The Bad River sloughs were designated a Ramsar Wetland of International Importance on February 2, 2012.

[7] The Bad River initially flows southwestwardly before turning generally to the north for most of its course, along which it passes through the city of Mellen, Copper Falls State Park, and the community of Odanah in the Bad River Indian Reservation.

[6] In the vicinity of Mellen, the riverbed is commonly bedrock and boulder-strewn with numerous whitewater rapids; the river passes over waterfalls and through a granite gorge in Copper Falls State Park.

It is a "largely undeveloped wetland complex composed of sloughs, bogs and coastal lagoons that harbor the largest natural wild rice bed on the Great Lakes".

The wetlands are threatened by invasive species, potential upriver mining and wastewater from human activities.