We will generate genome sequences of bacteria growing in wastewater treatment bioreactors, allowing us to improve phosphorus and nitrogen removal from wastewater in Minnesota and to discover novel pharmaceutical compounds.
The Thief River is impaired due to low Dissolved Oxygen and high Turbidity levels resulting from high sediment load. These impairments affect the drinking water supply of Thief River Falls in addition to fish spawning habitat and recreation. The Erosion, Sedimentation and Sediment Yield Report completed in 1996 found that 63% of the sediment originates from the streambank of the Thief River. The Pennington Soil and Water Conservation District is therefore targeting the major sediment sources along the river.
Expand fishing opportunities in urban areas, teach more kids and families how to fish, and inventory and inform the public about safe and legal shore fishing sites throughout Minnesota.
Building on the exhibit development community engagement process carried through three successive Legacy grants, the Children’s Museum of Southern Minnesota used the 2013 direct appropriation to prepare for and begin building exhibit components for its permanent facility by combining professional museum expertise with local resources, volunteers, and community involvement.
Building on the exhibit development community engagement process carried out through four successive Legacy grants, the Children’s Museum of Southern Minnesota will use the 2014-15 direct appropriation to complete fabrication and installation of several exhibit components for its permanent facility. Local resources, volunteers, and community involvement will be combined with museum expertise to complete this process.
This proposal aims to answer this question: How would the water quality of Minnesota's lakes change in the next century under future scenarios of urbanization, agricultural growth, and climate change?
This project will analyze existing and projected data to develop simple tools to predict the effect of land use and climate change on extreme floods and droughts.
The project will assess chemical and biological defluorination activities in environmental samples and identify the microorganisms, metabolic pathways, and intermediates resulting from degradation of fluorinated pesticides and pharmaceuticals.
This project will build the first comprehensive list of Minnesota moths and butterflies. Information gained through surveys and outreach efforts will inform land managers and inspire public appreciation.
BWSR will administer funding to eligible County projects that provide funds and other assistance to low income property owners to upgrade or replace Noncompliant Septic Systems. BWSR will also manage annual reporting completed by each County.
This project will finalize HSPF watershed model construction and complete the calibration/validation process. The consultant will add representation of point source discharges to the model. The consultant will compile flow data for the purposes of calibration and validation. An initial hydrologic calibration will be performed and submitted for approval.
This project will maximize the utility and usefulness of three HSPF models that have been constructed and calibrated for hydrology. The contractor will identify and reduce parameterization errors in the following three HSPF models: 1) Buffalo River Watershed, 2 ) Thief River Watershed, 3) Bois de Sioux-Mustinka Watersheds. This will result, not only in a better hydrology calibration, but will also improve each of the models’ ability to more accurately estimate sediment and pollutant loads and concentrations.
This phase of the project will complete the analysis of existing and newly collected water quality data in the Red River of the North-Grand Marais Creek watershed and also verify the impairments on the currently listed reaches and determine the status of the remaining river reaches as being either impaired or currently meeting standards. Stakeholder involvement and public participation will be a primary focus throughout the project.
Funding is prioritized to structural and non-structural practices within the Upper Mustinka and Fivemile Creek planning regions. In addition, a primary goal will be to complete a feasibility study for the Fivemile Creek Restoration as well as completion of the final phase of the Lake Traverse Water Quality Improvement Project. The BdSWD will focus on 4 CIPs within the Bois de Sioux River planning regions; WCD Sub-1, WCD 35 and WCD 20 & 25 drainage retrofit projects.
This is the third round of watershed based implementation funds to be shared by up to 13 LGU's between the Bois de Sioux River and Mustinka River watersheds. These funds are to implement grant eligible components of the 2021 - 2030 Joint Comprehensive Watershed Management Plan. Activities for this grant application are diverse, reflecting activities planned to improve water quality to and within legal drainage systems, streams, and lakes in the Bois de Sioux and Mustinka River watersheds.
This project will create and optimize eDNA assays to detect the presence of 8 endangered or threatened mussel species around Buffalo Slough near Prairie Island Indian Community.
Geologic atlases provide maps/databases essential for improved management of ground and surface water. This proposal will complete current projects and start new projects to equal about 4 complete atlases.
Get the Lead Out is focused on protecting common loons and wildlife through education and outreach about the danger of lead fishing tackle and promoting lead-free tackle alternatives.
The Thief River is the source of drinking water for the City of Thief River Falls. The river's other designated uses also include recreation and aquatic life. Water quality monitoring conducted by local agencies discovered that the Thief River is not meeting state water quality standards for both turbidity (muddiness) and dissolved oxygen. Each year, approximately 12,376 tons of sediment is deposited into the Thief River Falls reservoir by the Thief River. That is the equivalent of over 1,200 dump trucks full of dirt.
The purpose of this project is to prepare a Watershed Restoration and Protection Strategy (WRAPS) Report and Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) Study for public notice. This project will include addressing and incorporating Minnesota Pollution Control (MPCA) review comments in both documents. The TMDL Study has been submitted to the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) for preliminary review. USEPA comments will be addressed prior to public notice.
The goal of this project is to construct watershed models for the Grand Marais Creek and Snake River Watersheds and perform an initial hydrologic calibration using Hydrologic Simulation Program FORTRAN (HSPF).
In the early 1900s, a joint State and County drainage project constructed a 1 mile outlet channel to Grand Marais Creek to provide a shorter outlet to the Red River and effectively abandoned the lower 6 miles of the natural channel. In recent times, the ditch has eroded from its original shape to a channel of steep gradients and unstable banks. This has resulted in head cutting of the channel and nearly continuous channel erosion and bank sloughing with the effect of depositing up to an estimated annual average of 700 tons of sediment into the Red River.
Per Minnesota Laws, 2011, 1st Special Session, Chapter 6, Article 4, Section 2, Subd. 6, "These amounts are appropriated to the commissioner of administration for grants to the named organizations for the purposes specified in this subdivision.
Per Minnesota Laws, 2009, Chapter 172, Article 4, Section 2, Subd. 5, "Funds in this subdivision are appropriated to the commissioner of the Department of Administration for grants to the named organizations for the purposes specified in this subdivision. Up to one percent of funds may be used by the Department of Administration for grants administration. Grants made to public television or radio organizations are subject to Minnesota Statutes, sections 129D.18 and 129D.19."
This project will support new exhibit components, including an agriculture heritage exhibit, that will showcase the farming way of life and the importance of family farms for the country's food source. It includes workshops and hands-on learning in roles such as gardener, farmer, processor, seed agronomist, farmers market vendor, and consumer.
The Halvorson Streambank Stabilization site is located three miles north of the City of Thief River Falls on the Thief River. The Thief River is impaired for low dissolved oxygen and turbidity. A TMDL study began in 2010. These impairments affect fish spawning habitat, recreation and the drinking water supply of Thief River Falls. Studies show that 63% of the sediment in the Thief River is coming from the banks of the river itself. Stabilizing this bank will reduce the turbidity and low dissolved oxygen impairments.
This project proposes to increase the adoption of cover cropping in southwest Minnesota to address issues of loss of diversity and environmental degradation. By generating important information on cover crops,
Evaluation of Minnesota raptors, in rehabilitation and free ranging settings, for current or previous exposure to highly pathogenic avian influenza virus to better understand outbreak impacts to raptor populations.
This project will continue to develop, and calibrate/validate the hydrology of an HSPF watershed model for the Thief River watershed. The consultant will add representation of point source discharges to the model. The consultant will compile flow data for the purposes of calibration and validation. An initial hydrologic calibration will be performed and submitted for approval. The consultant will produce an HSPF watershed model that can readily be used to provide information to support conventional parameter TMDLs.
This project will complete the development of two watershed HSPF models for the Mustinka River and Bois de Sioux River watersheds. These calibrated and validated executable models will simulate hydrology at the 12-digit HUC subbasin scale.
