The SWCD Local Capacity Services grant program provides funds to Soil and Water Conservation Districts that focuses on increasing capacity to address four resource concern areas - Soil Erosion, Riparian Zone Management, Water Storage and Treatment, and Excess Nutrients.
The SWCD Local Capacity Services grant program provides funds to Soil and Water Conservation Districts that focuses on increasing capacity to address four resource concern areas - Soil Erosion, Riparian Zone Management, Water Storage and Treatment, and Excess Nutrients.
The SWCD Local Capacity Services grant program provides funds to Soil and Water Conservation Districts that focuses on increasing capacity to address four resource concern areas - Soil Erosion, Riparian Zone Management, Water Storage and Treatment, and Excess Nutrients.
The SWCD Local Capacity Services grant program provides funds to Soil and Water Conservation Districts that focuses on increasing capacity to address four resource concern areas - Soil Erosion, Riparian Zone Management, Water Storage and Treatment, and Excess Nutrients.
The SWCD Local Capacity Services grant program provides funds to Soil and Water Conservation Districts that focuses on increasing capacity to address four resource concern areas - Soil Erosion, Riparian Zone Management, Water Storage and Treatment, and Excess Nutrients.
The SWCD Local Capacity Services grant program provides funds to Soil and Water Conservation Districts that focuses on increasing capacity to address four resource concern areas - Soil Erosion, Riparian Zone Management, Water Storage and Treatment, and Excess Nutrients.
The SWCD Local Capacity Services grant program provides funds to Soil and Water Conservation Districts that focuses on increasing capacity to address four resource concern areas - Soil Erosion, Riparian Zone Management, Water Storage and Treatment, and Excess Nutrients.
The SWCD Local Capacity Services grant program provides funds to Soil and Water Conservation Districts that focuses on increasing capacity to address four resource concern areas - Soil Erosion, Riparian Zone Management, Water Storage and Treatment, and Excess Nutrients.
The SWCD Local Capacity Services grant program provides funds to Soil and Water Conservation Districts that focuses on increasing capacity to address four resource concern areas - Soil Erosion, Riparian Zone Management, Water Storage and Treatment, and Excess Nutrients.
A collaboration between the Roseau County SWCD and the Roseau River Watershed District (RRWD), the CD 8 Subwatershed Sediment Reduction Project will reduce sediment delivery to the Roseau River by implementing Best Management Practices on sites that have been identified as the greatest contributors of sediment. Sites were prioritized based on modeled data from the Watershed District's Site Prioritization Grant, and the International Watershed Institutes's Water Quality Decision Support Application (WQDSA) and local knowledge of the subwatershed.
The Mille Lacs County agricultural landscape largely consists of long shallow slopes that are prone to intermittent streams, as well as sheet and rill erosion. Nutrient and manure management, reduced tillage, residue management and cover cropping, as well as runoff and erosion control structures, have all been identified as local priority practices necessary to reduce nitrogen and phosphorus inputs to surface and ground water.
Most of Hubbard, Todd and Wadena Counties' irrigated acreage consists of highly permeable, low water holding capacity, sandy textured soils overlying shallow and buried sand and gravel aquifers. These aquifers are very susceptible to non-point water quality degradation from land use practices.
This project will fully fund three Nonpoint Engineering Assistance (NPEA) Joint Powers Board positions in cooperation with the NPEA Base Funding anticipated at $130,000 per year. This will allow a 2nd Professional Engineer to be retained in addition to a Lead Engineer and Technician. This 'accelerated' engineering previously was funded with BWSR Challenge Grants, and an EPA319 grant with corresponding BWSR CWF Matching Grant to handle the high workload associated with the large number of BWSR feedlot cost-share projects approved in South East Minnesota.
This project will extend two Feedlot Technical positions initially created and funded by a FY2011 CWF Feedlot Water Quality Grant that assess and help fix animal waste runoff from small feedlots. The technicians will work with and under the Technical Authority and priorities of the South East Soil and Water Conservation District Tech Support JPB lead Engineer. This project will enable more projects to be constructed resulting in a reduction of nitrogen, phosphorus and fecal coliform runoff into surface and ground water in South East Minnesota and the Mississippi River.
This project will accelerate production of County Geologic Atlases (part A). An atlas is a set of geologic maps and associated databases for a county that facilitate informed management of natural resources, especially water and minerals.
The Accelerated Water Quality Project Implementation Program will increase the connection between landowners, local government units and the landscape to accelerate efforts addressing non-point source loading to surface waters throughout the Red River Valley Conservation Service Area.
An interagency workgroup is developing recommendations for best practices and policies for water reuse in Minnesota. Recommendations will include both regulatory and non-regulatory approaches to successful implementation of water reuse. The workgroup will evaluate current regulations, practices, and barriers, and quantify and determine acceptable health risks associated with water reuse applications. The University of Minnesota is collecting and analyzing field data for use in targeting Minnesota-specific risks.
The AgBMP Loan Program provides needed funding for local implementation of clean water practices at an extremely low cost, is unique in its structure, and is not duplicated by any other source of funding. The AgBMP loan program provides 3% loans through local lenders to farmers, rural landowners, and agriculture supply businesses. Funds are used for proven practices that prevent non-point source water pollution or solve existing water quality problems.
The Aitkin County Soil and Water Conservation District will partner with the Aitkin County Lakes and Rivers Association, Lake Associations, as well as other eligible community partners to reduce the impacts of stormwater runoff and keep water on the land. A mini-grant program to install rain gardens and native vegetation buffers along shorelines of lakes with a completed "Lake Assessment" supported by previous BWSR funding or a TMDL Implementation Plan will be implemented.
The Aitkin County Soil and Water Conservation District will partner with the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency and local volunteers to conduct water quality monitoring in high priority areas of the Upper Mississippi River (Brainerd) Watershed. Four lakes will be sampled, including Sheriff, Rabbit, French, and Section Twelve. Four stream/river sites will be monitored including the Rice River (2 sites), Ripple River, and Sissabagama Creek. Through this effort we will obtain information that will be useful in assessing the health of this watershed.
This project will complete the installation of four nested wells to the Ambient Groundwater Monitoring Network and relocated one well in the City of Saint Paul. Braun Intertec will coordinate site access and oversee the well installation by a state drilling contractor.
Widseth Smith Nolting (WSN) will evaluate and recommend to MPCA groundwater monitoring staff prospective sites/locations for the installation of groundwater monitoring wells to evaluate contaminant/pollutant concentrations from various sources. Peer will oversee the installation of monitoring wells by retaining a state drilling contractor or preparing bid documents to retain well driller through the Department of Administration. Superfund staff will assist in the project by providing oversight of contractual requirements and provide technical assistance as needed.
Peer Engineering, Inc. (Peer) will evaluate and recommend to MPCA groundwater monitoring staff prospective sites/locations for the installation of groundwater monitoring wells to evaluate contaminant/pollutant concentrations from various sources. Peer will oversee the installation of monitoring wells by retaining a state drilling contractor or preparing bid documents to retain well driller through the Department of Administration. Superfund staff will assist in the project by providing oversight of contractual requirements and provide technical assistance as needed.
The Ann River Watershed is a sub-watershed of the Snake River Watershed located within the St. Croix River Basin. The Ann River watershed includes Ann Lake, Fish Lake, Ann River and its tributaries. This project will focus on watershed load reductions. Based on the strategies found in the Implementation Plan, the first priority will be to target the animal and cropland - agricultural areas on the Ann River and its tributaries. The second priority will be to target the lake shore and streambank areas in the non-agricultural areas.
This project will be a complete TMDL report for the Biota and Bacteria (E. coli) impairments for the Ann River Watershed. The water bodies associated with these impairments will then be removed from the MPCA’s impaired waters list, and implementation activities to restore the water bodies will begin.
Aquatic invasive species pose critical ecological and economic challenges for the entire state and beyond. They can cause irreparable harm to fisheries and aquatic habitat as well as damage to infrastructure. The problems posed by aquatic invasive species continue to grow as existing infestations expand and new exotic species arrive, most of which are poorly understood. New ideas and approaches are needed to develop real solutions.
The DNR is working with local communities and an interagency team to define, prioritize, and establish groundwater management areas in Minnesota. Groundwater management areas will have increased data collection and monitoring that allow the state and local communities to understand water supplies, uses, limitations, and threats to natural resources that depend on groundwater. This information will support detailed aquifer protection plans that ensure equitable and sustainable groundwater and drinking water use for the future.
This project is studying the response of certain aquifers to groundwater pumping. Research involves an aquifer test, which is an experiment where a well is pumped at a known, constant, pumping rate; changes in groundwater levels and stream flows in the areas around the aquifer test site are observed while the well is being pumped. These tests help us understand how groundwater flows between aquifers, which are underground rock and sand layers that hold water.
South Central Technical Service Area (SCTSA) will use this Clean Water Fund grant to provide Soil and Water Conservation Districts and other local organizations in its eleven-county area with a Geographic Information System (GIS) Technician to assist in using available GIS information to target specific locations where Best Management Practices (BMPs) can be installed to help improve water quality.
This project will provide condition monitoring and problem investigation monitoring at the following sites.
Mississippi River: Tributaries include Bassett Creek, Cannon River, Crow River, and Minnehaha Creek.
Minnesota River: Tributaries include Eagle Creek,Riley Creek, and Valley Creek tributary to the St. Croix River
The primary goal of this project is to analyze of dated sediment cores to reconstruct changes in the lake condition over the last 150 years. This will be done using multiple lines of evidence including biogeochemistry, sediment accumulation, and diatom and algal remains as biological indicators.
The Plymouth Creek Restoration Project will improve water quality in Plymouth Creek and Medicine Lake, the creek's primary receiving water. The project will reduce total phosphorus and suspended sediment in Plymouth Creek and Medicine Lake stemming from streambank erosion. Streambank erosion is a common source of pollution, particularly in developed landscapes where flows in streams are considered flashy and can easily scour unprotected and disturbed streambanks.
This project engages private property owners including non-profits, businesses, and institutions, in the Harrison Neighborhood of Near North Minneapolis to install storm water best management practices. The BMPs will reduce pollution in Bassett Creek including chlorides and bacteria, for which the creek is impaired. The primary focus is on Glenwood Avenue, a focal point in the community and a highly impervious area.
The Becker County Drainage Ditch Inventory and Inspection Project is a collaborative, multifaceted approach to develop a GIS-based drainage ditch inventory database system, inventory the current conditions of judicial ditches and adjacent land, and target and prioritize portions of each ditch system for restorative or protective measures.
Installation of a 43,000 sf infiltration gallery in Becker Park in the City of Crystal to infiltrate 0.5 inches of runoff from a 147 acre currently untreated mixed use subwatershed with 51% impervious surface. The project will reduce total phosphorus to Impaired Water Upper Twin Lake by 118 pounds annually, and reduce street flooding on Bass Lake Road (Hennepin County Road 10).
