The Minnesota Department of Agriculture (MDA) has teamed up with the National Weather Service to design a tool that helps farmers and commercial applicators determine the best time to apply manure.

The Runoff Risk Advisory Forecast tool uses past and predicted National Weather Service weather data like precipitation, temperature, and snow melt. It predicts the likelihood that applied manure will run off fields in daily, next day, and 72 hour increments. Farmers and commercial applicators use an interactive map to locate their field and find the forecasted risk. Users can also sign up for email or text messages for their county that alert them to a severe runoff risk for that day. Full news release.

The Runoff Risk Advisory Forecast is the first active tab.  There are four levels of risk (No Runoff Expected, Low, Moderate and Severe) that could be shown on the map. When the risk is Moderate or Severe, it is recommended that the applicator evaluate the situation to determine if there are other locations or later dates when the application could take place. You can select to see risk for Day 1 (default shown), Day 2 (Tomorrow), Day 3 or Multiday (72 hours). 

The forecasting tool can also be used by others looking for climate information including 2” soil depth temperatures which are useful at planting time, 6” soil depth temperatures which are helpful when determining fall fertilizer application in appropriate areas and daily precipitation forecasts. These can be found on the tabs at the top of the website.

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The National Association of Conservation Districts (NACD) designates April 29-May 6 as Soil and Water Stewardship Week. In its 63rd year,  it promotes resource conservation across the country. This year the theme is “Watersheds: Our Water, Our Home” and highlights the importance of caring for one of the most critical resources in the world, water. Gov. Mark Dayton has made the protection of Minnesota’s water quality a top priority of his administration.

Each year more than 3,000 conservation districts nationwide participate in the event, making Stewardship Week one of the largest national conservation programs in the world. NACD relies on each local conservation district to encourage stewardship through educational programs, field days and workshops. In Minnesota there are 89 soil and water conservation districts working in both urban and rural settings.

“Soil and Water Conservation Districts are locally led and the staff that lead each district are knowledgeable about resource issues within their communities,” says LeAnn Buck, Minnesota Association of Soil and Water Conservation Districts Executive Director. “They focus on providing soil and water conservation services to private landowners, which is essential because seventy-eight percent of Minnesota’s lands are private."

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Buffer strips are the top water-quality improvement strategy in the South Fork Crow River watershed, according to new draft reports released April 17 by Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA). The agency and local partners are seeking public comments through May 16 about the buffer strip implementation efforts and other protection and restoration strategies.

The Total Maximum Daily Load report establishes the amount of each pollutant that a water body can accept and still meet water quality standards. It identifies 42 stream segments failing to meet water quality standards due to low dissolved oxygen, high phosphorus levels, and altered hydrology. The report also shows that field drainage and tile drainage to waterways, especially Buffalo Creek and the South Fork Crow River, are important factors in stream impairments.

The Watershed Restoration and Protection Strategy summarizes past efforts to monitor and improve water quality, and identifies future strategies for restoring and protecting the watershed’s water quality. The WRAPS report identifies areas along Silver Creek and the South Fork Crow River, upstream of Hutchinson, where healthy buffer strips are helping to improve water quality. Other suggested strategies include increasing water storage, proper culvert and bridge sizing, adding riparian buffers with deep roots, and restoring connectivity and natural stream channels.

The South Fork Crow River watershed is located in south-central Minnesota and encompasses parts of Kandiyohi, Renville, Meeker, McLeod, Sibley, Wright, Carver, and Hennepin counties. The South Fork Crow River joins with the North Fork Crow at Rockford and then joins the Mississippi River near Dayton.

The reports are available at: www.pca.state.mn.us/water/watersheds/south-fork-crow-river, or at the MPCA’s St. Paul office, at 520 Lafayette Road North. The MPCA encourages those interested in the South Fork Crow River Watershed to review and provide feedback on the reports. Comments may be submitted to Scott Lucas, MPCA, 7678 College Road, Baxter, MN, 56425, or by e-mail to, scott.lucas@state.mn.us by 4:30 p.m. on May 16, 2018. For more information, contact Scott at 218-316-3874, or toll-free at 800-657-3864.

Written comments must indicate whether they pertain to the South Fork Crow River watershed’s TMDL or WRAPS report. They should clearly state the action you wish the MPCA to take, including references to sections of the report that you believe should be changed; please provide specific reasons supporting your position. More information is available on the MPCA’s watershed web pages.

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Marcie Weinandt retired May 1 from the Dept. of Agriculture after working more than 30 years on rural development, agriculture and water resources, impacting local to national policy with partners in non-profits, educational institutions and local, state, tribal and national governments.

In the last five years she worked on the development and implementation of the Minnesota Agricultural Water Quality Certification Program. Photo: Water quality certification award at a Stearns County dairy farm, (L-R): Mark Lefebvre, Marcie Weinandt, Dean Klaverkamp, Dennis Fuchs.

"It's been a great run. I've had some fabulous opportunities in diverse rural and water quality areas," Marcie says. Working with county SWCDs, the Water Quality Certification Program has been growing steadily, now with more than 1,044 new conservation practices across 354,492 acres on 555 farms. Two recent staff hires will continue to work with program director Brad Redlin. "It's all in good hands," she says.

Prior to MDA Marcie was CEO of the Midwest Assistance Program, a nine-state organization providing water and waste water technical assistance to small rural communities, policy director for the Rural Policy Research Institute in Washington DC, Minnesota Rural Partners Director, Renville County Commissioner and serving on the Citizens’ Advisory Committee for the Minnesota River. "I started my career writing the first Local Comprehensive Water Plans for six southwestern counties in 1988," she says. 

Now with more time Marcie plans to visit out-of-state grandchildren more often, and volunteer with political campaigns. Living in Mounds View she will continue on the citizens advisory committee for the Rice Creek Watershed.

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• Certified producer survey shows role of SWCDs
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