To expand arts, educational, and history programming at the Scott County Fair. Funds will be used to bring the county historical society to the fair to share their educational resources, host quilting demonstrations, feature a local polka band, and presentations about the role of animals in agricultural history.
The Faribault County Soil and Water Conservation District Drainage Engineer will inventory public drainage ditches to identify priority systems and areas where erosion, sediment, and nutrients contribute to water quality degradation. Sites identified for potential side inlet control, buffer strip need, or water storage will be prioritized for landowner contact and follow through by seeking external funding opportunities.
Working with a consultant, a current online database to manage public drainage systems will be enhanced and a corresponding mobile inspection app will be developed to facilitate drainage compliance and improve inspection planning. With these improvements, a long-term, comprehensive, GIS-compatible database will be in place to help plan, collect, document, summarize, and analyze system condition, repair needs, and violations with the overall goal of protecting and improving water quality.
To hire an architect to write a Historic Structure Report to guide future restoration of the 1915 Federal Courthouse and Post Office, listed in the National Register of Historic Places, now the Rourke Art Museum.
To highlight the importance of agriculture in rural and urban areas and to bring awareness of how farming culture is alive throughout Minnesota.
To bring the All American Lumberjack Show to Lac qui Parle County Fair. With two teams and ten lumberjack events, the show will offer viewers an opportunity to see demonstrations of old time skills, and can join the lumberjacks at camp to get a hands on experience.
Elms were once a very widespread tree in Minnesota and amongst the most common and popular in urban landscapes due to their size, shading capability, and tolerance of pollution and other stresses. Over the past five decades, though, Dutch elm disease, an exotic and invasive pathogen, has killed millions of elms throughout the state. However, scientists at the University of Minnesota have observed that some elms have survived the disease and appear to have special characteristics that make them resistant to Dutch elm disease.
To highlight local talent by enhancing the fine arts display area with finished display cabinets. Additionally, funds will be used to bring live bluegrass music to the fair.
-Increase knowledge for 69 American Indian youth ages 7-17 through practice of conversational Dakota
-Build the foundation for youth to grow to become fluent speakers
-Improve proficiency of Dakota language learners by the end of 12 months
To organize a fiddler's contest of all ages at the 2012 fair. Contest will also include musical entertainment, two hours before the contest, by a bluegrass band.
The Bell Museum will sort and identify all fish samples collected by the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency's (MPCA) North and South Biological Monitoring Units. The Bell Museum of Natural History (Bell Museum) will provide professional fish Identification expertise to the MPCA fish voucher program, while also helping the Bell Museum annually update their fish distribution map for the State of Minnesota. As the MPCA samples and vouchers species of significance, the Bell Museum shall catalog these species into their official fish collection.
The DNR works with the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency and the Minnesota Department of Health to determine the level of contamination from mercury and other harmful chemicals in fish from Minnesota's lakes and rivers and to track the success of efforts to reduce mercury pollution. Clean Water Legacy funding is being used to significantly increase (more than double) the number of lakes and rivers that are assessed for mercury contamination on an annual basis. Fish are collected during DNR fishery surveys, processed for laboratory testing, and analyzed for contaminants.
The Floodwood Four Rivers Legacy Encampment Park will make its debut at the 2012 Southwest St Louis County Fair. Located on the banks of the Floodwood River, the encampment will consist of several live, interactive demonstrations and displays depicting early trades and activities that took place on the area rivers. Fair visitors will enjoy activities such as birch bark canoe building demonstrations, fur trading reenactments, Native American homestead displays, and early logging equipment displays and demonstrations.
To hire a qualified professional to write an exterior building assessment of the Florence Town Hall, listed in the National Register of Historic Places.
