Impaired waters in the Red Lake River 1W1P are categorized into management classes to target impaired waters that are closest to meeting water quality standards and to protect unimpaired waters close to becoming impaired. Management areas targeted in 2018 and 2019 include the Little Black River, Black River, County Ditch 96, the Red Lake River between Thief River and Crookston, Burnham Creek, and Grand Marais Creek.
The Red Lake Watershed District will create an inspection database for 103E ditches under their drainage authority. The district will acquire a database software solution to conduct field inspections and to track ditch maintenance projects and use the software to facilitate compliance with state statutes. The project will also develop a process for completing the annual inspection and reporting requirements under Statue 103E.
The RIM-WRP program will expand past efforts and provide important benefits to the citizens of Minnesota by restoring and permanently protecting priority wetlands and associated upland native grassland wildlife habitat via perpetual conservation easements. This funding will leverage $12.6 million of federal WRP funds for the State of Minnesota and is expected to create and sustain 343 jobs and income to local landowners, businesses and others in the state based on USDA economic estimates.
Imminent Health Threat (IHT) systems are those that are discharging improperly treated human waste onto the ground surface or into surface waters. In addition to the potential water quality impacts, untreated sewage has the potential to introduce bacteria and viruses into the environment. When IHT systems are identified, county or city staff assist the homeowners through the process required to bring their systems into compliance with the septic ordinance.
Three streambank stabilization projects have been identified as high priority projects in the Thief River Falls Water Quality Study completed in 2017. The proposal will use a combination of bendway weirs, toe protection by building a floodplain bench and live stake plantings. It has been estimated that a total of 385 tons per year of sediment from these three locations is entering the river contributing to the impairment downstream.
The goal of the project is to identify priority locations for project implementation using the Prioritize, Targeting, and Measuring Application (PTMApp) in the Thief River Watershed. The PTMApp will be used to identify and evaluate the suitability and effectiveness of best management practices including treatment scenarios, and provide estimates of sediment, nitrogen, and phosphorus delivered to the Thief River Watershed, which is impaired for sediment.
