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

More than 22 feedlot pollution control
projects have been completed in the last four years by the
SWCD, working in cooperation with the County Feedlot
Offi cer and the USDA Natural Resources Conservation
Service. The Fillmore SWCD has been one of the top recipients
in the state over the last several years for cost-share funds for
feedlot projects. Feedlot owners receive 75 percent cost-share
up to a maximum of $50,000 for manure storage structures and
other runoff control measures. Smaller non-engineered feedlot
fi xes have been completed on 73 sites with less than 300
animal units. The producer receives 50 percent cost-share up
to a maximum of $2,000 which helps them to meet the MPCA
requirement for control of runoff from their site by 2010.
A septic system pilot project is underway
to inventory and fi x systems that are an imminent public
health threat by 2009. Fillmore County is one of three counties
to receive a $240,000 MPCA grant for this project. The
Fillmore SWCD is assisting the County Zoning Offi ce and
the SE MN Wastewater Initiative by providing staff for GIS
support and inspections, assisting with education, and administering
low-interest loans for upgrading septic systems.
The Fillmore SWCD is the lead agency
for the South Branch Root River Watershed Project, which
began with a Clean Water Partnership Diagnostic Study in
1998. In 2004, the project received a Federal Clean Water Act
Section 319 grant for implementation of best management
practices to reduce fecal coliform bacteria levels by 20 percent
and reduce turbidity by 10 percent in three years. It was designated
as a pilot project for Governor Pawlenty’s Clean Water
Initiative in 2003. The project is sponsored by Fillmore County
and involves multiple partners: Mower SWCD, Mower County
Environmental Services, Fillmore County Zoning, MN DNR,
Fillmore Soil & Water Conservation District
MPCA, MDA, NRCS, MN Land Trust, and many citizen
volunteers who do monitoring and help to guide the project.
State Cost-Share dollars disbursed in recent
years by the SWCD include $74,000 for grassed waterways,
$9,473 for farmstead windbreaks, $11,700 for control basins
and $39,570 for terraces. These dollars have translated into
55 miles of grassed waterways, six miles of windbreaks,
two control basins and six miles of terraces. Furthermore,
the Fillmore SWCD has leveraged federal dollars through a
strong working relationship with the USDA FSA and NRCS.
Top 5 Natural Resource Concerns
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Soil erosion and runoff control to protect drinking
water and source water
Human sewage treatment
Sinkholes and karst hydrology
Fertilizer and pesticide use
Feedlots and manure management
Future Projects
Root River Grazing Management: Fillmore SWCD is
the fi scal agent for a Clean Water Legacy grant awarded
to the Root River watershed to encourage and improve
grazing management practices in the watershed. The
grant funds have been used to hire a Grazing Management
Specialist for two years who is doing grazing
plans that meet NRCS standards for producers in the
fi ve counties with land draining to the Root River.
He also provides education and information through
grazing days, newspaper articles, radio interviews, and
personal visits, and is assisting the MN Department of
Agriculture with monitoring for a grazing study.
Nutrient Management Planning: Fillmore SWCD
houses one of two Nutrient Management Specialists
hired for two years through a Clean Water Legacy grant
awarded to the SE MN Technical Support Joint Powers
Board, of which the Fillmore SWCD is a member. The
Nutrient Management Specialist works with producers
to develop plans for utilizing livestock manure in the
most effi cient manner along with commercial fertilizer
applications, if needed. Producers getting EQIP funding
receive plans that meet NRCS standards. The plans also
meet MPCA and county feedlot program requirements.
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