Loosahatchie Bar

Congratulations!
Every once in a while, we like to congratulate and showcase one of our Partners in a significant accomplishment for our great river and the Mississippi River Corridor – Tennessee.

This month we've chosen The Lower Mississippi River Conservation Committee and their recent completion of the Loosahatchie Bar Conservation Project. Directed by Dr. Ron Nassar, in consultation with the Memphis District Corps of Engineers, U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and several federal, state and private sector partners, this project is part of a landscape-scale conservation plan – "Restoring America's Greatest River."

Location
Loosahatchie Bar, located in two counties in two states (Shelby County, Tennessee and Crittenden County, Arkansas), is located on the west bank of the Mississippi River directly across from the city of Memphis.



History
In the 1960s it became necessary for the Memphis District U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to construct rock dikes to divert flow from Loosahatchie Bar back to the river to maintain a safe navigation channel.



Sedimentation has increased within the Loosahatchie Bar, causing the loss of aquatic habitat and restricting the passage of fish through the area.

Although parts of the channel have a water depth of 10 feet during the spring and early summer, much of the area often dries completely later in the year.


Conservation Success and Benefits
In the fall of 2008, the LMRCC constructed 12 notches in eight of the stone dikes, and restored the flow of the Mississippi River through more than 11 miles of the Loosahatchie Bar.



The project will benefit the Least Tern, Pallid Sturgeon and Fat Pocketbook Mussel, which are federally endangered species found in the area, as well as improve habitat for recreationally and commercially important fish species.

Revitalizing the Lower Mississippi River ecosystem and providing outdoor recreational opportunities will improve our quality of life in the Memphis region. It will also promote nature-based tourism, one of the fastest growing segments in both the international and national tourism industries, which provide an economic stimulus of $2 Billion/Day worldwide.



The project will also restore aquatic habitat for wetland-dependent birds using the Mississippi Flyway migration corridor and provide additional opportunities for conservation education.


Our great thanks go to our valued partners, The Lower Mississippi River Conservation Committee, for their wonderful work in conservation and restoration of the Lower Mississippi River.