MoRAP - University of Missouri
4200 New Haven Road
Columbia, MO 65201
(573) 876-1834
morapwebmaster@missouri.edu
Inland Sensitivity Atlas
   
Hermann C Map
The Missouri River corridor is of special concern to environmental planners because it harbors significant environmental resources such as wetlands, endangered species (e.g. pallid sturgeon, least tern), and adjacent loess hills natural communities. The corridor also serves as a transportation route, both on the river itself and along major highways near the river, and supports large cities such as St. Louis, Kansas City, and Omaha. Fertile croplands usually occupy the floodplain from bluff to bluff. Planners need to have an accurate inventory of the significant natural resources of the corridor as well as the environmental hazards so that risks can be avoided or recognized and mitigated. A detailed sensitivity atlas available to planners and researchers will be a format useful to promoting sustainable development in the river corridor.
The sensitivity atlas provides easily accessible digital and hard copy atlases for EPA Region 7, specifically the Missouri river, that pinpoint natural species, environmental hazards, and political boundaries both in the river and on the floodplain; this format allows planners an accurate inventory of the significant areas of the corridor so that risks can be avoided or recognized and mitigated.
We created a turn-key GIS designed for us by EPA First-Responders for two counties along the Missouri River. Methods we developed we employed by EPA Region 7 staff to move forward with the development of a Sensitivity Atlas for the entire Missouri River Corridor within EPA Region 7.