Catch, Clean & Circulate: Stormwater Management for Gull and Trout Lakeshed
Crow Wing SWCD is building off its success with Project Recharge and expanded the program to target Gull and Big Trout lakes. The SWCD selected these two lakes because of their declining transparency readings, 25 interested landowners, 2 adjacent resorts, and the community support, past partnerships, valuable fisheries, high ratio of forested land, and low ratio of impervious area in the lakeshed.The SWCD worked with partners to find willing landowners and businesses to complete the following types of projects:Swap Rock for Native Stock: Implement bioengineering to stabilize shorelines. All projects are approximately 750 square feet.Buff up Your Shoreline: Restore native vegetative buffers to shoreline. All projects are approximately 750 square feet.Rain, Rain, Soak Away: Install residential raingardens sized to infiltrate a 1 rain event.The SWCD hosted a hands-on demonstration shoreline buffer workshop with over 30 people attending. Additional, the SWCD partnered with City of Lakeshore, and MN DNR, to restore over 2000 linear feet of Stoney Brook a Gull Lake tributary trout stream. The project is located at the heart of the Fritz Loven Park. The SWCD will install interpretative signage in summer 2012. This project enhanced the trout habitat and provided an important connection to previously installed DNR Fishers' lunker structures.
Nicole Clapp
(c) $3,000,000 the first year and $3,000,000 the second year are for nonpoint source pollution reduction and restoration grants to watershed districts, watershed management organizations, counties, and soil and water conservation districts for grants in addition to grants available under paragraphs (a) and (b) to keep water on the land and to protect, enhance, and restore water quality in lakes, rivers, and streams, and to protect groundwater and drinking water. The projects must be of long-lasting public benefit, include a local match, and be consistent with TMDL implementation plans or local water management plans. Up to five percent may be used for administering the grants (2011 - Clean Water Assistance)
Collectively these projects will remove an estimated 500 pounds/year of sediment, 7 pounds of phosphorus, and 100,000 gallons of annual runoff from Big Trout and Gull Lakes.
This project has yielded and estimated phosporus reduction of 7 lbs/yr, TSS of 8 tons/yr, and soil loss reduction of 7 tons/yr.