A hundred fifty years ago, seemingly endless prairie covered much of theMidwest. All that remains across the entire region is one half of onepercent of the original native prairie. Now, in Minnesota, one largearea is under siege. And federal, state and county officials, miningcompanies, and environmental groups are wrestling with the question ofwhat’s more important: rare native prairie, or the rich gravel depositsbeneath the prairie. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Dan Gundersonreports:
Transcript
A hundred fifty years ago, seemingly endless prairie covered
much of the Midwest. All that remains
across the entire region is one half of one percent of the
original native prairie. Now, in Minnesota, one large area is under siege.
And federal, state and county officials, mining companies, and
environmental groups are wrestling with the question …what’s more
important …rare native prairie, or the rich gravel deposits beneath the
prairie. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Dan Gunderson reports:
(Sound of prairie)
Standing atop the eastern shore of ancient glacial Lake Agassiz it’s not difficult to
imagine water rather than flowing fields of grain stretching to the horizon. The
prairie atop this ridge has been evolving since the lake receded from this beach
some nine thousand years ago. It’s considered one of the best dry prairies in the
world, and is home to several endangered or threatened plants and animals.
(Sound of truck)
However, A truck rumbling by in a cloud of dust is a reminder prairie is not the
only important resource here. Some of the richest gravel deposits in Minnesota
lie beneath this ground. Piles of gravel dot the prairie landscape.
The prairie is a subtle landscape, experiencing its unique plants and animals
takes time and patience.
(Sound of Prairie Chickens)
In early spring the strange spectacle of the prairie chicken mating dance echoes
across this ridge at sunrise.
In the fall, large flocks of sandhill cranes gather to begin their annual migration.
In summer, it’s home to dozens of relatively rare plants and animals.
{Sound of walking through grass}
As Minnesota Department of Natural Resources Prairie Biologist Peter Buessler
walks across a 160 acre prairie plot, surrounded on three sides by gravel pits,
“Just a second. There goes a regal frittelary, which is a rare butterfly.”
The state of Minnesota has identified 17 rare animals and 19 rare plants on this
site.
Researchers have been collecting insects here for six years and expect to
identify more than two thousand species, some as yet undiscovered.
The most notable insects here are the endangered eulers arctic and dakota
skipper butterflys.
This prairie was part of the nearly 20-thousand square miles of prairie that once
covered western Minnesota. Most of the prairie became farmland, only a few
fragments remain. This beach ridge escaped the farmers plow because it was
too dry and rocky, considered wasteland. But in the past 50 years gravel mines
have inexorably chewed up much of? the remaining prairie.
“I wish I’d a won the lottery back in the 1970s. That woulda been
great.”
Richard Pemble is a biologist at Minnesota State University Moorhead. In the
early 1970’s he helped complete the first survey of remaining native prairie sites.
He says nearly half of the areas identified
then as important, have since been destroyed.
He says it’s much like an architect watching historically significant buildings fall to
the wrecking ball.
“As a biologist I feel the same way as I see places I know as a
professional are so important are so significant and so unusual, to lose
those just makes your stomach churn. It’s really hard to take.”
The Department of Natural resources and private groups such as the nature
conservancy have purchased and preserved some prairie but state Prairie
Biologist Peter Buessler says the state cannot stop the destruction of what
remains .
“To save prairie you have to negotiate because us as citizens, the
public in general have not created a law that says prairie is endangered.”
Intricate negotiations over the future of the Felton prairie complex are underway .
A long term land use plan is being developed by the U-S Fish and Wildlife
Service, the D-N-R, private mining companies, and Clay county which owns
much of the land and the nearest gravel mine,
The plan will focus on county owned land, but it will likely also guide how the
county regulates private development in the future.
Private gravel company officials declined to be interviewed or were unavailable
for comment.
County commissioner Jon Evert represents Clay County. He says he’s committed
to reaching an agreement both sides can live with, but he admits not all county
officials share his viewpoint.
“Its one of those issues that seems to many people kind of
ridiculous that we’re going to stop taking mineral resources that are
essential for the continuation of civilization in this area to protect a few
butterflies. But it’s more than that. It’s an ecosystem that cannot be
replaced.”
As gravel resources diminish in the next twenty years there will likely be
increasing pressure to mine the high quality gravel under the Felton Prairie.
Prairie Biologist Peter Buessler says there will always be a danger the prairie will
be destroyed unless it receives permanent protection.
Buessler says small encroachments on the prairie are difficult to stop but the
long term effect may be disastrous.
The future of the Felton prairie complex and the gravel beneath it is expected to
be decided be decided by next year when a long term land use plan is
completed.
For the Great Lakes Radio Consortium, this is Dan Gunderson.