LLDRM Environmental

In the nineteenth century, dams were built by the U.S. War Department, now the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The dam on the Mississippi River at the outlet of Lake Winnibigoshish and the dam at the outlet of Leech Lake via the Leech River (Federal Dam) were both in operation in 1884.  These dams were purportedly constructed for navigational purposes, primarily to aid in transport of harvested timber, but wealthy grain mill owners in the Twin Cities area also exerted a great deal of influence.  Other reasons for the construction were flood control and water storage for downstream users.  In 1993, the Army Corps of Engineers declared that next to navigational interest, the trust responsibility to the Leech Lake and Mille Lacs Bands of Ojibwe were the next order or priority, above flood control, water supply needs, and other downstream uses these water control structures are a concern to Tribal members and natural resource managers due to their potential harm to natural wild rice stands if water levels are not managed properly.

In 1934, the Wheeler-Howard Act (Indian Reorganization Act of 1934) attempted to correct the years of bad federal policy, which had placed the Indian in a worse situation than ever before.  The Minnesota Chippewa Tribe was created.  The MCT is made up of six Chippewa reservations (bands) in Northern Minnesota; White Earth, Fond du Lac, Bois Forte, Mille Lacs, Grand Portage, and Leech Lake.