FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Mary Juhl; 612-358-5733
St. Paul, Minn. – The Minnesota Board of Water and Soil Resources (BWSR) approved $11.6 million in Clean Water Fund grants today to improve water quality in streams, lakes and groundwater across the state. Most of the grant funding is allocated for voluntary conservation projects throughout Minnesota, including funding for projects that focus on improving and protecting drinking water.
“Local governments are ready to work with private landowners across Minnesota to implement projects that will make meaningful progress toward improving water quality,” said BWSR Executive Director John Jaschke. “These grants support our valuable water resources by keeping our lakes, rivers and streams healthy.”
An example of expected outcomes includes the Pelican Lake Watershed District restoring function to the partially drained Rice Lake wetland. The project will reduce the largest phosphorous tributary loading source to downstream Detroit Lake, a high value recreational lake.
Another example is a soil health initiative in the city of Goodhue’s 2,500-acre municipal water supply to reduce nitrate contamination. A suite of soil health practices will be promoted and installed on agricultural lands in the drinking water supply management area to help reduce nitrogen leaching through the groundwater system.
The $11.6 million will fund 34 grants. Learn more about the grant recipients:
About the Minnesota Clean Water Fund
Minnesota voters approved the Clean Water, Land and Legacy Amendment in 2008 to protect, enhance, and restore wetlands, prairies, forests, and fish, game, and wildlife habitat; to preserve arts and cultural heritage; to support parks and trails; and to protect, enhance, and restore lakes, rivers, streams, and groundwater. The Clean Water Fund receives 33 percent of the sales tax revenue generated by the Legacy Amendment. More information about the Clean Water Fund is available here.
Tech Talks is a online training series organized by the Technical Training and Certification Program. Rotating speakers cover a wide variety of technical topics at 1:00 on Mondays. The list of Tech Talks and links to replays for 2022 can be found below.
United States
| Date | Topic | Description |
|---|---|---|
| January 10 | Basic Survey | The goal of this training is to become familiar with terms and procedures, recognize features of different equipment, and make you more comfortable with surveying concepts. When you can get hands on experience, this training should allow you to understand procedures for completing a survey more quickly. This session covers general surveying concepts, what styles of surveying are used for various practices, the equipment commonly used in Minnesota’s field offices, and the principles of recording notes to document a survey. |
| January 24 | Sheep and Goat Grazing and Browsing for Native Restorations |
Join Audrey Lomax, Minnesota Native Landscapes, to learn about their ecological restoration projects. Audrey will highlight specific case studies, and go in depth on the use of goats in native restorations. A replay of this session can be found here. |
| February 7 | Bioreactors and Drainage Management Practices |
Mark Dittrich and Jeppe Hjaersgaard, both with MDA, will discuss drainage and conservation focusing on the human dimension of conservation. How do you get to know you clients and better understand their operation? Do you know their objectives? What’s happening and what’s worked in southern Minnesota will be a part of this interactive discussion. Bring your questions and examples of projects you’ve been involved with. A replay of this session can be found here. |
| February 14 | Agricultural Chemical Handling Facilities (CPS 309) | This session includes an overview of the Agrichemical Handling Facility (CPS 309) practice. What the resource concerns are, design tools and methodology, standard drawings available, and construction oversight and certification processes are all discussed. NRCS presenters include Mike Krcmarik, Mark Pearson, and Nichole Sternquist. A replay of this session can be found here. |
| March 7 | Tree/Shrub Establishment (CPS 612) | Join Callie Bertsch, NRCS State Forester, and Kelly Voigt, TTCP Training Conservationist, for a Tech Talk session on the Tree/Shrub Establishment practice (CPS 612). This session will cover the use of Web Soil Survey to identify Conservation Tree/Shrub Groups and using the CTSG group spreadsheet to select species of trees/shrubs to plant. We will review tree spacing specifications for different planting purposes and other tree/shrub selection factors. In addition, participants will become familiar with the Implementation Requirements worksheet for the 612 practice standard. A replay of this session can be found here. |
| March 14 | Pasture and Hay Planting - Species Selection (CPS 512) |
Join Jeff Duchene, NRCS Grazing Specialist, where we will discuss:
A replay of this session can be found here. |
| March 21 | Tree/Shrub Site Prep and Planting Methods (CPS 490) | On Monday, March 21st, the Tech Talk topics will be tree/shrub site preparation (CPS 490) and tree/shrub planting methods. Join this Tech Talk session for a discussion of planning considerations for site preparation and matching the site preparation techniques to the site conditions. Different types of tree stock and planting methods will be discussed along with planning considerations for successful tree/shrub establishment. Available web soil survey reports will be demonstrated and other resources for practice planning will be provided. A replay of this session can be found here. |
| March 28 | Pasture and Hay Planting - Practice Standard (CPS 512) |
Join Jeff Duchene, NRCS Grazing Specialist, for this session which includes:
A replay of this session can be found here. |
| April 4 | Drought Planning for Pasture and Forage Management |
During this session Eric Mousel, UMN Extension, will focus on the impact of the 2021 drought on pasture and forage production in 2022. Eric will also discuss management actions producers should consider to aid in the recovery of drought affected pastures, as well as options to consider if the drought persists into the 2022 grazing season. A replay of this session can be found here. |
| April 11 | Basic Irrigation |
Brian Ebel, NRCS Water Resource Engineer, will discuss the basic concepts of Irrigation. This introduction to irrigation will include:
Attendees will gain insight into why and when irrigation is used and how it is accomplished in Minnesota. A replay of this session can be found here. |
| April 25 | Forage Harvest Management (CPS 511) |
Join Jeff Duchene, NRCS Grazing Specialist, for this session which includes:
A replay of this session can be found here. |
| May 9 | Sharptail Grouse and Early Successional Habitat (CPS 647) |
Join Jacob Granfors, Pheasants Forever Farm Bill Wildlife Biologist, and Garett Christiansen, NRCS Forester, for this session on open landscapes, early successional habitat, and young forest/brushland wildlife habitat. During this session Jake and Garett will cover the range, population status, habitat needs, and ongoing management for Sharptail Grouse. This session also includes a discussion of other early successional wildlife species that utilize similar habitats and/or adjacent forests, such as Woodcock, Ruffed Grouse, and Golden Winged Warblers. A replay of this session can be found here. |
| June 13 | Tile Flow Design Using CPS 606/620 |
These supporting practices are only a small part of the designs for waterways, WASCOBs, and other main practices. Fundamentals for following practice standards 620 and 606 are usually briefly covered. This Tech Talk will go a little deeper into the practice standards, terminology when using these “tile” practices, and explain their connection to their main counterparts like 412 and 638. Join in to get a better understanding of the “why” when utilizing and meeting these standards in your design. A replay of this session can be found here. |
| June 27 | Waterway Design Spreadsheet |
The MN NRCS’s grassed waterway design spreadsheet uses the same methodology as the EFT waterway program and is an acceptable design tool. In this Tech Talk Elizabeth Oolman, NRCS engineer, will use the design spreadsheet and review data entry for the waterway design tab, data entry for the out-of-bank flow, and how to use the cut sheet tab. The spreadsheet is available for download on MN FOTG > Section IV > Engineering Tools. This Tech Talk is intended for staff who know how to design a waterway but are looking for training on this particular tool. A replay of this session can be found here. |
| July 11 | Groundwater Resource Concerns |
Join Tim Weisbrod, NRCS Geologist for MN and WI as he discusses why the four Nutrient Management (590) Groundwater Resource Concerns need to be inventoried and assessed during the planning process. Tim will cover the scientific background on how groundwater and nutrients move through the landscape and how those resource concerns can effect excess nutrient content in groundwater and surface waters. A replay of this session can be found here. |
| July 25 | Livestock Pipeline Design |
Join Amanda Deans, TTCP Engineer, as she runs through a real-life pipeline design using the MN NRCS Livestock Pipeline spreadsheet. The "Livestock Pipeline" design spreadsheet can be found in the Minnesota FOTG, Section 4, Engineering Tools. A replay of this session can be found here. |
| August 8 | Introduction to Managed Grazing Systems |
This session will discuss basic grazing management principles, benefits of prescribed grazing, and considerations for planning a grazing system. A replay of this session can be found here. |
|
August 22 |
Well Decommissioning (CPS 351) |
During this session Patrick Schultz, TTCP Engineer, will provide an overview of topics related to the CPS 351 Well Decommissioning. There will also be a discussion of different real world scenarios, based on project experiences, as they relate to planning, design, and construction oversight of sealing abandoned wells. A replay of this session can be found here. |
| September 26 | Prairie Strips Part 1: A New Option for Water Quality, Pollinators, and Wildlife |
Join Jim Fritz (SE ARC, MN NRCS), James Fett (Watershed Technician, Mower SWCD), and Andrea Eger (Regenerative Ag Project Manager, TNC) as they discuss the following topics on CP43 CCRP Prairie Strips:
A replay of this session can be found here. |
| October 3 | Prairie Strips Part 2: Addressing Pesticide Risks to Pollinators |
Emily May and Karin Jokela from the Xerces Society will present on pesticide risks to pollinators in habitat near cropland, including field research on pesticide contamination and impacts, and how to address and mitigate those risks in planning prairie strips. The talk will include local case studies and partner experiences. A replay of this session can be found here. |
| November 28 | Side Water Inlet (CPS 410) Planning and Design |
Join Patrick Schultz and Aaron Peter, TTCP engineers, as they cover planning and design criteria for side water inlets (SWI’s). SWI’s are an option within the 410 grade stabilization structure practice. Participants will learn what resource concerns are addressed by this practice, data needing to be collected to design the practice, and the design process using an example project. A replay of this session can be found here. |
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Forest Ecology Working Group, National Conservation Training Center, and Migratory Bird Program developed a 12-part lecture series to address the 50-year decline of 3 billion birds through partnerships, conservation science and forest management. The series tells a compelling story about forest bird population declines, partnership opportunities, and forest management actions that can support bird population recovery and sustainability. Partner’s in Flight was a partner and co-host of this series in celebration of our 30 year anniversary!
After engaging with the entire series, participants will be able to:
• Describe the decline of forest-dwelling birds in the U.S., identifying causes and risk factors
• Apply species vulnerability assessment tools to identify priority bird species
• Describe the importance of forest management planning from landscape to local scales, recognizing essential forest community composition and structure for bird conservation
• Identify forest conservation and habitat management alternative
Disclaimer: This webinar series is for educational purposes only. The opinions, ideas or data presented in this webinar series do not represent USFWS policy or constitute endorsement by USFWS. Some of the materials and images may be protected by copyright or may have been licenses to us by a third party and are restricted in their use. Mention of any product names, companies, web links, textbooks, or other references does not imply Federal endorsement.
USFWS
United States
This 5-part focused lecture series introduces the fundamental principles of forest habitat management. The series is taught by Brenda McComb, emeritus professor at Oregon State University.
Series Objectives:
To introduce concepts and theory and of wildlife habitat selection and application of forest management to provide habitat for selected species or for conservation of biological diversity
To help participants with forestry, wildlife, environmental sciences, fisheries, and related backgrounds to find a common ground when approaching management of forests for multiple values
To introduce approaches of managing forests to achieve desired conditions for selected species or the conservation of biological diversity
Disclaimer: This webinar series is for educational purposes only. The opinions, ideas or data presented in this webinar series do not represent USFWS policy or constitute endorsement by USFWS. Some of the materials and images may be protected by copyright or may have been licenses to us by a third party and are restricted in their use. Mention of any product names, companies, web links, textbooks, or other references does not imply Federal endorsement.
USFWS
United States
Grasslands in the Great Plains, and elsewhere, are rapidly disappearing. Grasslands provide critical habitat for a variety of wildlife, including pollinators and other invertebrates. Join Xerces Biologists, Sarah Hamilton Buxton, Ray Moranz, and Rae Powers to learn about the ecological and social value of rangelands, management practices to support pollinators, and critical actions to maintain native plant diversity on rangelands.
Xerces
United States