Septic tank systems aim to treat sewage generated by homes and facilities that do not have access to centralized wastewater treatment plants. Currently 25% of the U.S. population relies on these systems as their primary means of wastewater treatment. However, the treatment capabilities of these systems are limited and so byproducts can contribute to degradation of water resources and other environmental problems and the systems emit instead of collect powerful greenhouse gases such as methane.
This acceleration package will fulfill ENTRF goals including rare wildlife data collection and management, conservation education, collaborative land protection management, & new emphasis on nature tourism to benefit rural communities.
Northern white cedar wetland plant communities provide unique ecological, economic, and wetland functions, including high value timber, long-term carbon storage, winter refuge for deer and other wildlife, wildlife habitat, and thermal buffering for brook trout streams. However, these plant communities have been declining in Minnesota for decades mostly as a result of development impacts. The Minnesota Board of Water and Soil Resources is using this appropriation to continue efforts aimed at improving the quantity and quality of white cedar wetland plant communities in Minnesota.
Eradicate identified oak wilt at these northern most locations on nine private properties by mechanical means to stop the invasiveness before it spreads to healthy state forests affecting habitat.
There are 3 million acres of peatland forests in Minnesota. This proposal will identify management actions that maximize ecosystem benefits of peatland forests, including wildlife, water, timber, and native plants.
A pilot program of wastewater treatment optimization without costly facility upgrades. This will lead to cleaner lakes and rivers without needless costs, and achieve significantly better treatment results.
Pollinators play a key role in ecosystem function and in agriculture, including thousands of native plants and more than one hundred U.S. crops that either need or benefit from pollinators. However, pollinators are in dramatic decline in Minnesota and throughout the country. The causes of the decline are not completely understood, but identified factors include loss of nesting sites, fewer flowers, increased disease, and increased pesticide use. Developing an aware, informed citizenry that understands this issue is one key to finding and implementing solutions to counteract these factors.
The Pollinator Ambassadors for Urban Gardens project will enhance outreach capacity for pollinator education by creating an outreach toolkit and training educators and youth for engagement in native pollinator education.
Healthy prairies contribute numerous benefits, such as providing habitat for wildlife and pollinators, maintaining and improving water quality, stabilizing roadsides, and providing a sustainable source of materials for bioenergy production and other products. Since European settlement the once vast expanses of Minnesota prairie covering 18 million acres have been reduced to small remnants totaling about 235,000 acres. With this decline has also come a drastic reduction in the genetic diversity of the various species typical of Minnesota prairies.
Produce, broadcast and share 26 science-based environmental programs, 26 call to action and 27 outdoor lifestyle videos that inspire and demonstrate how to protect and engage with Minnesota's natural resources.
Minnesota's 48 native orchids are at risk. The Minnesota Landscape Arboretum will expand conservation of species through propagation and banking and begin restoration planting research in the program's second phase.
Utilize proven cost-saving MMAPLE reverse-bid conservation easement ranking system to permanently protect 650 acres and restore/enhance 400 acres of priority private lands already protected in the Avon Hills.
Oak savanna is imperiled and threatened ecosystem with only 0.2% remaining of historically 5.5 million acres in Minnesota. This project will demonstrate the use of silvopasture to restore this ecosystem.
The groundwater contained in confined glacial aquifers provides clean drinking water to many Minnesota residents. An important factor affecting the long-term sustainability of these aquifers is how water infiltrates through clayey deposits of overlying glacial till, which act as barriers to contaminants but also limit water flow and aquifer recharge. Very little is actually known about the properties and infiltration of water through till, which hinders the ability to accurately define the sustainability of these aquifers.
Urban stormwaters contain biologically harmful contaminants of emerging concern whose abatement through best management practice ponds requires evaluation to safeguard habitats for aquatic species from mussels to birds.
Wastewater contains many environmental contaminants including pharmaceuticals, personal-care products, PFAS and micro-plastics. They are not removed by treatment plants. We propose to remove them using commercially available drinking water coagulants.
Create a semi-automated system to acquire, process, and deliver new satellite derived water quality data (water clarity, algae, turbidity and color) for all Minnesota lakes ~biweekly and in near real-time
We will quantify exposure to two contaminants for 12 Minnesota raptors. Polyfluoralkyl substances (PFAS) and methylmercury (Hg) are bioaccumulative toxicants that cause reproductive failure in birds.
We propose to quantify the amount, type, and source of microplastics in the water, sediment, and fishes of a range of Minnesota lakes in collaboration with MN DNR.
Rainfall runoff in urban areas contributes to localized flooding and washes contaminants and excess nutrients downstream affecting water quality. Systems to mitigate these problems can be challenging to implement in urban areas due to existing infrastructure and competing demands for land use. However, one option is to find alternative applications for the excess rainwater and use it replace the potable water that is currently being used for certain purposes. Researchers at the University of Minnesota are using this appropriation to evaluate alternative uses for captured rainwater.
