Clean Water Blog

We arrived at the Beaver Island Trail boat launch, just off St. Cloud State campus, Sunday morning for a long anticipated canoe float down the Mississippi River to Clearwater. That is when we crashed the camp of a group of young adventures that are part of the Old Man River Project.

The Old Man River Project is an expedition to rediscover the Mississippi River, as well as promote preservation of the river basin and serve as a call to environmental activists. The team, made up of 7 individuals (6 Canadians and 1 Australian) built a 32 foot wooden York boat named Annie, with a big goal: travel the length of the Mississippi River (over 2,000 miles) from Bemidji to the Gulf of Mexico and deliver the vessel in support of the Lower Mississippi Riverkeeper, an environmental organization based in Baton Rouge, LA.

The group has been planning this trip for over 3 years, but with anything there are always surprises and challenges along the way. 

You can watch the epic adventure through videos and blogs posted on their website at: www.oldmanriverproject.org or get out on the Mississippi River and support them as they go through your community. They just passed through Monticello and aniticipate being in the Minneapolis area by the end of September.

The photo is courtesy of the Old Man River Project.

Water Resources Conference
October 26-27, 2009
Location: RiverCentre, Saint Paul, Minnesota

The Minnesota Water Resources Conference presents innovative and practical water resource management techniques and highlights research about Minnesota’s water resources. The conference provides an opportunity to address:

1) best practices discovered in the design and application of water resource management techniques
2) implications of water policy decisions,
3) research into current and emerging issues

The conference facilitates interaction among water resources professionals including resource managers, researchers, local, state and federal agency staff, consultants, practicing engineers, as well as students in the field.

2009 Abstract Topics:
Agricultural Water Issues
Drainage / Water Consumption / Reuse
Water Quality / Water Quantity
Surface Water Management
BMP Research / Design /Implementation
Floodplain Management / Mapping
Hydraulic Design
Inflow & Infiltration
Operation and Maintenance
TMDLs
Lakes, Rivers, Streams and Wetlands
Research / Rehabilitation / Restoration
Shoreland and Zoning Issues
Policy, Education and Citizen Involvement
Water Resource Sustainability Initiatives
Climate Change / Hydrologic Extremes
Emerging Contaminants
Surface and Groundwater Interaction
Water Supply / Scarcity / Reuse /Threats

For more information check out the website at www.wrc.umn.edu/waterconf.

Conference contact:
Sara Van Essendelft
College of Continuing Education
Phone: 612-624-3708
E-mail: cceconf5@umn.edu

You can personally contribute to cleaner water and beautify your landscape simply by constructing a rain garden.

Rain gardens are shallow depressions planted with native plants or cultivars that collect rain water mainly from roof tops or paved areas. The water filters into the ground rather than running off into storm sewers which eventually run into lakes and streams. These gardens benefit the environment by filtering pollutants from stormwater runoff, recharging groundwater and preventing drainage problems. They also provide valuable wildlife habitats.

Rain gardens are easy to construct and maintain similar to any perennial garden. Rain gardens can be constructed with tools you already have and can be easily made to fit the existing landscape. The biggest jobs are properly locating the gardens to capture the most runoff, preparing the depressed planting bed and pulling weeds until plants are established.

Plant selection is important for a rain garden’s functionality and aesthetic value. According to Greg Berg, Stearns County Soil and Water Conservation District Shoreland Specialist, “It is best to use a diverse set of plants, half native grasses and half wild flowers, to provide diversity for wildlife and enhance infiltration. There is a wide variety of grasses and flowers to choose from which can be tailored to fit the look desired.”

Are rain gardens a breeding place for mosquitoes? No, they are designed to infiltrate water within 48 hours. Mosquito eggs and larva cannot survive in such a short time period.

To get started designing your own rain garden contact the Stearns County Soil & Water Conservation District to obtain their free homeowner’s guide to construction and maintenance of rain gardens. Local Conservation and Watershed Districts are also available to answer questions and provide technical assistance.

While an individual rain garden may seem like a small thing, collectively they produce neighborhood and community environmental benefits. Make your personal contribution to cleaner water and plant a rain garden.

Using native landscapes as a means to reduce erosion and capture essential nutrients, that would otherwise runoff into neighborhood storm drains, affect the water quality of our lakes and rivers. By replacing your landscape with native plants, which have an extensive root structure, restores soil health by replenishing nutrients and increasing the water holding capacity that has been depleted with more traditional landscaping, creating a more self-sustaining system for all species.

The Department of Natural Resources has an in-depth list of plant species native to central Minnesota, including blackberries and violets. The University of Minnesota Extension Service also offers information on choosing and planting native plants. Go to your neighborhood nursery and ask for suggestions. By discussing the make up of your yard’s soil and the amount of light the plants receive daily, you will be able to determine which native plants are appropriate for your yard. Get growing!

Dollar bills will never be dangling from the tree in your front yard or along the road, so why should we plant trees in our yards, around our communities and even along our roads? The reality is that trees pay us back in many ways. According to the USDA Forest Service, for every $1 spent on a tree a $3 return is realized. How is this possible?

Trees store carbon dioxide (CO2), a primary greenhouse gas resulting in climate change. Trees also release life sustaining oxygen. Two medium sized red oak trees can sequester 500 pounds of CO2 annually and provide enough oxygen for a single person to live for more than a year.

Trees reduce the amount of stormwater runoff and pollutant loading to our water bodies by intercepting and infiltrating precipitation. One medium sized red oak tree has the ability to intercept up to 1,200 gallons of precipitation annually. Tree roots hold the soil in place and prevent erosion. This makes trees a great tool for protecting our lakes, streams and rivers.

Strategically planted trees around your home can save you money in two significant ways. First, trees can greatly reduce your energy bill by shading your home in the summer and protecting your home from the wind in the winter. Also, healthy mature trees add an average of 10 percent to the value of your property, according to the USDA Forest Service.

Although dollar bills do not grow on trees, the environmental and economic benefits of trees are real. When you plant trees strategically to capture stormwater and protect your home, the benefits will only keep growing. Be a tree planter and enjoy the rewards.

Rain barrels can effectively capture and store roof runoff from small to moderate storms. This stored water can be used to irrigate lawns and landscaped areas between rain showers.

Up to 40% of summer water use is irrigation. You can reduce your household water needs by saving rain. Water your gardens naturally with untreated, air-temperature, non-chlorinated water. Recycling rainwater reduces your personal energy consumption by using less treated water.

In addition, collected rainwater can be directed away from the foundation of your house and to your garden. You can also water your dry lawns and gardens during city-imposed watering bans. Your rain barrel will help reduce erosion and increase water quality in your neighborhood.

Sorry, this workshop cannot accept more registrations. If you’re interested in other similar opportunities, the University of Minnesota Extension frequently has workshops for the home owner who is interested in protecting the environment. http://www.extension.umn.edu/workshops/workshops.aspx

Help keep our lakes and rivers clean by creating a garden on your property to capture rain and snow melt. Rain gardens are beautiful and help the environment.

A workshop on rain garden design is being offered at Munsinger Gardens in St. Cloud on Monday, September 14. The hours are 9:00 AM to 3:30 PM.

This event is sponsored by Stearns County Master Gardeners. For information and registration please contact Stearns County Extension.

Registration is required. Information/registration contact is Carl Hoffman hoffm072@umn.edu

When I first met my partner (Bruce) I never imagined I would be spending some of my evenings driving around central and southeast Stearns County, stopping along road sides next to wetlands, and listening for frog and toad calls. It’s been four years since our first foray together volunteering for the Minnesota Frog and Toad Calling Survey, and each year I get excited when April rolls around. Not only is summer coming, but we start another season of listening for frog and toad calls.

Typically, a listening route has ten stops with different wetland environments. A route is traveled during 3 time periods from April to July. Each time period represents a breeding season for frogs and toads that breed early, mid-season, late-season. One of our routes includes several wetlands adjacent to agricultural fields and several stops near lakes with fairly high-density residential development. The other route includes wetlands near farm fields, residential developments, a scientific and natural area, and two lakes (one with some residential development, the other with almost no homeowners on the lake).

This year it seemed as if breeding populations of frogs and toads were down from past years. The number of frog and toad calls heard seemed to be less than what we had heard in prior years. We think it might be due to the cold weather in the spring and early summer. It will be interesting to review data from other volunteers to see if they noted a similar trend.

My partner, Bruce, who has been a volunteer for a much longer time than I, has developed a hypothesis regarding frog and toad populations. He feels that as development encroaches on wetlands, frogs like Spring Peepers become less common or disappear. Also, American Toads seem to like stormwater ponds. So, after a stormwater pond is constructed, one might expect to find American Toads moving in a short time later.

If you are interested in becoming a Minnesota Frog and Toad Calling Survey, please visit the website at www.dnr.state.mn.us/volunteering/frogtoad_survey/index.html.

Sue is 42-feet long, 12 feet high at the hips, and is the largest, most complete and best preserved Tyrannosaurs rex ever discovered – and she is coming to Stearns County!

The Stearns History Museum will have Sue the T. rex on display from September 20, 2009 to January 3, 2010.

One of the largest flesh eaters to have inhabited the Earth, Tyrannosaurus rex roamed North America about 67 million years ago. This T. rex is named for Sue Hendrickson who discovered the dinosaur near Faith, South Dakota in 1990. The Field Museum of Chicago purchased Sue and spent more than 30,000 hours preparing the more than 250 bones and teeth in Sue’s skeleton.

For more information call the Stearns County History Museum at (320) 253-8424.