Metro Sub-Watershed Analysis (SWA) 2019
It is critical to train new staff, create modeling protocols for new BMPs, refine and calibrate models, and test ever-advancing modeling applications. The Metro Conservation District?s (MCD) Sub-Watershed Analysis (SWA) program provides these capacity-building services and unites efforts across 11 SWCDs. MCD proposes to analyze an additional 15 subwatersheds. The analyses will identify the location and estimated cost/benefit relationship for BMPs, evolve with new technology, and share discoveries metro-wide.
Ensuring natural resource practitioners are applying state-of-the-art approaches is the best way to achieve optimum BMP selection, design, and placement in the landscape, thereby maximizing CWF benefits. To that end, it is critical to train new staff, create modeling protocols for new BMPs, refine and calibrate models, and test ever-advancing modeling applications. The Metro Conservation District's (MCD) Sub-Watershed Analysis (SWA) program provides these capacity-building services and unites efforts across 11 SWCDs. Funding is requested to continue and evolve the SWA program.
Recent success illustrates the adaptive nature of this program. WinSLAMM has been employed in urban landscapes to function beyond its design intent by modeling the benefits to receiving water bodies of practices such as iron enhanced sand filters and hydrodynamic separators. Adapted methods are shared among SWCD staff. Efforts are currently underway by metro SWCDs to apply modeling applications such as SWAT to rural landscapes. Although SWAT was not developed to model BMP efficacy, methodologies are rapidly being developed to model practices such as sediment basins, seasonal ponding and tile inlet modifications.
The SWA program has had quantifiable impact on water quality improvement efforts. During the first 36 months of funding, this process resulted in 63 analyses that are completed or underway and identified over 4,000 site specific BMPs. Many CWF project grant applications are the result of SWAs propelling cost effective projects onto local priority lists.
MCD proposes to analyze an additional 15 subwatersheds that contribute to the degradation of locally identified high priority water resources. The analyses will identify the location and estimated cost/benefit relationship for BMPs, evolve with new technology, and share discoveries metro-wide.
Annie Felix-Gerth
$3,325,000 the first year and $4,275,000 the second year are for accelerated implementation, including local resource protection and enhancement grants and statewide program enhancements of supplements for technical assistance, citizen and community outreach, compliance, and training and certification.
This project will result in the preparation of up to 15 SWAs in urban and rural landscapes to identify BMP installation opportunities, estimate BMP installation costs, and rank BMPs by cost effectiveness at achieving target water resource goals.
The TSA reviewed and refined subwatershed assessment protocols to incorporate current methods and models to assist the 11 member soil and water conservation districts (SWCDs) in analysis of small rural and urban subwatersheds to determine the best potential locations and the types of best management practices to implement on the landscape, estimate practice installation costs, and rank practice implementation priority by cost-benefit at achieving targeted water resource and water quality improvement goals. Member SWCD staff received training on how to use the protocol, complete the subwatershed analysis, and standardize a report of the results to utilize for further project implementation. TSA member SWCDs completed 16 subwatershed assessments, in urban and rural landscapes that will be used to guide future prioritized and targeted implementation work.
LOCAL LEVERAGED FUNDS