This project will reduce sediment to the Minnesota River, and protect private land and public infrastructure. Blakeley Trail (County Rd 60) in southwest Scott County is surrounded by deep ravines. As these ravines incise, they cause road shoulder landslides, which cut into private property, threaten the road at the head-cuts and generate sediment which creates maintenance and flooding issues downstream. The Scott Watershed Management Organization and the Scott County Highway Department have partnered on this project because of the multiple benefits.
To gain intellectual and physical control over a significant historical architectural drawing collection documenting the built environment of Rochester
Seminary Fen, a 600-acre complex in Carver County, supports one of only 500 calcareous fens in the world and is one of the highest quality calcareous fens in southern Minnesota. The Fen feeds Assumption Creek; one of the metro area's last known trout streams that supports naturally reproducing native brook trout. Assumption Creek then discharges to the nearby Minnesota River. The Fen's unique hydrology, soils, plants, and habitats are highly sensitive to water quality and sedimentation stress.
The goal of this project is to use a science-based and participatory approach to understanding and promoting conservation practices in the agricultural community.
This project represents a one-time opportunity to improve the quality of stormwater runoff from the parking lot and access road at Cleary Lake Regional Park. Cleary Lake is listed as impaired for excessive nutrients and is a focal point for many park activities. Three Rivers Park District and Scott County are partnering to reconstruct the park access road and to mill and overlay or conduct full depth reclamation of the parking lot at the park in 2013. Other partners include the Scott Watershed Management Organization (Scott WMO) and the Scott County Public Works Department.
Minnesota Trout Unlimited enhanced in-stream and riparian fish and wildlife habitat in and along coldwater streams and lakes located on public lands and Aquatic Management Areas. We originally proposed 11 projects, yet completed 13 projects. Contracting efficiencies and leveraging of other funding allowed us to add three more habitat enhancement projects in northeast Minnesota and to lengthen others. One small budget project was dropped when a partner changed the scope from 144 acres to less than 15 and proposed costs outweighed the potential benefit.
Minnesota Trout Unlimited enhanced in-stream and riparian fish and wildlife habitat in and along coldwater streams located on public lands and Aquatic Management Areas. We completed all 9 projects originally proposed and three additional. Contracting efficiencies and leveraging of other funding allowed us to add two habitat enhancement projects in southeast Minnesota and another segment on the Sucker River in northeast Minnesota. We enhanced 10 more acres of habitat than originally proposed and increased leverage by $121,700 (67%).
The Conservation Partners Legacy Grant Program, managed by the Department of Natural Resources, provided 56 competitive matching grants to non-profit organizations and governments, appropriating all the available ML12 funds.
This project will promote land and water treatment practices, including wetland restoration, riparian vegetation management, geomorphic (stream stabilization and grade control), livestock exclusion, native grasses, and rain gardens. Also included are three specific geomorphic (stream/grade) stabilization projects in the Hidden Hills Park area of Savage, a wetland restoration in Savage, and finishing the Ponds Park Storm Water Reuse Project.
The Children's Museum of Southern Minnesota planned for the cultural alignment of the permanent Children's Museum's art curation, signage, and interactive experiences. The primary focus of this cultural content related to southern Minnesota including Dakota art, culture, and heritage and complemented the Exhibit Development and Fabrication Legacy grant goals.
This project will consist of identifying the candidate causes of biological stress and to develop and implement a public and stakeholder participation process that encourages local ownership of water quality problems and solutions. The Stressor ID process will be done using existing data, identifying data gaps, gathering new data, developing load duration curves, and refinement of the candidate causes. The civic engagement work will include compiling and reviewing existing data on community capacity and assessing that information.
This project will provide Agency staff, local partners and the citizen volunteers with a framework for building local capacity to design civic engagement and communication / outreach efforts. This will contribute to meaningful and sustained public participation in surface water protection and restoration activities throughout the watershed. MPCA staff, local partners and citizen volunteers will also be able to integrate the results of the biophysical and community assessment into strategies for improving water bodies on the MN 303d List of Impaired Waters
This project will build network and the skill set of local resource professionals to do effective civic engagement work for water restoration and protection in Southeast Minnesota. The cohort will be administered through the Southeast Minnesota Water Resources Board (SE MN WRB) which is an area wide Joint Powers Board (JPB) established to help improve and protect the water resources of the area through coordinating local water planning efforts. This JPB has successfully administered water quality grants in the past that have positively impacted the water resources of this region.
This project will complete spatial and temporal revisions , recalibration and validation of 7 watershed HSPF models. These fully functioning calibrated validated executable models will simulate hydrology, sediment (sand, silt, and clay), temperature, phosphorus, nitrogen, dissolved oxygen, biochemical oxygen demand, and algae at the 12-digit HUC subbasin scale (or finer).
