Minnesota Water Resources Conference - Water Resources Center ...

BOOK OF ABSTRACTS
Tuesday, Monday, October 27 23
Poster Session 4:45–5:45
Spatio-Temporal Regime of Stream Runoff During Climate Change and the Influence on Minnesota’s
Water Resources Sustainability
Heidi Peterson, University of Minnesota, pete6495@umn.edu; John Nieber, University of Minnesota; Boris Shmagin, South
Dakota State University
Depicting the spatio-temporal regime of stream runoff quantities influenced by climate dynamics onto a
map, enables a definitive understanding of water resources diversity and promotes confident planning of
water resources sustainability in Minnesota. By using the longest time series of Minnesota stream runoff
data available through the USGS database and applying multivariate exploratory data analysis techniques,
four main Minnesota regions with fuzzy boundaries were defined with either a positive, negative or absence
of trend in annual stream discharge. In each of these regions, the watersheds with the highest variability of
annual discharge differ in both the number of months that comprise each drainage season and the number of
defined drainage seasons. The production of a regional hydrological map not only opens the door to the study of
interconnections of air temperature and precipitation regimes, but also provides quantitative criteria for better
management of water resources sustainability in a changing climate.
Helping Small Minnesota Communities Solve Their Wastewater Issues
Valerie Prax, University of Minnesota Extension, malmq002@umn.edu; Doug Malchow, Regional Extension Center—
Rochester; Laurie Brown, Regional Extension Center—Cloquet
A survey by the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency in 2007 identified 1,043 small Minnesota communities
facing wastewater treatment issues. University of Minnesota Extension developed a process to help small
communities solve their wastewater problems. The community needs to control the decision-making process
to successfully implement appropriate and affordable wastewater treatment solutions. A successful outcome is
often more dependent on the process the community follows rather than the solutions available. This process
assists communities as they deal with the issues.
A group of agencies are working as a team. These include the University of Minnesota Onsite Sewage Treatment
Program Team, Public Facilities Authority, Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, USDA Rural Development,
Minnesota Rural Water Association and the Midwest Assistance Program.
This poster will explain the Small Community Wastewater Solutions Process as utilized by University of
Minnesota Extension.
The first step is to prepare a Community Assessment Report (CAR). This better ensures that communities
consider a full range of treatment options, including soil-based treatment. Information is collected on individual
parcel characteristics. This process includes soil type/characteristics, building location, utilities placement,
well location, setback requirements, the status of the current wastewater treatment/disposal system and other
data. This data is combined for the entire community to assess the viability of soil-based wastewater treatment.
Substantial interaction between homeowners, community leaders and the individuals gathering the data
increases the likelihood of an open decision-making process.
49 Minnesota Water Resources Conference, October 27–28, 2008