MNHS continues to build a culture of evaluation. An evaluation manager leads institutional evaluation capacity building, as well as provides technical assistance and support to staff who evaluate ACHF projects and programs. An evaluation associate in the Education and Lifelong Learning Division facilitates evaluation efforts specifically in K-12 education and public programs. Three interns and numerous volunteers continue to support evaluation work.
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.
Granite rock outcrops along the Upper Minnesota River are among the oldest exposed rock in North America, dating back approximately 3.6 billion years. These outcrops are also home to rare and specialized plant and animal communities rarely found elsewhere in Minnesota, including several types of cactus and one of Minnesota's only three lizard species, the five-lined skink. However, these rock outcrops are increasingly threatened by mining, overgrazing, and development.
This will fund a competitive grant program for sewer projects that will help protect or restore the water quality of waters in national parks located within Minnesota.
Protect and restore 590 acres of significant wildlife habitat through conservation easements and restoration projects on private lands within Important Bird Areas with an emphasis on those located in within priority areas identified in the Minnesota Prairie Conservation Plan.
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
MNHS staff created communication strategies and promotional materials for Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund (ACHF) history projects, programs, and grants, including media kits for grant recipients. Increasing public awareness of ACHF investments will ensure that students, teachers, and the general public will use and benefit from them.
Partner Organizations: Council for Minnesota Archaeology, Minnesota Archaeological Society.
Radiocarbon dating is an important technique in modern archaeology since it provides objective information about the calendar age of archaeological objects and sites. Through this partnership, the Society's existing archaeological collections were mined for organic samples suitable for radiocarbon dating.
The goal of this project is the development of a model of wild rice population dynamics, using RAMAS software, which mimics natural variability of population levels and calculates the probability of population extinction.
The Minnesota Historical Society manages 26 historic sites and museums across Minnesota. Recognizing an opportunity to work more collaboratively with organizations where historic sites are located, the Society developed programs to expand history education and programming and elevate the level of professionalism in local history organizations.
This funding enabled site staff across the state to host workshops to train history professionals and work with local historical agencies to assess and update collections.
US Geological Survey (USGS) will perform real-time water quality monitoring at its stations located in Fargo and Grand Forks. The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency co-sponsors this work along with USGS, North Dakota Dept. of Health, the cities of Fargo, Moorhead, Grand Forks, and East Grand Forks.
The International Water Institute (IWI) will monitor 42 sites (3 basin, 12 major watershed, and 27 subwatershed) in the Red River and Upper Mississippi River Basins intensively during the contract period. There will also be 5 sites in the Red River Basin where mercury samples will be collected and sent to Minnesota Department of Health for analysis. The IWI will collect water samples across the range of flow conditions targeting sample collection at times of moderate to high flow.
The goal of this project is to development a Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) study that addresses all of the non-mercury-related impaired reaches along the Red River of the North (RRN). The TMDL study will provide an analytical and strategic foundation for recommending restoration strategies for impaired waters. This phase of the project will also include civic engagement efforts by providing water quality framework and stakeholder activities for civic/citizen engagement and communication.
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.
This project is for Minnesota Legislative Clean Water Fund funding to engage citizens in local watershed monitoring, to work with regional partners to promote understanding and protection of watersheds, and to organize and facilitate gathering of scientific data all for the benefit of water quality in the Red River Basin.
This project is for Minnesota Legislative Clean Water Fund funding to engage citizens in local watershed monitoring, to work with regional partners to promote understanding and protection of watersheds, and to organize and facilitate gathering of scientific data all for the benefit of water quality in the Red River Basin.
This project will develop an effective transferable model to engage and educate watershed residents, stakeholders and others to better understand and protect watershed ecostystems through environmental monitoring, training, and formal and informal education programs in their local watershed. The project will build on the foundation of the existing Red River Basin River Watch program by strengthening three main activity areas: 1) curriculum integration and teacher training, 2) youth leadership and civic engagement, and 3) applied research collaboration and watershed science skills building.
This project will monitor nine locations in the major watersheds (8-digit Hydrologic Unit Codes) of the Lower Red River Basin. The stream outlet monitoring will provide the water chemistry data needed to calculate annual pollutant loads. Staff from the Red River Watershed Management Board (RRWMB) will conduct the sampling, initially manage the data and provide the data to the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) for load calculations and import into the STORET data system.
The purpose of this project is to improve understanding of primary productivity in the Red River and the diversity and population structure of the algal communities occurring along the river system. This will be accomplished through taxonomic identification of periphyton and phytoplankton assemblages necessary for characterizing responses to nutrient gradients along the Red River of the North.
We will investigate road salt alternatives and pavement innovations that will reduce or eliminate the flux of chloride from road salt into our lakes, streams and groundwater.
The USGS and the MPCA will determine the relative contributions of endocrine active chemicals (EACs) and pharmaceuticals from WWTP effluent to aquatic ecosystems. The primary objective is to measure the concentrations of EACs and pharmaceuticals in water samples collected from the effluents from 20 WWTPs and at sites upstream and downstream of WWTP effluent discharge in Minnesota during 2009-2011.
This project will provide analysis of geographic patterns, temporal trends of lake clarity and relationships of water clarity to other lake properties, land cover and demographic factors by use of satellite remote sensing. Data for all lakes and years are available in the LakeBrowser, a web-based mapping tool that enables searches and display of results for individual lakes. This project will extend and add to the database, analyze current and new data, and enhance the capability for resource managers to access and use the data.
This program focuses on the rehabilitation or replacement of existing state trail bridges, including structural engineering inspections of all trail bridges . Of the more than 300 existing bridges on State Trails, the majority are wood or masonry former railroad structures of which more than 1/3 exceed 100 years old. Starting in fiscal year 2014, future PAT reporting will not separate bridges from trails outcomes reporting, as they are part of the same system of recreational use.
This project works to reduce energy consumption and model renewable energy methods on state park, state recreation area, state forest and trail facilities. The DNR Parks and Trails Division is working to increase the use of energy conservation and renewable energy technologies.
Install fishing piers at 20 statewide locations (15 replacements and 5 new) with the goal of improving fishing opportunities especially for people with disabilities, children, elderly and those without a boat.
Renewal of existing State Trail surfaces, parking areas, and trail wayside areas, improving accessibility, enhancing user safety and implementing current best management practices. MNDNR Parks and Trails Division has a identified approximately 85 miles of existing state trail in need of rehabilitation and upgrading. This program also focuses on the rehabilitation or replacement of existing state trail bridges, including structural engineering inspections of all trail bridges .
