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St. Paul, Minn. – Crews from the
Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) will be examining the health of the
Lower Minnesota River and its tributaries this spring and summer. Called
biological monitoring, this effort helps scientists determine the condition of
rivers and streams by studying fish, aquatic invertebrates, and plant life as
well as habitat, flow and water chemistry.
Examples of aquatic invertebrates
include insect larvae, crayfish, snails, small clams, worms and leeches. Stream water chemistry provides
information about the quality of the water where these fish and invertebrates
live. All this information provides an overall picture of health, helping
identify waters that meet standards and need protection or waters that fail to
meet standards and need restoration.
“There is no better
way to gauge the health of a river than by directly measuring the amount and
diversity of fish and other aquatic species in the resource,” says Bryan
Spindler of the MPCA, who will be overseeing work in the western, more rural
portion of the watershed.
Starting this month, crews will
be working at more than 100 sites in the watershed, which includes parts of Sibley,
Scott, Le Sueur, Carver,
Hennepin, Dakota, Rice, Nicollet, Renville and McLeod counties. Local
water management groups will also be sampling a smaller set of sites for water
chemistry from May through September.
Lake-monitoring crews as well as
local water groups will sample 14 lakes in the watershed. The lake-monitoring
teams will focus on water clarity, nutrient concentrations, and other water
chemistry attributes to assess the lakes’ suitability for recreation.
“All data collected
will advance our next phase of work, where we will identify stressors and flesh
out where pollutant loading is greatest. This will inform ongoing
implementation efforts by our local partners,” says Chris Zadak, MPCA project
manager for the Twin Cities metro part of the study area.
Funded by the Clean Water Legacy
Amendment, this monitoring is part of the agency’s effort to assess the
condition of rivers, streams and lakes in Minnesota on a watershed basis.
The Lower Minnesota River watershed includes the lowest section of the
Minnesota River and flows into the Mississippi at Fort Snelling. The second
largest watershed in the Minnesota River Basin, it covers 1,760 square miles,
divided by the Minnesota River itself.
Major tributaries in the rural part of the watershed include the Rush
River and High Island Creek. Tributaries in the urban area include Bevens
Creek, Carver Creek, Sand Creek, Nine Mile Creek and the Credit River, among
others.
A relatively flat section of river, the 50-mile stretch of the Minnesota
contained within this watershed drops about 90 feet in elevation from the small
town of Ottawa in Le Sueur County to its confluence with the Mississippi River
in St. Paul.
For more information about the Lower Minnesota River and biological
monitoring, visit the MPCA website at http://www.pca.state.mn.us/sbiz8cc.
Broadcast version
Crews from the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency will be checking the
health of the Lower Minnesota River this spring and summer. The agency and
local partners will also be working in tributaries and lakes in the river’s
drainage area. This area includes parts of Sibley, Scott, Le Sueur, Carver, Hennepin, Dakota, Rice,
Nicollet, Renville and McLeod counties.
By examining the water’s biology, such as fish and its chemistry,
scientists can put together an overall picture of the watershed’s health. The
goal is to identify healthy waters that need protection or
waters that fail to meet standards and need restoration.
Funded by the Clean Water Legacy
Amendment, this monitoring is part of the agency’s effort to assess the condition of rivers,
streams and lakes in Minnesota on a watershed basis. Learn more on the M-P-C-A
website.
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The mission of the MPCA is to protect and improve the environment and enhance human health.
St. Paul • Brainerd • Detroit Lakes • Duluth • Mankato • Marshall • Rochester • Willmar
www.pca.state.mn.us • Toll-free and TDD 800-657-3864
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