Title 16ConservationRelease 119-73

§722 Acquisition of lands and water

Title 16 › Chapter CHAPTER 8— - UPPER MISSISSIPPI RIVER NATIONAL WILDLIFE AND FISH REFUGE › § 722

Last updated Apr 6, 2026|Official source

Summary

The Secretary may buy, accept gifts, or lease nonagricultural land and water along the Mississippi River between Rock Island, Illinois, and Wabasha, Minnesota, including islands, if suitable for the chapter; acquired areas join the refuge.

Full Legal Text

Title 16, §722

Conservation — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

The Secretary of the Interior is authorized to acquire, by purchase, gift, or lease, such areas of land, or of land and water, situated between Rock Island, Illinois, and Wabasha, Minnesota, on either side of or upon islands in the Mississippi River which are not used for agricultural purposes, as he determines suitable for the purposes of this chapter, and any such area when acquired shall become a part of the Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge (referred to in this chapter as the “refuge”).

Legislative History

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

Codification Section is a combination provision, the latter portion beginning with the words “and any such area,” being from section 3, and the remainder of the section from section 2 of act June 7, 1924.

Amendments

1998—Pub. L. 105–312, which directed the amendment of section 2 of the Upper Mississippi River Wild Life and Fish Refuge Act by substituting “National Wildlife” for “Wild Life”, was executed to the part of this section based on section 3 of the act, to reflect the probable intent of Congress. See Codification note above. 1934—Act June 18, 1934, struck out “which are subject to overflow by such river” after “Mississippi River”.

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Land Conveyance, Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge Pub. L. 105–312, title II, § 202(a), Oct. 30, 1998, 112 Stat. 2957, provided that: “In accordance with section 4(a)(5) of the National Wildlife Refuge System Administration Act of 1966 (16 U.S.C. 668dd(a)(5)), there are transferred to the Corps of Engineers, without reimbursement, approximately 37.36 acres of land of the Upper Mississippi River Wildlife and Fish Refuge in the State of Minnesota, as designated on the map entitled ‘Upper Mississippi National Wildlife and Fish Refuge lands transferred to Corps of Engineers’, dated January 1998, and available, with accompanying legal descriptions of the land, for inspection in appropriate offices of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service.” Additional LandsAct June 13, 1944, ch. 243, 58 Stat. 274, provided for the acquisition of certain tracts of land situated in Wabasha County, Minnesota.

Executive Documents

Transfer of Functions

Reorg. Plan No. II of 1939, set out in the Appendix to Title 5, Government Organization and Employees, transferred functions of Secretary of Agriculture relating to conservation of wildlife, game, and migratory birds to Secretary of the Interior.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

16 U.S.C. § 722

Title 16Conservation

Last Updated

Apr 6, 2026

Release point: 119-73