Fairmont Drinking Water and Watershed Restoration Phase 1
This project will improve water quality in the nutrient impaired Fairmont Chain of Lakes. These 5 lakes are a surface water drinking water source for a City of over 10,000 people. Phase one of this multi-phase water quality restoration project focuses on installing 12 targeted agricultural best management practices such as bioreactors, saturated buffers and grassed waterways and will reduce nitrogen by over 1,000 pounds per year, sediment by over 130 tons per year, and phosphorus by over 200 pounds per year.
This project will improve water quality in the Fairmont Chain of Lakes. These 5 lakes are a surface water drinking water source for a City of over 10,000 people and a recreational hub of south central Minnesota. Phase one of this multi-phase water quality restoration project focuses on installing 12 targeted agricultural best management practices to reduce nitrogen, as well as phosphorus and sediment. All five lakes that constitute the Fairmont Chain of Lakes are impaired for nutrients. This application will install bioreactors, grassed waterways, saturated buffers, and water and sediment control basins in order to improve water quality in these lakes and improve the drinking water quality for over 10,000 people.
Annie Felix-Gerth
(b) $6,882,000 the first year and $12,618,000 the second year are for grants to protect and restore surface water and drinking water; to keep water on the land; to protect, enhance, and restore water quality in lakes, rivers, and streams; and to protect groundwater and drinking water, including feedlot water quality and subsurface sewage treatment system projects and stream bank, stream channel, shoreline restoration, and ravine stabilization projects. The projects must use practices demonstrated to be effective, be of long-lasting public benefit, include a match, and be consistent with total maximum daily load (TMDL) implementation plans, watershed restoration and protection strategies (WRAPS), or local water management plans or their equivalents. A portion of these funds may be used to seek administrative efficiencies through shared resources by multiple local governmental units.
Phase 1 of our restoration plan will reduce nitrogen by over 1,000 pounds per year, total suspended solids by over 130 tons per year, and phosphorus by over 200 pounds per year.
This grant reached the following pollution reductions and practices (application compared to actual results): 100% of waterways (5), 0% of bioreactors (0/2), 100% of saturated buffers (2/2), and 100% of WASCOBs (3/3) resulting in pollution reductions of 26% of Phosphorus (25.27 lbs/yr out of 200 lbs/yr), 95% of TSS (123.27 T/yr out of 130 T/yr, 226% of Soil (248.75 T/yr out of 110 T/yr), and 100% of Nitrogen (1002/91 lbs/yr out of 1000 lbs/yr).
Not all grant funds were spent and some pollution reductions and practice numbers fell short. However, the project leveraged Federal funds as match and some additional activities occurred due to the SWCD's outreach around this grant and the nitrate issues in the city of Fairmont ( 4 CREP wetland restoration contracts totaling 100 acres and multiple CRP contracts installed over another 114 acres.).
LOCAL LEVERAGED FUNDS