REGIONAL MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING 

BETWEEN 

THE NATURE CONSERVANCY 

THROUGH ITS MIDWEST/CANADA, GREAT PLAINS, SOUTHEAST, AND 

SOUTH CENTRAL DIVISIONS 

AND THE 

UNITED STATES ARMY CORPS OF ENGINEERS 

MISSISSIPPI VALLEY DIVISION 

THROUGH ITS ST. PAUL, ROCK ISLAND, ST. LOUIS, MEMPIDS, 

VICKSBURG, AND NEW ORLEANS DISTRICTS 

I. INTRODUCTION. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and The Nature Conservancy 

executed a national Memorandum of Understanding (National MOU) on December 14, 

2000, in order to facilitate effective and efficient management of important biological 

resources within the context of the Corps' civil works and regulatory missions, and to 

meet the objectives outlined in that MOU. 

This Regional Memorandum of Understanding (Regional MOU) is entered between the 

Mississippi Valley Division of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (MVD) through the St. 

Paul, Rock Island, St. Louis, Memphis, Vicksburg, and New Orleans Districts, 

represented by their respective District Commanders (hereinafter, MVD Districts), and 

The Nature Conservancy, acting through its Midwest/Canada, Great Plains, Southeast, 

and South Central Divisions (hereinafter the Conservancy) for the purposes of facilitating 

regional interests and objectives within each parties' area of responsibility and interest. 

This Regional MOU incorporates, and is subject to all of the conditions and terms of the 

National MOU. In case of a conflict between this Regional MOU and the National 

MOU, the National MOU provisions shall prevail. The geographic scope of this 

Regional MOU shall be the Mississippi River, its floodplains, from its headwaters to its 

delta, and major tributaries and distributaries of exceptional ecological value (for 

example, the Illinois Waterway, the Hatchie River and Bottoms, the Lower White River 

and Basin, the Lower Arkansas River, the Yazoo River and Basin, and the Atchafalaya 

River and Basin). 

II. PURPOSE. The parties seek to facilitate effective and efficient management of 

important natural resources within the context of each MVD District's civil works 

missions, and the mission of the Conservancy; to the extent authorized by law and 

USACE and Conservancy policies. The following objectives are agreed upon within the 

geographic scope of this Regional MOU: 

A. Promote the restoration and conservation of a functional floodplain ecosystem in 

a manner that contributes to meeting human needs and to protecting the natural 

biological communities and diversity of the floodplain ecosystem. 
B. Promote the conservation, stabilization, and restoration of functional stream/river 

channels and river banks in a manner that contributes to meeting human needs 

and to protecting functional river and stream ecosystems and their native 

biological diversity. 

C. Promote prudent and effective management of water resources in a manner that 

contributes to meeting human needs and to protecting a functional largefloodplain river ecosystem and its native biological diversity. 

D. Promote new and innovative techniques and strategies for managing water 

resources and for restoring channels, streambanks, and floodplains; and, as 

appropriate, encourage and support projects that demonstrate these techniques and 

strategies and that measures their potential to contribute to meeting the goals for 

achieving a sustainable ecosystem. 

III. RESPONSIBILITIES. The parties, to the extent authorized by law and USACE 

and Conservancy policies and within existing legal authorities, agree as follows: 

A. The MVD Districts will consider environmental sustainability concepts suggested 

by the Conservancy for incorporation into the conceptualization, evaluation, 

planning, construction, and operation of MVD District projects within the 

geographic scope of this Regional MOU. 

B. The Conservancy shall, as appropriate and subject to its internal policy regarding 

confidential information, contribute pertinent scientific and conservation planning 

information to MVD Districts for their projects within the geographic scope of 

this Regional MOU. 

C. The MVD Districts and the Conservancy shall share information and expertise in 

exploring potential restoration and water-management projects to help ensure that 

these projects, as appropriate, are designed using the best and most current 

knowledge and technology, take advantage of innovative and new approaches, 

include well-designed adaptive management plans, and advance the state-of-theart for engineering projects that are ecologically sustainable in a multi-use arena. 

This may include, where authority and funding are available, jointly undertaking 

demonstration projects and identifying and pursuing policies and programs 

needed to implement any such projects. 

D. The MVD Districts and the Conservancy will work together to monitor and assess 

the success of any joint projects, and to disseminate lessons learned to interested 

parties to benefit restoration and water management projects throughout the 

region. 

E. The MVD Districts and the Conservancy will work together to promote the 

broader use of restoration and water level management tools and techniques that 
have proven successful. This may include identifying and pursuing policies and 

programs needed to implement them on a larger scale. 

F. The Conservancy will, as appropriate and subject to staff availability, participate 

in advis0ry groups to the MVD Districts, including such groups as the Navigation 

Environmental Coordinating Committee, River Resources Forum, River 

Resources Coordinating Team, River Resources Advisory Team, Lower 

Mississippi River Resource Assessment, and their respective committees and 

workgroups. 

G. The parties to this Regional MOU recognize that the MVD District projects must 

operate in accordance with authorized project purposes and funding limitations. 

All actions taken by the MVD Districts in accordance with this Regional MOU 

are subject to the availability of funds, and nothing in this Regional MOU shall be 

interpreted as constituting a violation of the Anti-Deficiency Act. 

H. This Regional MOU is neither a fiscal nor a funds obligation document. Any 

endeavor involving reimbursement or contribution of funds between the parties to 

the Regional MOU will be handled in accordance with applicable laws, 

regulations, and procedures. Such endeavors, if any, will be outlined in separate 

agreements that shall be made in writing by representatives of the parties and 

shall be independently authorized by appropriate statutory authority. This 

Regional MOU does not provide such authority. Specifically, this MOU does not 

establish authority for the noncompetitive award to the Conservancy of any 

contract or other agreement. 

I. Nothing in this Regional MOU prohibits the parties from soliciting or receiving 

advice and assistance in the objectives set forth above from other governmental 

entities, and private groups or individuals. 

J. The MVD Districts, while receptive to the provision of suggestions, concepts, and 

scientific and conservation planning information from the Conservancy and all 

other public entities, remain responsible for all decisions involving the planning 

and implementation of projects as authorized by law and for which funds are 

available. 

IV. IMPLEMENTATION. This Regional MOU becomes effective when signed by all 

signatory parties and remains in effect until modified or terminated by either party. 

Modifications to the National MOU will also be considered to have modified this 

Regional MOU. For the purposes of this Regional MOU, the Midwest/Canada Division 

is designated as the lead division within the Conservancy, and St. Louis is designated as 

the lead District within the MVD Districts. 

V. COUNTERPARTS. This Regional MOU may be executed in any number of 

counterparts, each of which when executed shall be deemed to be an original and all of 

which when taken together shall constitute one and the same agreement. 
JtL& 

Brigadier General, USA 

Commanding 

an 

Colone , .S. Army 

District Engineer 

New Orleans District 

Colonel, U.S. Army 

District Engineer 

St. Paul District 

/1 kaY ~f Date 
Duane ~~~ P. Gapinski 

Colonel, U.S. Army 

District Engineer 

Rock Island District 

C. Kevin Williams 

Colonel, U.S. Army 

District Engineer 

x=twlh~ nis McGrattl 

Director, Midwest/Canada Division 

The Nature Conservancy 

j~k0~ RObMCKiiT; t 

Director, Great Plains Division 

The Nature Conservancy 

·~tr== Robert Bendick 

Director, Southeast Division 

The Nature Conservancy 

13A1AY& 

Date 

Date