INTRODUCTION 



BACKGROUND 



When this project began in 1982, the major objective was to 

 determine the effects of barge fleeting on mussels. The need for 

 such a study was, and remains, urgent because of the increase in 

 the number of permit requests for fleeting areas. Proposed sites 

 are primarily along the Mississippi and Illinois rivers just north 

 of St. Louis, Missouri, although encroachment of river terminals 

 and fleeting areas on mussel beds is a general problem on other 

 navigable rivers. Because there are no data on effects of 

 fleeting on mussel beds in rivers, permit seekers and hearing 

 officers are free to conclude that there are no demonstrated 

 effects. If barge fleeting does have adverse effects on mussels, 

 then many mussel beds will be damaged in the future as more and 

 more permits are issued. 



A few examples give an idea of the magnitude and extent of 

 the problem. New locks and a dam across the Mississippi River at 

 Alton, Illinois are currently under construction, and traffic 

 limitations caused both by the new construction and by limitations 

 of the old lock have created a demand for fleeting areas in the 



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vicinity. In addition, _germits are being requested for new 



fleeting areas u p s tr eam^in expectation of an increase in 

 commercial navigation once the new locks are opened. In just one 

 10-mile reach of the Mississippi River (river mile 207- 217) there 



