Soil & Water Conservation District Guidebook 2008 - Minnesota ...

The SWCD and CCLNS Joint Powers Board
#3 worked in cooperation with the U.S. Forest Service to
protect 108 lineal feet of shoreline on Birch Lake (pictured)
for lease holder Joe Caulfi eld. The U.S. Forest Service
covered the loading and hauling of material for the riprap
shoreline stabilization project. The SWCD provided $8,681
of State Cost-Share funds, which was 75 percent of the land
occupier’s expenses to install the project.
Forest Stewardship planning assistance
to private property owners has been successful for many
years now due to grant funds received through the MN DNR
Forestry Division. The SWCD does not have a certifi ed
forester on staff, so foresters are hired on a contract basis for
this assistance. For fi scal year 2007 the SWCD assisted in
the management of 1,617 acres in northern St. Louis County
paying private foresters a combined total of $9,230. To satisfy
the incoming requests for these services, the SWCD will
continue to submit grant applications annually.
Through the Coastal Implementation
Grant intended to implement nonpoint source technical assistance,
an enhanced level of fi eld reviews was made possible
with the use of a Global Positioning System (GPS) and
a Geographic Information System (GIS). SWCD staff use
these tools to make technical recommendations to landowners
and local government units regarding erosion control, riparian
plantings, nutrient runoff management, wetland conservation
and the enhancement of wildlife habitat. A laptop purchased
under this grant has been used in the fi eld and will provide the
educational tools necessary for PowerPoint presentations in
the future to audiences of all ages. Field review and technical
assistance has been provided to 10 private landowners, one
ATV/Snowmobile Association and one township.
St. Louis-North Soil & Water Conservation District
With the Drought Disaster Relief funds
made available to landowners by the state of Minnesota in
2007, the SWCD was able to provide technical assistance via
the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service to restore
fi ve stock ponds for one producer and complete a well drilling
and stock pond project for another, both in Iron. A total
of $9,000 in Cost-Share was provided through the SWCD to
cover 50 percent of the expenses for these projects.
‘Road, Building Layout’ educational sessions
were conducted in Hackensack and Zim by the
SWCD Resource Conservationist Klingsporn to inform
loggers of conservation issues regarding temporary crossings.
The Minnesota Erosion Control Association, Minnesota
Logger Education Program, and the Board of Water
and Soil Resources requested these educational efforts.
Future Projects
A Clean Water Legacy Act grant and work began in
2007. Barber and Dempsey Creeks, located within the
Upper East Swan Watershed, are targeted for reduction
in the amount of runoff in efforts to reduce the amount
of sediment loading and in turn reducing the temperature
to benefi t overall water quality. The SWCD and
cooperating agencies (CCLNS JPB#3, MN DNR Fisheries
and MPCA) put together a work plan to compile a
minimum of fi ve riparian forest buffers, fi ve forest stewardship
plans and one open land reforestation project.
The Tree Program is an important service to citizens of
northern St. Louis County. The county water plan may
require, as part of the planning phase for land owners, revegetation
plans for shorelines, riverbanks and areas where
wetland impacts may be allowed. Many of these re-vegetation
plans require the services of the SWCD to review a
property owner’s plan to stabilize shoreland impact zones,
riparian areas, or wetlands. The seedlings offered through
the SWCD Tree Program is one place where these individuals
can get the trees they need at a reasonable cost. Landowners
enrolled in the federal Environmental Quality Incentives
Program (EQIP) or Wildlife Habitat Improvement
Program (WHIP) also utilize the tree sales for their habitat
planting requirements. The priority resource concerns in
the area as determined by the Local Work Group include 1)
Sharp-tail management areas, using the lek shapefi le from
the MN DNR and 2) Barber Dempsey Creek Watershed.
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