today, hundreds of different

species of crinoids exist in the warm, clear waters of the Pa-

cific and Indian oceans and the Caribbean Sea.

The top of the Capitol dome towers 262 feet above the basement floor. The building, which covers three acres andhas 500,000 square feet of floor space, is literally a museum of public art, remarkable not only for its quality andabundance, but as a faithful reflection of the themes, events, people and some of the ancient animals of Missouri.

(from page 3)

Crinoid graphic is superimposed on the leftto aid in interpretation of the text.

Winter 2014 7

What You Will Find and Where to Start

Numerous fossils may be found on eachof the four levels of the Capitol. The firstfloor of the Capitol is home to the MissouriState Museum. Missouri State Parks, a divi-sion of the Missouri Department of NaturalResources, operates the museum. Visitorsare encouraged to stop by the tour desk topick up a Fossil Tour Map to help locatesome of the impressive fossils. Keep inmind that what you see on the flat marble-like surfaces are two-dimensional cross sec-tions of the fossils, so you need to use yourimagination to visualize them in three di-mensions. A flashlight comes in handy onthe second floor.

Missouri State MuseumPlan to spend time enjoying for the fos-

sils in the Missouri State Museum andthroughout the Capitol. The Missouri StateMuseum is where visitors go to immersethemselves in the captivating history of theShow-Me State.

“The Missouri State Museum provides agreat opportunity for visitors of all ages toexperience the history of our state,” saidBill Bryan, director of Missouri State Parks.“From exhibits honoring Missourians whohave served their country to displays outlin-ing the many natural resources that our statehas to offer, the museum tells the story of

our state’s past, present and future.” Don’t miss the museum’s impressive col-

lection of exhibits that portray Missouri’snatural and cultural history in its two mainexhibit halls – the Resources Hall and theHistory Hall. More than 30,000 artifactsand objects from all aspects of Missouri’scultural and natural history have been col-lected since the museum was established in1919. Its collections include more than 130Civil War flags and a large collection ofWorld War I flags.

There also are exhibits with rotating arti-facts about state government and the Mis-souri State Capitol in the Missouri VeteransGallery and the Foundations Gallery.

A series of traveling exhibits can be usedas educational tools by schools, civic andother groups. Interpretive staff members atthe museum offer various educational pro-grams on aspects of Missouri’s natural andcultural history.

The Missouri State Museum, which ispart of the Missouri state park system, is lo-cated on the first floor of the Missouri StateCapitol. For more information, contact themuseum at 573-751-2854. For infor-mation on state parks and historicsites, visit mostateparks.com.

Pat Mulvany is a geologist with the Mis-souri Geological Survey, a division of theMissouri Department of Natural Resources.

The Buehler Building,which is home to the depart-ment’s Geological Survey andthe Edward L. Clark Museumof Missouri Geology, is facedwith limestone quarried fromCarthage. It, too, contains avariety of fossils. Visitors tothe museum can see corals,bryozoans, crinoids, trilo-bites, a mastodon tusk,rocks, minerals and other ex-hibits related to Missouri ge-ology. The museum is locatedat 111 Fairgrounds Road,Rolla, and is open for self-guided tours from 8 a.m. to 5p.m. weekdays, and is closedholidays. For more informa-tion visit dnr.mo.gov/geology/edclarkmuseum.htm.

Missouri Geological Survey


D awn brought a sparkling surprise.Six inches of fluffy snow coveredthe front yard, piling high on the

limbs of the blue spruce. Temperaturesabove freezing and a full sun in a cloudlesssky would make quick work of this short-lived wintry spectacle.

I grabbed my gear, packed a couple ofPB&J sandwiches, and was out the door be-

fore the rest of the house had stirred. A notegave my destination, and planned arrivalback home.

I was headed to one of Missouri’s pretti-est parks, which would be stunning in thispristine mantle of white.

Hawn State Park is an hour’s drive southfrom my home in St. Louis, on the west sideof Interstate 55 from Ste. Genevieve in

in Missouri State Parks

Hikers, bikers and runnersenjoy the snowy landscapeat Castlewood State Park.

story and photographs by Tom Uhlenbrock

Winter 2014 9

southeast Missouri. The park was open, butthe plows were not yet out and the gate wasstill closed across the snow-covered roadthat led down into the valley.

I parked and began hiking, leaving be-hind the first human prints in the freshsnow, which already was crisscrossed withthe tracks of deer and other wildlife resi-dents. The early morning light slantingthrough the trees created a maze of shadowsin the woods.

For me, the hiking season begins at firstfrost in the fall and extends through thebloom of the last woodland wildflowers inlate May. The very first snow of the hikingseason is like the sudden report of astarter’s gun – I’m off and walking.

Hawn is a park for all seasons. Wild azal-eas and yellow lady-slipper orchids bloomin the spring. The sand-bottomed pools inits shut-ins are perfect for a cool dip in sum-mer. The mix of pines and hardwoods puton a gaudy show in the fall. A snowfall inwinter brings a quiet peace to the valley.

With sandstone bluffs, which drip withice sculptures in winter, and the largeststand of short-leaf pines in the state park

system, Hawn often looks more like Col-orado than the Missouri Ozarks.

The park’s 9.75-mile Whispering PinesTrail is the best full-day hike in Missouri.But I was content to wander along the shortPickle Creek Trail and enjoy the snow piledhigh on the granite boulders as the dark,clear water swirled round. Tiny, intricate iceformations clung to the rocks just above thewaterline, reminding me of the delicate lacedoilies that decorated Grandma’s livingroom chairs.

Cold-weather hiking takes a few precau-tions. Perspiration can soak your clothesand cause a chill. The first layer should besynthetic underwear that wicks away mois-ture. Then add layers, maybe a fleece vest,with a wind-breaking shell on the outside.Gloves and a wool hat are necessities tohelp regulate body heat. Waterproof bootsare a must.

If wind chills approach zero, every inchof skin should be protected. A couple ofitems that take very little room in a back-pack can prove a necessity in the worst ofweather. Outdoor shops sell chemical pack-ets to warm the fingers and toes. And a

The bluffs along the River Scene Trail at Castlewood State Park display a panoramic view of the Meramec River and surrounding wintry landscape of St. Louis County.


fleece balaclava weighs next to nothing but isa full hood that leaves only the eyes exposed.

I spent three hours roaming, and photo-graphing, the winter wonders of PickleCreek. The only sounds were the tumblingof the water through the rocks and the callsof cardinals, titmice, blue jays and variousspecies of woodpecker.

I was startled to hear the crunching of anapproaching hiker. We nodded, without break-ing the silence of the solitary experience.

Find your winter hike experience on Jan.1. Missouri State Parks, a division of theMissouri Department of Natural Resources,is encouraging people to getoutside this winter by cele-brating the New Year with aguided “First Day Hike” in

a state park. Visit mostateparks.com to seewhich parks are sponsoring hikes, and theschedules. America’s State Parks is promotingthe Jan. 1 outing in all 50 state park systems.

Missouri, which has been voted “the besttrails state” by American Trails, a nationalhiking organization, has more than 230trails in 58 parks and historic sites. A guideto all of them, “Trails of Missouri StateParks,” is available at mostateparks.comand helps visitors chose a trail based ontheir needs and skill levels.

Here are five more state park trails thatare a sure cure for cabin fever:

This 3.25-mile trail may give the biggestbang for the buck of any trail in the state.Going clockwise, I start at the middletrailhead, which crosses a field and fol-lows the bank of the Meramec Riverthrough the bottomlands of giantsycamores. Migrating geese sometimesrest on the gravel bars.

The trail climbs a wood stairway tocome back along bluffs 200 feet abovethe river. There are several overlooksthat provide stunning panoramic views ofthe landscape. A bonus may be an eye-ball-to-eyeball look at the bald eaglesthat are permanent residents of the valley.

River Scene Trail, Castlewood State Parkin St. Louis County:

(Above) Pickle Creek Trailfollows the scenic shut-ins

at Hawn State Park.(Below) A snowy hike alongPickle Creek encountered

only one other hiker on the trail.

Winter 2014 11

The park sits on the Des Moines River andis best known for a Civil War battle foughtthere in 1861.

However, the two-mile looping trail isespecially beautiful in winter when theleaves are off the trees, allowing for a betterview of the geology and the river valley.

“You could see a dozen to two dozenbald eagles along the bluffs,” said JerryToops, park superintendent of the historicsite. “When it gets really cold, and the riverfreezes, they’ll move south to find openwater near the dams.”

The short trail shows off some of the park’sgeologic wonders, including a naturalbridge and the Colosseum Sinkhole.

“You get a completely different perspec-tive of the park when the foliage is off thetrees,” said park naturalist Larry Webb.

Snow, sun and solitude at Hawn State Park.

Snow Trillium Trail, Battleof Athens State Historic Site,north of Kahoka:

Colosseum Trail, Ha Ha Tonka State Park,five miles southwest of Camdenton:

In the winter, sections of HawnState Park can often look morelike Colorado than the Missouri Ozarks.


“The trail has some higher elevationswhere you get views of the castle ruinsacross the ridge, and there’s the potentialof seeing ice forming on the walls of thesteep sinkhole.”

Short-eared owls are among the winter res-idents of the park’s 4,000 acres of tallgrassprairie. So is a herd of some 100 bison.

“One year, there were 12 to 15 short-eared owls sitting along the gravel road,”said Brian Miller, the park manager. “It’sneat to see the snow pile up on a bison’sback. The thick wool insulates it up there,and doesn’t allow heat to get outside andmelt the snow.

“You’ve got a broad range of viewscapesall along the park. Usually, there are someareas, back a ways from everybody else,where you can see and feel what the origi-nal prairie was like.”

Some 8.5 miles of trail run through the 750-acre wild area, allowing hikers to enter awilderness setting close by the city.

“You get to see a lot more of the karst to-pography when the leaves aren’t on thetrees,” said Superintendent Jim Gast. “It’s alot easier to see the deer and turkey in the wintertime.

“There are places where you can’t seeTV towers, water towers or any manmadestructures. There are 110-foot bluffs, andcaves that you can poke your head into. Weget many visitors each year, but most ofthem haven’t discovered the wild area. It’spretty peaceful back there.”

For more information, visitmostateparks.com.

Tom Uhlenbrock is a writer for MissouriState Parks, a division of the Missouri De-partment of Natural Resources.

A St. Louis running club races on a sunny winter day at snowy Castlewood State Park.

Gayfeather Trail, Prairie State Park,Mindenmines:

Gans Creek Wild Area Trail System, Rock Bridge Memorial State Park,near Columbia:

Winter 2014 13

L ike many, Pat Haviland takes pridein the work she’s done to beautifyher backyard. Unlike most of us,

however, her backyard is different – a riverruns through it.

“The Jacks Fork is my backyard, and Ilike to keep my backyard clean!” said Havi-land, who, with her husband, Ted, has beenholding an annual cleanup on the Jacks Forkfor 17 years. The first year they removedmore than 8 tons of trash.

“It is nothing like the amount we used tocollect,” said Ted Haviland. “Overall, folks arekeeping the river much cleaner. I like to be-lieve we have the cleanest river in the state.”

The Havilands, who are members ofStream Team 713 – Upper Jacks Fork RiverRats, are among the more than 96,000 indi-viduals in more than 4,800 Stream Teamswho will be celebrating the Missouri StreamTeam Program’s 25th anniversary in 2014.Thousands of citizens who volunteer untoldhours to help improve and protect the state’srivers and streams make the MissouriStream Team Program, a partnership be-tween the Missouri departments of NaturalResources and Conservation, and the Con-servation Federation of Missouri, one of theoldest and most successful volunteer pro-grams of its kind.

25 YearsMissouri Stream Teamsby Susan J. Higgins

Scott Darrough and twoother volunteers with theOzark Fly Fishers (StreamTeam 31) conduct amacroinvertebrate collec-tion training session on theCurrent River, just outsideMontauk State Park. Volunteers collect speci-mens using a 3-foot by 3-foot kick net.DNR photo by Scott Myers.


In 1988, when the first River and StreamsConference was held in Jefferson City, thecitizens who attended were asked what theywould like to see in a river conservation ef-fort. Their answer was threefold: 1) help usidentify where water quality is good andwhere there may be problems; 2) offer usopportunities for hands-on experience intackling problems and applying solutions;and 3) help us express our opinions in a

knowledgeable way. This became the foun-dation for the goals of the Stream Team pro-gram – stewardship, education and advocacy.

StewardshipThe Stream Team program was officially

launched in February 1989, when StreamTeam 1, the Roubidoux Fly Fishers, signedup. At that time, the Missouri Departmentof Conservation and the Conservation Fed-eration of Missouri were the sponsoringpartners. In their first project, the fledglingteam removed 28,000 pounds of trash fromabout 1.5 miles of Roubidoux Creek, in Pu-laski County, in two colossal cleanups. Oneof those events was attended by Gov. JohnAshcroft, who planted a memorial tree inWaynesville City Park to commemorate theoccasion. In his remarks Ashcroft said, “Afew of you have started a good thing here.You will know you are successful when tensof thousands follow in your footsteps.”

In the Stream Team program’s inauguralyear, 100 teams signed on and began active-ly holding stream cleanup events in theirown watersheds. As word spread, the pro-gram grew, and by the end of 1991 therewere 273 teams representing more than7,000 Missouri citizens. Over the years, theprogram has continued to grow both in

(Top) The Big Piney River Stream Team Watershed Association (StreamTeam 4623) cleans up trash on the Big Piney River. This event, on June 23, 2012, was their first event as a Stream Team association.

(Above) The Ladue Middle School Stream Team (Stream Team 76) conductswater chemistry monitoring at Deer Creek in St. Louis County.

DNR file pho

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Winter 2014 15

numbers of Stream Teams and active volun-teers, along with the activities they employto help protect Missouri’s aquatic resources.

Stream Teams are well known for trashcleanups – removing thousands of tons ofrefuse from our state’s waters. But StreamTeams also participate in many other activi-ties: they mark storm drains to raise aware-ness that they drain to streams; plant treesto stabilize stream banks; remove invasivespecies; and attend or organize events to ed-ucate fellow citizens about the plight ofMissouri’s abundant stream resources.

EducationIn 1993, the Missouri Department of

Natural Resources became a partner in theMissouri Stream Team Program and vol-unteer water quality monitoring wasadded as a new activity. A series of freeworkshops DNR created taught partici-pants the fundamentals of water qualitymonitoring. Funds were allocated bysponsoring agencies to supply equipmentfor the newly trained volunteers.

Stream Team monitors – now 4,000strong – provide valuable water qualitydata to the department. Soon thereafter, aStream Team Academy was established tofurther educate volunteers on issues relat-ed to rivers and streams.

Stream Teamers can learn about a di-verse multitude of related topics: fish,mussel, or crayfish identification; howstream hydrology works; how to advocatefor water resources; and even how to build

a plywood canoe, among many other funand educational subjects.

Billy Backues, a Missouri Master Natu-ralist from Stream Team 4193-Lake OzarkArea Chapter, was born and raised in theOzarks. His fondest memories are of familyactivities in and around the beautiful Ozarkstreams. Backues was introduced to StreamTeam through the Master Naturalist Program.

“It immediately appealed to me to beable to do something useful while being inand around the beautiful streams I had al-ways enjoyed,” said Backues. “I would behard pressed to single something out that I

The Bolivar Communi-ty Watershed Improve-ment Group (StreamTeam 3151) conductswater chemistry moni-toring on Bolivar’sTown Branch in Polk County. DNR file photo.

(Bottom) The BolivarCommunity Water-shed ImprovementGroup inspectsmacroinvertebratesfrom the kick net aspart of the monitoringactivities on TownBranch during WorldWater Monitoring Dayin October 2008.DNR file photo.


like best about the program, but near the topof the list would be the people I haveworked with, from staff to other volunteers.They are all top notch. I’m a Stream Teamerfor life.”

Advocacy“The Stream Team program is a crucial

citizen effort that truly makes a differencein the quality of Missouri’s streams,” saidHolly Neill, executive director of the Mis-souri Stream Team Watershed Coalition.“We are very lucky to have passionate indi-viduals throughout the state that volunteertheir time to protect and improve our valu-able water resources. One of the most bene-ficial accomplishments of the program isthe elevated awareness of our water re-sources and their importance to all Mis-sourians. Because of the Missouri StreamTeam Program, thousands are conscious ofthe significance our rivers and streams pro-vide to our state and are actively taking arole in protecting them.”

The Missouri Stream Team WatershedCoalition was formed in 1999 to help fulfillthe Stream Team program’s goal of advoca-

cy. MSTWC works to assist the program bypromoting and supporting watershed-basedStream Team associations and acting as aresource for information and education. Thegroup also facilitates communicationamong associations and serves as a unitedvoice for healthy watersheds in Missouri.MSTWC published two State of Missouri’sStreams reports that highlight volunteerwater quality data, and work to raise thevisibility of the program and Missouri’srivers and streams through advocacy.

Since 2013, thanks to MSTWC, Missouricitizens have had the opportunity to showtheir commitment to water resources by get-ting a Missouri Stream Team specialty li-

Volunteers haul trash from the Bourbeuse River as part of Operation Clean Stream in August 2009.

(Right) Stream Team volunteer water quality monitoring is part of the curriculum at

Ladue Middle School in St. Louis County.

DNR file pho

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Winter 2014 17

cense plate. More information about the li-cense plate can be obtained by visitingmstwc.org. The Missouri Stream Team Pro-gram assists many other organizations, suchas the Ozarks Water Watch Volunteer WaterQuality Monitoring project in the UpperWhite River basin in southwest Missouri.

“Stream Teams are wonderful to workwith and provide valuable data that we usein our annual Status of the Watershed re-port,” said Ronna Haxby, Project Managerfor Ozarks Water Watch. “Teams are reallyactive in the Ozarks and take pride in thebeautiful streams and rivers that are such anintegral part of this area. Everyone involved

with Stream Team should be proud of theway it has flourished in the last 25 years,and I hope it doesn’t diminish in the next 25.”

Haxby knows Missouri streams andrivers still face challenges, and that organi-zations like Stream Team keep stream advo-cacy alive and thriving.

“Their excitement is contagious and theirpassion is inspiring,” Haxby said.

In 25 years, Gov. Ashcroft’s tree hasgrown to maturity. In that same time, theStream Team program has grown to morethan 4,800 teams and approximately 96,000individuals are volunteering on behalf ofstream resources. To Pat Haviland, the mo-tivation to continue maintaining her “back-yard” lies in the future:

“I have heard people say that thechildren are our future, but I be-lieve that our rivers and streamsare our children’s future.”

Susan J. Higgins is an environmental spe-cialist in DNR’s Division of EnvironmentalQuality, Water Protection Program. Sheserves as the volunteer water quality moni-toring coordinator and is responsible forthe department’s participation in the Mis-souri Stream Team Program.

Mark Van Patten, StreamTeam biologist with the Missouri Department ofConservation, joins threevolunteers in collectingmacroinvertebrates duringthe Ozark Fly Fishers’ annual water quality moni-toring outing. The event was held on the CurrentRiver, just outside of Mon-tauk State Park, southwest of Salem. (Left) After collection, thesamples are sorted and counted.

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explore

Three grand mansions are among Missouri’s 87 stateparks and historic sites, and each makes for a great

way to while away a winter’s day. Tours take about an hourand explore the nooks and crannies, revealing secrets abouttheir famous residents.

The homes contain furniture, clothing and other personalpossessions, looking as if their long-gone owners hadmerely stepped out for the day.

Hunter-Dawson State Historic Site is inNew Madrid on the Mississippi River at the southeast tip ofMissouri. The home is an architectural gem with the Geor-gian, Greek Revival and Italianate elements that were pop-ular in homes of the Old South. The 15-room house hasseven bedrooms and nine fireplaces.

William Hunter, a successful dry goods dealer, had thehouse built in 1859-1860. Today, it contains a museum-quality collection of antique furniture that reflects thewealth of a Missouri family prior to the Civil War.

“Visitors get a real insight into how this particular fami-ly lived, and an insight into the Southern culture,” saidMichael Comer, natural resource manager of the site.

Bothwell Lodge State Historic Site isperched like a stone castle on a bluff north of Sedalia offHighway 65. It was built by John Homer Bothwell, whodied in 1929 at the age of 80.

“Bothwell was a very prominent citizen of Sedalia,” saidMarissa Cowen, natural resource manager of the historicsite. “He was a lawyer, politician, businessman and philan-thropist. His dedication to the community and state of Mis-souri was genuine.”

The Arts-and-Crafts style house sits on a bluff 120 feetabove the surrounding countryside. It features a turret, andwas built in four phases, the last completed in 1928. Thehouse had five and a half bathrooms at a time when mostMissourians still used outhouses.

Bothwell’s wife of two years died after giving birth to astillborn child. He never remarried nor had another child, butwas well traveled, well read and filled the home’s 10 guestbedrooms with friends and relatives nearly every weekend.

“He was a very active, very positive person,” Cowensaid. “Some of the neater things in the house are the sou-venirs he picked up from the various places he traveled.”

Cowen said many visitors come for the autumn colors in

A Winter’s Dayat Missouri’s Historic Homes

by Tom Uhlenbrock

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(Opposite page) Hunter-Dawson State HistoricSite contains a museum-quality collection of an-tique furniture. Descendants of the Hunter familyoccupied the house until 1958. In 1966, the cityof New Madrid bought the house and donated itto the state a year later.(Top right) A tour group visits Bothwell LodgeState Historic Site, which was built by JohnHomer Bothwell, a prominent lawyer of Sedalia.(Left) The studio at Thomas Hart Benton Homeand Studio State Historic Site is preserved as itwas when the artist died there in 1975.DNR photo by Tom Uhlenbrock

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fall and after a snow in winter to hike the trails that are partof the historic site.

Thomas Hart Benton Home and StudioState Historic Site in the Westport area of KansasCity contains the personal belongings of one of Missouri’spremier artists, his wife of 52 years, Rita Piacenza and thecouples’ two children.

Benton converted the carriage house at the rear of thefour-bedroom home into a studio. He worked there nearly

every day and died there on Jan. 19, 1975, at the age of 85.Rita died 11 weeks later. The studio displays paints, brushesand a stretched canvas, as if waiting for the artist’s return.

The home contains 13 original Benton paintings, litho-graphs and sculptures.

“During tours, we talk a lot about his artwork, but alsoabout his personality, his lifestyle, his work habits – you re-ally get a sense of who he was,” said Steve Sitton, site ad-ministrator. “We have his books, his paints, his clothes.Definitely, the favorite stop on the tour is his studio.”

During the holiday season, the house is decorated with atree hung with some of the Benton’s ornaments. There alsois a display of Christmas cards sent by the Bentons.

“He would take one of his paintings and use that as the frontof the card,” Sitton said. “We have about a dozen on display.”

Many Missouri state historic sites have modified hoursof operation and tour schedules during thewinter months. For information onhours and admission at state historicsites, visit mostateparks.com.

Tom Uhlenbrock is a writer for Missouri StateParks, a division of the Missouri Departmentof Natural Resources.

explore

Bothwell Lodge State Historic Site is perched on a bluffnorth of Sedalia. The 12,000-square-foot lodge was builtatop two natural caves.

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dnrMissouri Department ofNatural Resources Turns 40

This yearmarks the 40thanniversary ofthe Department

of Natural Resources, which was es-tablished under state reorganization in1974. Missourians value clean air,water, soils and a healthy outdoors forrecreation, and together we haveachieved a great deal in the past 40years. We will continue to work withand for all Missourians to ensure cleanair, water and land for future genera-tions to enjoy.

Watch for additional informationabout DNR’s 40th anniversary in up-coming issues of Missouri Resourcesthroughout the year.

Camp Pin Oak Lodge Reopens

Gov. Jay Nixon cutthe ceremonial ribbon

reopening the Camp Pin Oak Lodge atLake of the Ozarks State Park on Oct.11. Nixon was joined by students andofficials from State Fair CommunityCollege, and leadership from MissouriState Parks and the Missouri Depart-ment of Natural Resources.

The original structure, built in the1930s by the Civilian ConservationCorps, caught fire during a late sum-mer thunderstorm in 2010.

In 2011, Gov. Nixon announced amemorandum of agreement betweenMissouri State Parks and State FairCommunity College in Sedalia for atraining and education project withstudents rebuilding the lodge. TheMissouri Department of Economic De-velopment authorized a community de-velopment block grant of $1.5 million toPettis County to fund the project.

The finished Camp Pin Oak Lodgewas built with careful attention to his-torical accuracy in the same locationand approximate size of the original.

Amenities were designed to match theoriginal building.

New Geologic MapsPublished

The Missouri Ge-ological Survey, adivision of the Mis-souri Department ofNatural Resources, recently publishedthree new geologic maps. Staff geolo-gists Edith Starbuck and MikeSiemens conducted field work in cen-tral Missouri and created bedrock ge-ologic maps of the Guthrie, NewBloomfield and Osage City quadran-gles. Geologic maps provide a base-line for data related to energy re-sources, mineral resources, naturalhazards, water resources, soil conser-vation and climate science.

For more than 20 years, the Mis-souri Geological Survey has partici-pated in the U.S. Geological Survey’sSTATEMAP component of the National

As orange-tinted, sulfur-smellingwater bubbles up into a concrete basin,it is hard to believe that Pertle Springsonce hosted a bustling and successfulmineral water resort. The resort, nearWarrensburg, catered to thousands ofhealth and pleasure seekers from farand wide. On summer weekends, a spe-cial train was set up to carry people backand forth from Warrensburg to the re-sort. Visitation was so heavy, the trainmade multiple daily trips. The PertleSprings Resort and its Hotel Minnewawaoften hosted Fourth of July picnics, tem-perance rallies, free-silver conventions,Chatauquas, and camp meetings. It alsoincluded many other on-site amusements. This August 1897 photograph documents the start of the annual family reunion of the James H. Russell, Sr., family of

Chilhowee. Russell was born in Boonville in 1843, moved to Johnson County in 1866 by covered wagon, and later became asuccessful farmer. Russell’s success as a farmer allowed him to enjoy family gatherings at destinations such as PertleSprings. The background of the image shows part of what was once Stewart Cottage on the grounds of Pertle Springs Re-sort. Russell is seated near the left, holding an umbrella and hat.

Send your photo to “Time Exposures,” c/o Missouri Resources, PO Box 176, Jefferson City, MO 65102-0176. Original photos will be returned via insuredmail. Pre-1970 environmental and natural resource photos from Missouri will be considered. Please try to include the date and location of thepicture, a brief description and any related historic details that might be of interest to our readers.

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For news releases on the Web, visitdnr.mo.gov/newsrel.

For a complete listing of the department’supcoming meetings, hearings and events, visitthe department’s online calendar atdnr.mo.gov/calendar/search.do.

Looking for a job in natural resources?Go to dnr.mo.gov/hr.

Mike Engle is the Stream Team Ambassa-dor Award winner for Volunteer Water QualityMonitoring for his work on Gravois Creek in2012. Mike was born and raised in St. Louisand received a B.S. in biology from St. LouisUniversity. After college, Engle spent twoyears in the U.S. Army working with water-borne and communicable diseases. Thistraining taught him the problems that canarise when water resources become pollut-ed. He later received a Ph.D. in biochemistry,also from St. Louis University. Mike’s educa-tion and background fostered a great deal ofrespect for the chemistry and biology of eco-logical systems. “Fishing and hiking have al-ways been an important part of my family’s

life and we all look forward to spending time in Missouri’s beautiful outdoors,”said Engle. “I am honored and humbled by the 2012 Stream Team AmbassadorAward because I know there are many other individuals whoare as worthy as I to receive this honor. This will only makeme work harder to justify receiving this award.” Mike is cur-rently doing a Cooperative Stream Investigation (CSI) projecton Gravois Creek. He also monitors Little Indian Creek inFranklin County with wife Susie and son Jack.

Mike Engle

Gravois Creek Advocate Wins Ambassador Award

Stream Team Notes

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dnrCooperative Geologic Mapping Pro-gram. During this time, staff geolo-gists have completed 210 bedrockand surficial material maps and com-pleted four 1:100,000 scale maps.These maps may be purchased onlinefrom the Missouri Geology Store at missourigeologystore.com and at 111Fairgrounds Road, Rolla. Web ver-sions of the maps may be viewed on-line at dnr.mo.gov/geology/statemap/missouri-maps.htm.

Missouri State ParksOffers New Mobile Tour System

Missouri State Parks is piloting theuse of hand-held mobile devices toprovide audio tours at Weston BendState Park near Weston, and MastodonState Historic Site in Imperial.

Mobile tours will offer visitors an-other avenue to learn about the cultur-al and natural aspects of each sitethrough historical images, written text,and audio commentary. The system isprovided through the OnCell MobileTour System.

Once at a participating park or site,the mobile tour is accessible in a vari-ety of ways. The full tour can be ac-cessed through the internet, the On-Cell app, or by scanning a QR Codeon each tour stop sign. The tour stillcan be accessed by smartphone or bycalling the phone number listed on thetour signs. Once the number is called,the audio portion of the tour will play.

February is EarthquakeAwareness Month

Each February, Mis-souri observes Earth-quake AwarenessMonth. Three earth-quakes, estimated atmagnitude 7.0 orgreater, occurred along the NewMadrid fault in the winter of 1811-12and small earthquakes occur in Mis-souri daily. These earthquakes are anatural hazard that no one can accu-rately predict.

Fortunately, there are things every-one can do to be better prepared. To

raise awareness, geologists with theMissouri Department of Natural Re-sources will partner with local, stateand federal agencies and organiza-tions by participating in a number ofpublic activities and educational op-portunities regarding the basics ofearthquakes. Missourians are encour-aged to attend public events through-out the month. Learn more atdnr.mo.gov/geology/geosrv/earthquakes.htm.

DNR Education Web PagePosts Bonus MR Content

Starting in this issue ofMissouri Resources, cer-tain stories and contentwill include the icon pic-tured at right to indicatethat additional educational content forthat entry is available. Go todnr.mo.gov/education to access

these, as well as other educational in-formation and links.

The bonus content will vary fromadditional text that was not included inthe print edition, to Web links for moreinformation about the topic or relatedtopics. The blue “e” icon in the printedition will be found on the educationpage next to the link for the online ver-sion of Missouri Resources.

The online version of MR can beaccessed at dnr.mo.gov/magazine/index.html.


F or many Missourians, the unofficial start of spring isMarch 1, when they show up at Bennett Spring, Montauk

or Roaring River state parks for the opening of trout season.For generations, families have lined up, elbow to elbow,

to be the first to snag a lunker trout. If the fish aren’t coop-erating, no problem, you’re still at one of the prettiest spotsin the state.

All three parks are located in deep wooded valleyswhere azure springs pump out millions of gallons of watereach day in a sort of Ozarks Garden of Eden. The source ofthe clear, clean water drew the first settlers, who built mills

topspots

by Tom Uhlenbrock

for grinding corn and cutting timber.The pristine water also proved a perfect habitat for

trout. Two state departments, Natural Resources andConservation, teamed up to create the state’s populartrout-fishing parks. The Department of Natural Re-sources runs the parks, and Conservation operates thehatcheries and stocks the trout.

Here’s what you’ll find at the three parks:

Bennett Spring State Park near LebanonBennett Spring is the fourth largest spring in the

state with an average of a hundred million gallons aday. The flow bubbles up from the base of a steepbluff, and forms the Niangua River, which is a fa-vorite for floaters in the southwest corner of the state.

Civilian Conservation Corps crews worked at thepark in the 1930s and the springwater flows under ahandsome triple-arched stone bridge that is part of theCCC legacy. Other vintage stone-and-timber build-ings house a lodge and restaurant.

The park has a store that sells tackle and other sup-plies and offers 64 rental units, including cabins and a10-room motel. The campground has 192 spaces withfour shower houses. The park has a swimming pooland six trails, totaling 12.5 miles. The longest is 3.5miles and leads through the woods to an unusual geo-logic formation called the Natural Tunnel.

Montauk State Park near SalemMontauk Springs is a series of small springs that

combine to pump out some 43 million gallons a day,forming the headwaters of the Current River, thestate’s top float stream and the jewel of the Ozark Na-tional Scenic Riverways.

The park has a lodge with a restaurant and storeand 18 motel rooms. There also are 28 cabins and 154camp sites with two shower houses in a campgroundnext to the gurgling river. A grist mill built on theriver in 1896 is open for tours in the summer.

The Department of Conservation also stocks theCurrent River outside the park boundaries on down toAkers twice monthly, meaning an angler can alwaysfind a secluded spot to wet a line.

Visitors to Montauk State Park may see the park’sresident bald eagles, which have nested in the tallpines there for more than a decade.

(Top) While at Bennett Spring State Park, take time to fish thespillway, one of the signature features of the park.DNR photo by Andrew Richmond.

(Right) Take your chances fishing the spring area of RoaringRiver State Park. The first trout hatchery was built here in 1910.

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(Above) Bennett Spring State Park hosts various scenic set-tings to support different styles of fishing. (Right) Montauk State Park is home to many lunkers. Yours maybe lurking there, awaiting a pheasant tail nymph.

Roaring River StatePark near Cassville

As you approach thepark, the rolling landscapeof forest and farmland sud-denly drops down into adeep canyon-like valley. Aspring bubbles up from afern-lined grotto at the base of a gray bluff, producing20.4 million gallons each day to form the headwaters ofRoaring River.

The first trout hatchery was built at the site in 1910, andwas rebuilt by the Civilian Conservation Corps in the 1930s.The crews constructed 33 buildings and nearly all remain.

In 1998, the park dedicated the 26-room Emory MeltonInn and Conference Center. The facility, named for a life-long resident of Barry County and former 24-year statelegislator, features wood beams and circular supportcolumns of stonework, reflecting the earlier work andstyle of the CCC.

Roaring River also boasts one of the more stunningsights offered at the three trout parks. During wet weath-er, a waterfall drops 110 feet from the top of the bluff intothe deep blue pool of Roaring River Spring.

“Spectacular” is the description of Dusty Reid,superintendent of the park.

For more information, visit mostateparks.com.

Tom Uhlenbrock is a writer for Missouri State Parks, a division of the Missouri Department of Natural Resources.

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RockMatters

The hardness of quartz (seven on the Mohs scale) makesit harder than most other natural substances. The Mohs

scale of mineral hardness is based on the ability of a hardermineral to scratch a softer mineral – talc being soft (1) and adiamond being hard (10). Quartz is usually colorless, trans-parent or translucent, and is harder than glass or steel.Ordinary acids do not attack quartz and it is relatively unaf-fected by chemical weathering in Missouri.

Quartz can be an excellent gemstone. It is hard and general-ly accepts a brilliant polish. Popular varieties of quartz

include: rose quartz, citrine and amethyst. Quartziferous riversand and gravel is used in concrete aggregate and a road mate-rial. Quartz forming on other types of rock is known as druse.Quartz occurring as drusy coatings on chert and in large massesis used for rock gardens or as ornamental stone. Pure quartzsandstone is used in the manufacture of glass. Drusy and band-ed quartz (agate) may be collected in the extensive barite miningarea of Washington County, near the towns of Potosi, MineralPoint and Old Mines. Geodes found in extreme north-eastern Missouri are almost always lined with quartzcrystals. Learn more about Missouri rocks and miner-als: dnr.mo.gov/geology/docs/rocksetbooklet.pdf

Quartz Quartz, a common and abundant mineral, is an important constituentof many different rock types. It appears as individual grains in sand-stone, as microscopically fine grains in chert, as small crystals insedimentary rocks, and as lustrous, angular grains in granite and rhy-olite. It also is present as distinct crystals lining the hollow, sphericalbodies of some geodes.

(Left) It isn’t easy to tell what the inside of a geode holds until it is cut open orbroken apart. (Bottom left) A quartz crystal. (Bottom right) A drusy quartz formedon dolomite with calcite crystals. DNR photos by Mark Gordon.

Did you know that approximately 15 percent of households in theUnited States rely on their own private drinking water sources? Whilepublic drinking water systems that serve many people are regulatedby U.S. Environmental Protection Agency standards, it is the respon-sibility of individual owners to test and maintain private water wells.

If you rely on a private well for drinking water, the MissouriDepartment of Health and Senior Services provides a free water sample collection kit and will test your waterfor only $10. The test will look for Coliform and E. coli bacteria and should be done at least annually, unlessyou suspect an interim problem.

Missourians having a private well drilled must select a proper location for the well and use materials andmethods that meet established standards set forth by the Missouri Well Construction Rules. The constructionof a safe well involves a partnership between the Missouri Department of Natural Resources, the permittedwell contractor and the well owner. The department’s Missouri Geological Survey is responsible for ensuringstandards are met. They also license well and pump contractors performing work on wells in Missouri andinvestigate citizen concerns.

For more information on water testing, visit health.mo.gov/lab/privatedrinkingwater.php. For more information on private well construction andmaintenance or to find a licensed well or pump installation contractor, visit dnr.mo.gov/geology/geosrv/wellhd/ or contact the MissouriGeological Survey’s Wellhead Protection section at 573-368-2165.

Fifteen Percent of U.S. Households Use Private Drinking Water Wellsdid

youknow

discover the story of the watershed,set goals for the watershed and planaction that helps us reach those goals.

Currently, we are assessing howour process is working thus far andrecommending improvements as wetransition from a pilot to full imple-mentation. In 2014, the departmentwill begin its full implementation bystarting conversations in additionalwatersheds throughout the state.However, we won’t forget about ourthree pilot watersheds. Their process

has only just begun. We will continuethe conversations and continue towork toward our shared goals.

To follow our progress, to learnmore about the watershed approachand to learn more about the eventsfrom the first three pilot watersheds –Spring River, Lower Grand and BigRiver – visit dnr.mo.gov/omwi.htm.

Jennifer Hoggatt is the department’sstatewide coordinator for the OurMissouri Waters initiative.

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not least

Our state waters and watershedshave a story to tell, and we’re

listening. Every body of water has awatershed; it’s the land around it thatdrains into it. Even our undergroundwater has a watershed. And, the activ-ities that occur on that land around oron top of a water body have an impacton that water body. Those familiarwith a particular watershed know itsstory better than anyone, and we wantto hear those stories, too.

Historically, the department has di-rected its efforts toward implementa-tion of the federal Clean Water Act. Indoing so, we focused on point-sourcedischarges or discharges from a pipe.By addressing these types of dis-charges, we have made great strides inreducing pollution. However, pollu-tants remain and finding their sourcehas become more challenging. Today,we often cannot “see” the source ofpollution. Instead, we must “seek” thesource of pollution. Seeking meanslistening to the story a watershed hasto tell.

The department’s watershed ap-proach, known as Our Missouri Wa-ters, began its pilot phase this pastyear. Throughout the year, we focusedon three watersheds in the state to tryout a new approach to gather andshare information about what is reallygoing on in each watershed. What arethe concerns? What are the opportuni-ties? What are the real challengesfaced in addressing those concerns?Finding the answers to these ques-tions is not the end, it is just the be-ginning. The Department of NaturalResources is committed to workingwith all partners toward practical ac-tions that result in clean and abundantwater for generations to come.

DNR hosted three summits to markthe start of a continuing process to

Cliff swallows soar above the Chariton River near the Chariton-Carroll county line.

Just the Beginningby Jennifer Hoggattphotograph by Scott Myers

MISSOURI DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCESPO Box 176Jefferson City, MO 65102-0176

Nonprofit Org.US POSTAGE PAID

MO Dept. ofNatural

Resources

First Day Hikes!Join Missouri State Parks incelebrating the beginning of2014 with First Day Hikes onJanuary 1. First Day Hikes arepromoted by America’s StateParks, and you will be joininghikers from all 50 states thatare connecting to the out-

doors by taking a healthy hike.

Learn more and find a hikenear you at mostateparks.com. Missouri State Parks is a divisionof the Missouri Department

of Natural Resources.

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