We will compile all available data for Minnesota Trumpeter Swans and use these sources to model historical population abundance and predict future population dynamics.
Funds for RIM conservation easements build on Clean Water Fund (CWF) investments for restoration and protection projects that "stack" habitat and clean water benefits. Projects will be identified in watershed plans developed through BWSR's One Watershed, One Plan program, in which local governments strategically set priorities for clean water and habitat, target implementation, and set measurable goals. BWSR currently distributes CWF dollars to partnerships with approved plans for water quality projects.
We will assess movements, survival, and causes of mortality of Minnesota elk while developing a non-invasive, safer method to estimate population size. This information is important for long-term management efforts.
Funding supports an Irrigation Specialist to develop guidance and provide education on irrigation and nitrogenbest management practices (BMPs). In this position, Dr. Vasu Sharma provides direct support to irrigators onissues of irrigation scheduling and soil water monitoring. She is collaborating on the development of new irrigationscheduling tools that help irrigators manage water and nitrogen resources more precisely. These tools help reducenitrogen leaching losses in irrigated cropping systems.
The 14,080 acre watershed of JD#30 and JD#18 drains into the Thief River four miles upstream of Thief River Falls. The City of Thief River Falls draws their drinking water from the reservoir the Thief River supplies. This reservoir is filling with sediment faster than anticipated. It was first estimated that the reservoir would require dredging every 50 years. The last dredging was needed in only 35 years at a price tag of $1.1 million. Treatment of the water for drinking is a major expense to the City.
To offer history programming at the Kittson County Fair. A local retired doctor will perform a narration on the different machines used to plant and harvest crops, in addition to the stages of farming during pioneer days. The fair will also host a lumberjack presentation and a historical farm safety exhibit.
To capture the experiences of several generations of Kittson County war veterans, six individuals with direct combat or combat support experience, were interviewed. The transcriptions of each first-person narrative were printed and are now part of the Kittson County Historical Society permanent archives. Supplemental materials including photographs and additional information were used to highlight each story and to bring the reader deeper into the stories. A presentation notebook was created and a copy presented to each interviewee.
This project will provide a means of identifying and prioritizing areas in the Two Rivers Watershed District (TRWD) and the Kittson County Ditch system to implement conservation practices that reduce overland runoff contaminant loadings contributing to water quality impairments. Flow paths, in conjunction with land use and soils information, will be used to analyze the potential for contaminant loading. This information will be available to Kittson County Ditch Authorities, landowners, resource managers and others.
The Two Rivers Watershed District (TRWD) proposes to construct a multi-purpose impoundment located upstream of Lake Bronson State Park in Kittson and Roseau counties. The project footprint is over 12 square miles in size, and it will alter Lateral 1 of State Ditch #95 to provide fish and wildlife habitat, keep water on the landscape, stabilize river flows, reduce erosion and sediment, protect, maintain, and improve a prairie rich fen, benefit water quality and provide flood damage reduction.
The Two Rivers Watershed District (TRWD) proposes to construct "part 2" of Phase 1 of the Klondike Clean Water Retention impoundment. Part 1 was recommended for funding by LSOHC last year. The multi-purpose project will provide fish habitat, protect-maintain-improve prairie rich fen habitat, stabilize river flows, keep water on the landscape, reduce erosion and sediment, benefit water quality and provide flood damage reduction. Because only partial funding was awarded, construction was scaled into part 1 and part 2.
Lake Bronson is the only major recreational lake in Kittson County. The project is a continuation project from FY2012 and will reduce runoff and decrease movement of sediment, nutrients and bacteria by targeting, prioritizing and installing vegetative practices and installing Side Water Inlets within the Lake Bronson watersheds. Emphasis will be placed on the South Branch of Two Rivers. There is a portion of impaired stream reach as identified by the Minnesota Pollution Control, which directly feeds Lake Bronson.
Lake Bronson State Park is one of only a handful of state parks in the Northwest corner of Minnesota. The Friends of the Lake Bronson State Park met with Watershed District staff to explore how to improve the water quality of the lake. The lake is subject to sediment and nutrient loading from several upstream ditches. A significant algae bloom during July of each year, at the height of the seasonal use of the lake, is most likely due to the current inflow conditions.
Kittson County and the Two Rivers Watershed District both have plans that emphasize the use of Best Management Practices to improve the water quality of Lake Bronson. Lake Bronson State Park is one of only a handful of state parks in the Northwest corner of Minnesota and the Friends of the Lake Bronson State Park met with Watershed District staff to explore how to improve the water quality of the lake. The lake is subject to sediment and nutrient loading from several upstream ditches.
Provide approximately 15 matching grants for local parks, trail, acquisition of natural areas and trails to connect people safety to desirable community locations and regional or state facilities.
This project will include analysis of existing and newly collected water quality data to verify the impairments on the currently listed reaches and to determine the status of the remaining river reaches as being either impaired or currently meeting standards. Stakeholder involvement and public participation will be a focus throughout the Watershed Approach Project. The project provides an opportunity to assess and leverage the capacity for the local community to engage in the process of watershed management and to adopt protection and restoration practices.
This project will address Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA), United States Environment Protection Agency (EPA), and public comments on draft Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) studies and Watershed Restoration and Protection Strategy (WRAPS) reports, preliminary draft TMDL studies, and public noticed TMDL studies and WRAPS reports for the Lower Red River Watershed and the Lake of the Woods Watershed and produce final versions of the TMDL studies and WRAPS reports for each watershed.
This project will support water quality monitoring and data analysis in the Red River Basin. The monitoring will assist in providing water chemistry data needed to calculate annual pollutant loads for the Major Watershed Load Monitoring Program (MWLMP) and provide short term data sets of select parameters to other MPCA programs.
Leveraging new statewide climate data, we will assess future change in the duration, frequency and magnitude of heavy precipitation and drought events and engage communities to prepare for these extremes.
The ENRTF grant will introduce 12 young people to conservation careers through full-time, paid internships and apprenticeships on the Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge (16 FTEs over 2 years).
Expanding waste diversion practices across the state this project will: create 16 jobs, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, provide data to measure the social, economic, and environmental benefits of waste diversion.
Legacy funds allow the Minnesota Zoo to extend the season of the Wells Fargo Family Farm beyond its historical May to September season to include full programming and exhibits from April through November.
The Civics Education Coalition will create opportunities for students, enrich teacher capacity to engage students, and build state-wide networks. Work will include an interactive website, online youth summit, youth conference, new lessons for educators, teacher institutes, and expansion of the statewide Civic Education Network and its activities.
The Minnesota Invasive Terrestrial Plants and Pests Center (MITPPC) requests $7 million to fund up to 20 new, high-priority applied TIS research projects to improve Minnesota's natural and agricultural resources.
We will investigate the potential of natural microbes indigenous to Minnesota to biodegrade conventional plastics in the environment as a means for cleaning contaminated soils and waters across the state.
This project proposes to expand recreational opportunities on Minnesota State Trails through the rehabilitation and enhancement of existing state trails and replacement or repair of existing state trail bridges.
To broaden public accessibility, KCHS acquired 32 standard history books from the MN History Bookshelf list and an additional 6 more books pertaining to MN history. The books are available at the Kittson County Museum Library.
This program proposes a 15-year goal to provide protection to the remaining 90,000 acres of native prairie/savanna, a 20-year goal to restore and protect an additional 500,000 acres of diverse grasslands/savannas, and a 10-year goal to increase management capacity to annually manage 300,000 acres of grassland and savannas per year. This proposal takes the first steps to achieve these goals by initiating a comprehensive, coordinated and collaborative prairie conservation initiative. Annual investments by the LSOHC will be required to realize these ambitious outcomes.
Minnesota Public Radio is the state's largest cultural organization, providing 96 percent of the population with free access to some of the best broadcast cultural programming in the world. Minnesota Public Radio is using a grant from the Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund to implement projects around the following four goals:
This funding is for arts, arts education, and arts access, and to preserve Minnesota's history and cultural heritage.
The Minnesota Children's Museum will develop a literacy focused exhibit to catalyze community engagement around early childhood learning and education.
The goals for this project were to: protect 1,200 acres native prairie/wetland/savanna; restore 250 acres prairie/wetland; enhance 6,000 acres grassland/savanna with fire, invasive species removal, and grazing; and continue a new prairie conservation model. This phase resulted in a total of 1,425 acres protected, 22,298 acres enhanced, and 110 acres restored. When combined with phases 1 and 2 of the Prairie Recovery Program we have cumulatively protected 4,070 acres, enhanced 58,134 acres and restored 314 acres using OHF funds.
Goals for Phase 2 of the MN Prairie Recovery Program were to: protect 1200 acres native prairie/savanna; restore 250 acres grassland; enhance 6000 acres grassland/savanna with fire, invasive species removal, and grazing; and continue a new prairie conservation model.
