PROTECT

Speaking up for this special place

Connecting communities, decision makers, and stakeholders to the wild and scenic values of the St. Croix Watershed.

Federally Managed Zone

230 miles: Headwaters to Stillwater

The National Park Service oversees management direction to protect and enhance the values for which the St. Croix National Scenic Riverway was designated as a component of the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System and unit of the National Park Service. The rivers contain a free-flowing condition, good water quality, and aquatic, cultural, recreational, riparian, scenic-aesthetic, and geologic values.

The Comprehensive River Management Plan

Cooperatively Managed Zone

25 miles: Stillwater to Prescott

In 1972, the Lower St. Croix River became one of our country’s few national Wild and Scenic Rivers. As a result of this unique designation, Minnesota and Wisconsin adopted zoning standards for a strip of land along the St. Croix River’s shores. This Riverway overlay zone consists of building restrictions designed to protect water quality, provide habitat for birds, fish, and wildlife, and maintain a relatively unspoiled view for the millions of visitors drawn to the Riverway.

Visit your state’s Department of Natural Resources to learn more

Minnesota DNR

Wisconsin DNR

Workshop on the Water

Connecting community leaders to the Riverway's values

The annual St. Croix WOW offers a unique opportunity for community leaders to network, access support from state and local government, and learn about issues such as harmful algal blooms, shoreline and stream restoration, ash tree management, aquatic plants, wake boats and ordinances, and local policy tools.

Learn More

Watershed Wide

While the Wild & Scenic Rivers Act and Lower Riverway Protections offer a thin ribbon of protection, what happens in the greater 7,800 square mile St. Croix Watershed affects these ecosystems directly. Connecting the diverse communities that live, work, and recreate within the watershed, to rare values of the land in the water, will have longterm impact.

St. Croix River Research Rendezvous

Since 1989, the St. Croix River Research Rendezvous has brought together scientists, resource managers, and interested citizens to share and learn about research conducted in the St. Croix River Watershed.

Save the date | Registration coming soon.
Tuesday, October, 6th 2026

A photoof the lower St. Croix River shows a rusted railraod bridge, and sandy river banks