The Lake Superior Beach Monitoring and Notification Program exists to test recreational beach water and notify the public if bacteria levels become unsafe. This project will expand the Beach Program to include additional outreach efforts, sanitary surveys and testing of new technologies to improve the Beach Program. Monitoring results will be used to inform the public, find the sources of bacterial contamination and address polluted runoff from improper waste disposal.
Improved levels of civic engagement and community participation in support for the Watershed Restoration and Protection Strategy (WRAPS) processes in the St. Louis River, Lake Superior South, and Cloquet River Watersheds. Monitoring plans and compiled field data will be provided and summarized that will aid in the future completion of Total Maximum Daily Load Reports (TMDLs) in these watersheds and in the Lake Superior North Watershed.
This project will provide monitoring of four of the major watersheds (8-digit Hydrologic Unit Codes) in the western part of the Rainy River Basin. Staff from the Lake of the Woods SWCD will conduct water quality sampling, review, manage and provide collected data to the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA).
This project will complete the Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) study and Watershed Restoration and Protection Strategies (WRAPS) for the Lake Superior North watershed. Two segments of the Flute Reed River are impaired for aquatic life due to elevated turbidity and total suspended solids. The lower Poplar River is also listed as impaired but significant progress has occurred in the last 10 years. A TMDL and implementation plan have been completed for the lower Poplar River impairment. All other waters meet water quality standards and will be considered for protection measures.
This project provides fiscal resources for Lake County Soil and Water Conservation District for civic engagement activities in the Lake Superior South, North, and Cloquet watersheds for Watershed Restoration and Protection Strategies (WRAPS). This project also includes provide funding for water chemistry monitoring assistance and diagnostic field work that will fill identified monitoring gaps and stressors within the Lake Superior South watershed.
Concern for Deer Yard and Poplar lakes centers on their current trends of decreasing water transparencies often associated with phosphorus or sediment increases. Although both lakes still meet nutrient goals, trends in Secchi depth may presage emerging issues with the state of the lakes. This has further led to questions whether the productivity of the lakes have changed over time, what the natural or historical condition of the lakes were, what the current trajectory of each lake is, and how to best set management goals.
This project constructed a new group camp at Lake Bemidji State Park that features an area for tent camping, an area to accommodate RV units, a large fire ring, and a large screened picnic shelter equipped with electricity.
The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) is a co-sponsor and assists with a portion of the financial support for the International Rainy River-Lake of the Woods Watershed Forum.
This project will dentify critical pathways and areas on the landscape that contribute a disproportionate amount of sediment stressors to selected streams located in LS South and/or LS North HUC 8 watersheds. Unlike other HUC 8 watersheds with one mainstem stream and nested tributaries to the mainstem, LS South and North consist of numerous individual streams flowing to Lake Superior. Each of these streams has a mainstem, tributaries flowing to the mainstem and a surrounding watershed.
After a century of industrial use, the project brought Lake Bemidji's South Shore to its original state. The city removed 1,144 tons of contaminated soil and sediment, 9,400 cubic yards of woody debris from the lake-bottom and planted native vegetation on the shoreline to restore and enhance aquatic habitat.
At the LaSalle Lake SRA, this project constructed a day use area (parking, picnic shelter, restrooms, boardwalk to fishing pier), campground vault toilet, carry-in boat landing, and a pedestrian bridge that leads to other recreation features.
This project supports the planning, coordination and civic engagement/outreach components of the Leech Lake River Major Watershed project. Phase 1 will focus towards the development of project teams, identifying stakeholders, developing an initial civic engagement strategic plan and reviewing current and past watershed project data. Phase II of this project will focus on source assessment, running of watershed modeling scenarios, lake protection planning, stressor identification and the continuation of the Civic Engagement components of the project.
The main outcome of Phase III of the project will be the final deliverable of a WRAPS report that will prescribe the restoration and protection strategies for the surface water resources within the Leech Lake River Watershed. The WRAPS will provide the analytical and strategic foundation which will be essential in protecting the surface water resources within this high quality watershed. Along with the development of the WRAPS report, this project will support the development and completion of the MPCA Stressor ID and Watershed Assessment reports to be completed for this watershed.
The project will restore and protect cold-water streams for natural occurring brook trout, a sensitive, and semi-rare species, by removing an undersized culvert. The structure is a fish barrier and is creating bank erosion. The project is part of a watershed project identified in local planning efforts and through collaboration with local partners.
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 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.
To analyze existing archaeological data from two cultural landscapes and interpret it for use among American Indian people through the creation of a manuscript and portal.
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.
1. To increase access to Ojibwe language for students at the Nawayee Center School. MIAC will provide funding for an Ojibwe Language teacher at the Nawayee Center School, since there is currently no Ojibwe language program or teacher. During the project, the teacher will work with seasoned Ojibwe language immersion and classroom teachers to develop and build the language program for the Nawayee Center School. Success will be determined by the successful creation and implementation of a new Ojibwe language program at Nawayee Center School. We will also create a model for others to utilize.
1. To achieve a sustainable, permanent Ojibwe Language Program for the Nawayee Center School that includes professional development and continuous support for a new Ojibwe language teacher at the school. 2. To introduce Nawayee Center School to a strong network of first language speakers, elders, artists, language facilitators and knowledge-keepers for the Nawayee Center School to support a sustainable community-based language program that includes staff, students, and their families.
