BUREAU OF GEOLOGY


 APPENDIX E
 PEATLANDS MANAGEMENT

 PEATLANDS MANAGEMENT, STATE OF MINNESOTA

 Elements of a Management Program for the Peatlands
 (Taken from Asmussen, 1980)

 "Following legislative review and response in 1981 the Minnesota
Peat Program must create a long-term management program for the
peatlands. Some of the elements of a program are already in place, for
example, the leasing of horticultural peat. Should the energy and other
peatland development proposals discussed above be realized, manage-
ment concerns and responsibilities will multiply.
 "One important element in an on-going program is a routine site-
selection process. Criteria are being established for identifying peatland
areas suitable for one or another type of utilization. A list of possible site
selection criteria is presented in Table 3, below.

 "Table 3. Peatland Utilization Site Selection Criteria

 1. Peat quality and depth
 2. Accessibility
 3. Watershed configuration
 4. Ownership pattern
 5. Proximity to existing development
 6. Existing bog disturbance
 7. Presence of unique features
 8. Presence of conflicting uses or management status
 9. Regional benefit of proposed development
 10. Regional costs of proposed development

 "Site selection processes must be complemented with the designation
of management units. In Minnesota, management units will be defined
primarily by watershed boundaries because water flow and direction are
the most critical impact vectors in the peatland ecosystem. Management
units might coincide with smaller watersheds. In larger watersheds it
may be possible to site developments at the downstream part of the
watershed, thereby limiting total watershed disturbance.
 "The mechanism for allocating peatland to various utilizations has
been, and will probably continue to be, leasing. The state of Minnesota
owns or manages over 50 percent of the peatland in the state and about
70 percent of the peat in northern Minnesota considered most suitable
for energy developments. Traditionally, the Department of Natural
Resources has leased areas of peat for horticultural and agricultural uses
and is likely to use this mechanism for energy utilization should it occur.
 "The lease is more than a simple covenant between owner and lessee.