May Featured Plant of the Month: American Basswood
Check out our featured plant of the month, the American basswood, to learn its many landscape functions, including habitat and food sources for a variety of bird and animals, shoreline stabilization, urban and stream cooling, carbon sequestration and soil enrichment.
It takes time, and a lot of people to make water cleaner
If you are fishing in the metro area next week for the 2013 opener, you may notice the water is clearer than in past years.
Recently, Board of Water and Soil Resources’ (BWSR) staff reviewed clarity data for 80 lakes in the metro area, and found that overall, the clarity of metro area lakes is better than a generation ago.
Drainage Work Group recommendations carried in HF66
The stakeholder Drainage Work Group (DWG) had a significant success relatively early during the 2013 legislative session when both the House and Senate unanimously passed HF66, which carried the 2012 consensus recommendations of the group to update Minnesota drainage laws. The Legislature passed HF66 on Mar. 13 and Governor Dayton signed the bill into law the next day, making it the 4th bill to pass during the 2013 session.
Counties take two steps forward, none back to protect groundwater
Protecting and preserving groundwater is critically important in central Minnesota, particularly in the sand plain areas of Hubbard, Wadena, Todd and Ottertail Counties. That’s why the county Soil and Water Conservation Districts (SWCDs) hired Wade Salo to work with landowners on irrigation water management.
Protecting one lake at a time in Crow Wing County
Crow Wing County is home to 416 lakes and Melissa Barrick believes all of them need to be protected, some sooner rather than later.
Melissa is one of five SWCD staff members that the Minnesota Board of Water and Soil Resources is profiling as a part of the 2013 Soil and Water Stewardship week. To learn more, follow @MNBWSR or like us on Facebook.
Partnerships, education moves work forward in Washington County
Growing up hunting and fishing with his dad, Jay Riggs has always enjoyed spending time in the outdoors. By the time he was a senior in college at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire, Riggs fell in love with natural resource management and chose to make a career out of it. For the last seven years, Riggs has served as the district manager at the Washington Conservation District.
Jay is one of five SWCD staff members that the Minnesota Board of Water and Soil Resources is profiling as a part of the 2013 Soil and Water Stewardship week. To learn more, follow @MNBWSR or like us on Facebook.
Bernhardson: 40 years and going strong
Nearly 40 years ago, Marilyn Bernhardson had no idea what a soil and water conservation district did, but she applied to be the district clerk anyway. Today, Bernhardson is one of the most seasoned SWCD managers across the state.
Marilyn is one of five SWCD staff members that the Minnesota Board of Water and Soil Resources is profiling as a part of the 2013 Soil and Water Stewardship week. To learn more, follow @MNBWSR or like us on Facebook.
Conservation is ‘all in the family’ for Mike Hirst
Mike Hirst first learned about conservation at an early age. From parents who took him exploring in the outdoors, to grandparents who farmed small grains and raised beef cattle and another grandmother who dedicated her career to conservation, Hirst found a natural fit as a resource technician at the Lake of the Woods SWCD.
Mike is one of five SWCD staff members that the Minnesota Board of Water and Soil Resources is profiling as a part of the 2013 Soil and Water Stewardship week. To learn more, follow @MNBWSR or like us on Facebook.
Turning a passion for the environment into a career
Jennifer Thiemann's enthusiasm for her job is apparent to anyone who meets her. Only one year into her role as the Lake County Soil and Water Conservation District (SWCD) manager, Thiemann talks animatedly about her experiences, most notably managing the aftermath of the 2012 northeast Minnesota floods.
Jennifer Thiemann is one of five SWCD staff members that the Minnesota Board of Water and Soil Resources is profiling as a part of the 2013 Soil and Water Stewardship week. To learn more, follow @MNBWSR or like us on Facebook.
Read past stories
Announcements
May 20, 2013
Final legislative update
This legislative update includes information on the primary bills important to BWSR - the Environment Budget/Policy bill, the Legacy bill, and the Tax bill. Read the update here.
May 15, 2013
New Board Members appointed
Governor Mark Dayton announced the following appointments to the Board of Water and Soil Resources: Christy Fogarty (Farmington), Tom Loveall (Winnebago), Judy Ohly (Rochester) and Thomas Schultz (Sebeka). Click here to see the official announcement and click here to learn more about the Board.
May 1, 2013
New septic estimator now available
The University of Minnesota, through a grant from BWSR and the Environment and Natural Resources Trust fund, developed a new spreadsheet-based model that calculates annual pollutant loads from problematic septic systems and accounts for the benefits of a range of septic system improvements, educational efforts and programs to identify the problematic systems. Local conservation partners can utilize this tool to report estimated improvements in pollution removals including Biological Oxygen Demand (BOD), Total Suspended Solids (TSS), fecal coliform bacteria, phosphorus and nitrogen. Check out the new tool: Septic System Improvement Estimator and the Septic System Improvement Estimator Users Guide.
April 26, 2013
Train Tracks Newsletter
Training news and updates, including training, partners' training, and news. If you are interested in receiving Train Tracks, please click on the "Manage Preferences" link in the newsletter. Check out the most recent Train Tracks newsletter.
April 10, 2013
Take the Clean Water Fund Water Resource Survey
The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency is surveying people to learn about experiences when looking for information about Minnesota's water resources on state agency websites. The information will be used to better coordinate and to provide more useful water data to the public. Click this link to take the quick Clean Water Fund water resource survey.
March 15, 2013
Hydrologic Monitoring of Wetlands (Supplemental guidance from BWSR)
This is a new guidance document on wetland hydrologic monitoring. Its purpose is to give some practical guidance based on our years of collective experience at the Minnesota Board of Water and Soil Resources (BWSR). This guidance is meant to supplement existing publications of the U.S Army Corps of Engineers and Natural Resources Conservation Service. The document can be found here.
March 1, 2013
BWSR Publishes 2013 Clean Water Fund Legislative Report
The 2013 Clean Water Fund annual report is now available, highlighting grants that were approved by the BWSR Board in December 2012, and projecting anticipated project outcomes. Check out the report here.
Announcements Archive
To view previous announcements, visit the archive
Legacy Amendment
Information For Citizens: How These Dollars Are Being Spent and How You Can Participate
BWSR receives appropriations from the Clean Water, Land & Legacy Amendment to pay for on-the-ground conservation projects that provide multiple benefits for water quality and wildlife habitat.
- View FY2013 Grant Recipients - New
- Read more about the Legacy Amendment
- Explore the Clean Water Fund Stories
BWSR Media Center
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About BWSR
BWSR Mission: Improve and protect Minnesota's water and soil resources by working in partnership with local organizations and private landowners
BWSR is the state soil and water conservation agency, and it administers programs that prevent sediment and nutrients from entering our lakes, rivers, and streams; enhance fish and wildlife habitat; and protect wetlands. The 20-member board consists of representatives of local and state government agencies and citizens.
Partners
BWSR works in partnership with local government units, state and federal government agencies, and other organizations.
Local Government Units and Partner Agencies -- Overview of BWSR's conservation partners, includes directories, maps, guidance documents and publications.
Performance data for local government units -- Through the Performance Review and Assistance Program (PRAP), BWSR staff evaluate water management entities, and, where necessary, provide assistance.
Training
The BWSR Training page has dates and locations of training sessions conducted by BWSR staff as well as other training-related information.
Maps
The BWSR Map Portal contains maps that BWSR staff and partner agencies use to administer conservation programs.