We will characterize environmental drivers contributing to the decline of wild rice using lake sediment cores to reconstruct historical wild rice abundance in relation to lake and watershed stressors.
This is a multi-governmental project funded by the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, the United States Geological Survey, North Dakota Department of Health, the Cities of Fargo, Moorhead, Grand Forks, and East Grand Forks to monitor river flow and condition parameters to gain an improved understanding of the nature of the chemical and physical attributes of the Red River of the North.
The Red Lake Watershed District will collect water chemistry samples, field measurements, and photos at water quality stations in the Thief River Watershed that have been prioritized for Intensive Watershed Monitoring. This sampling effort will allow for an unbiased assessment of stream conditions for aquatic life and aquatic recreation. Eleven stream monitoring stations have been selected for this monitoring effort. Sampling will be conducted during the years 2022 and 2023 so that data is available for assessment in 2024.
This project will support water quality monitoring and data analysis in nine major watersheds (8-digit Hydrologic Unit Codes) of the Lower 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.
This project will provide land and water managers in the Red River Basin with data and online tools to prioritize actions on the landscape that achieve water quality objectives identified in local and state plans. This will help identify strategically important locations for implementing erosion control and water management practices. Standardized watershed-based data products will be integrated into a web-based planning tool which will be added to the Red River Basin Decision Information Network (RRBDIN) being developed as part of the Red River Watershed Feasibility Study.
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.
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.
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.
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.
The Red Lake Watershed District will create an inspection database for 103E ditches under their drainage authority. The district will acquire a database software solution to conduct field inspections and to track ditch maintenance projects and use the software to facilitate compliance with state statutes. The project will also develop a process for completing the annual inspection and reporting requirements under Statue 103E.
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 goal of this project is to extend, calibrate, and validate the existing Hydrological Simulation Program – FORTRAN (HSPF) watershed models in the Red Lake River, Thief River, Clearwater River and Red Lake watersheds.
International Water Institute (IWI) staff will monitor 24 sites in the Bois de Sioux, Mustinka (2 sites), Buffalo (8 sites), Red Lake (4 sites), Sandhill (3 sites), Thief (2 sites), and Tamarac River (3 sites) Watersheds intensively over a 2 year period in an attempt to collect 25 samples per year at each site. If conditions allow for the collection of all planned samples, 1200 stream samples will be collected over the time period. Monitoring will include field measurements, observations, and at least three photographs during each site visit.
MN Legislative Clean Water Fund funding to engage citizens in local watershed monitoring, work with regional partners to promote understanding and protection of watersheds, and organize and facilitate gathering of scientific data all for the benefit of water quality in the Red River Basin.
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.
The goal of this project is to engage citizens in local watershed monitoring, work with regional partners to promote understanding and protection of watersheds, and organize and facilitate gathering of scientific data for the benefit of water quality in the Red River Basin.
The goal of this project is to engage citizens in local watershed monitoring, work with regional partners to promote understanding and protection of watersheds, and organize and facilitate gathering of scientific data for the benefit of water quality in the Red River Basin.
The Red River Watershed Management Board (RRWMB) will partner with the Board of Water and Soil Resources (BWSR) on this basin-wide initiative to establish 780 acres of riparian/upland habitat within the Red River Basin (RRB) in Northwest Minnesota. This initiative will use BWSR's Reinvest in Minnesota (RIM) Program to target permanent conservation easements on agricultural lands to restore and protect stream and riparian habitat.
Water quality and flood damage reduction goals can't be accomplished without reducing flows and taking a targeted approach to the upper most reaches of the most critical waterways. Water and sediment control basins are eartern structures that retain water and have been identified as one of the best tool for measured success in reducing peak flows. For this project, basins will be targeted and implemented in the Upper Cedar River Watershed, specifically in the Dobbins Creek Watershed.
The Reinvest in Minnesota (RIM) Reserve Wetlands Reserve Program (WRP) Partnership will accelerate the restoration and protection of approximately 4,620 acres of previously drained wetlands and associated upland native grassland wildlife habitat complexes via perpetual conservation easements. The goal of the RIM-WRP Partnership is to achieve the greatest wetland functions and values, while optimizing wildlife habitat on every acre enrolled in the partnership.
Under the CREP partnership with USDA, 71 easements were recorded on a total of 4,365 acres to restore previously drained wetlands and adjacent uplands. The easements were accomplished with local implementation done by SWCD, NRCS and FSA staff within the 54 county CREP area and leveraged federal funds for both landowner payments and cost share for conservation practice installation.
Nitrogen is a serious problem in Minnesota's Mississippi River Basin and the Dodge Soil and Water Conservation District (SWCD) plans to address this problem through the instillation of six nitrogen reducing agricultural best management practices in the Dodge/Steele Joint County Ditch No. 11 system, also known as the Ripley Ditch system. Agriculture drainage, through the use of agricultural tile drainage systems, has been identified as the number one leading source of nitrogen in the Mississippi River Basin.
We propose identifying hot spots of groundwater chloride pollution of surface waters due to excessive road salt use, which is a long term source increasing chloride impairment of surface waters.
The Root (HUC 07040008) and Upper Iowa/Mississippi River – Reno (HUC 07060002 and 07060001) watershed Hydrologic Simulation Program – FORTRAN (HSPF) models currently simulate hydrologic and water quality processes through 2015. In order to support work to update the existing WRAPS report, the two HSPF models will be extended through 2021.
The contractor will use the Scenario Application Manager (SAM) tool to build water quality restoration scenarios for the Root River watershed using the Hydrologic Simulation Program FORTRAN (HSPF) model. The SAM tool simulates total suspended solids (TSS) and nitrogen reductions based on implementation of various best management practices.
This grant will fund about 80 project in six sub-watersheds (Headwaters of the Middle & South Branch, Money Creek, Headwaters of Upper Iowa River, Mill Creek, south Fork Root River, and Carey Creek). Projects to include grassed waterways, water and sediment control basins, grade stabilization structures, livestock waste projects, streambank projects and cover crops. Funding will also support staff time for project development and technical assistance for the cost-share projects.
This grant will fund an expected 44 projects in 4 subwatersheds (South Fork Root River, Crooked Creek, Rush-Pine and portions of the headwaters of the Middle and South Branch Root) and 2 DWSMAS (Chatfield and Utica). Projects include grassed waterways, WASCOBs, grade stabilization structures and cover crops, plus field walkovers, project development, and technical assistance. The anticipated sediment reduction from this work will be 2,285.5 tons, or 2.2% of the 10-year goal for the entire planning area.
TMDL project in the Root River Watershed that will support surface water assessment, analysis of data, interpretation of southeast Minnesota's karst landscape, stressor identification, TMDL computation, source assessment, and implementation planning.
The goal of this project is to construct, calibrate and validate a watershed model using Hydologic Simulation Program FORTRAN (HSPF) for the Roseau River Watershed.
The CREST team wants to create a mobile lab with innovative, engaging educational activities that would be used to travel to underserved, underrepresented schools and community events in Northwest Minnesota
