Join your coworkers in celebrating Earth Month! — because #onedayisnotenough
Throughout the month of April, our agency will be celebrating Earth Month! We’re bringing back the Treasures Table, hosting a clothing swap and a clothing drive, cleaning up Lafayette Park and our Adopt-A-Highway section in Maplewood, plus we’ll be celebrating Bike Week April 24-28!
As an extra bonus, we’ve teamed up with Virgin Pulse to offer a 50 point reward to MPCA staff who participate and successfully complete the Sustainability Challenge, taking place throughout the month of April! Find out how to sign up on the Lorax.
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Reminder: Join the band or chorus!
The Lafayette Park Orchestra and Chorus are preparing for an Earth Day celebration. Come join your colleagues in making a big noise. Any instrument or voice is welcome to join. We have fun while working hard to create something glorious when we're ready to perform! The performance is scheduled for noon on Wednesday, April 19.
Contact Anne Jackson for calendar invites to band practice, or Janeen Dednam-Wright for calendar invites to chorus rehearsals.
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We are Water exhibit runs through April 24
 For Josh Krenz, a third-generation cattle farmer near Princeton, Minn., water has always been part of what he’s had to think about. “Water is essential to everything we do,” Krenz explains. Krenz shared his story as a part of We Are Water MN, a traveling exhibit and community engagement program that explores Minnesotans’ relationships with water. The Mississippi River St. Cloud Watershed Collaborative is hosting the exhibit and related programming in partnership with the Sherburne History Center.
You can listen to Krenz’s story — and other local stories — at the exhibit. The exhibit also explores the Mississippi River – St. Cloud watershed’s water challenges, successes, and how anyone can get involved protection and restoration.
Visit the exhibit through April 24 at the Sherburne History Center, 10775 27th Ave SE, Becker, MN 55308. It’s open Tuesday to Friday 10 a.m.-5 p.m. and Saturday 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Admission is free. Read more.
March’s Equity Experience events
Equity Experience events offer a variety of ways to “experience” equity, so we can hold ourselves accountable to learning, growing, and engaging with this important work and our commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion.
Check out the event list on the Lorax. In order to receive an IDEA credit for attending an Equity Experience event, you will be required to report what you learned, thought, experienced, etc. to your team, so that there will be accountability and shared learning.
Water Issues Seminar: Dam effects and the benefits of removal
Thursday, March 23, 9-10 a.m.
Dams have numerous negative impacts on aquatic ecosystems by affecting riverine habitat, water quality, and biodiversity. Amy Childers from the Minnesota DNR will review these various impacts and explore the ways the DNR and partners are tackling this issue through dam removals and modifications. Dams across the country are reaching the end of their design life, are failing or are a failure risk, and are very expensive to replace or repair. These circumstances, in addition to the environmental concerns and funding possibilities, have encouraged dam owners, agencies and communities to choose dam removal. Amy will show results highlighting the recovery of fish and mussel communities after barrier removals from around the state.
Join Webex meeting.
Innovative EJ data tool presentation and discussion
Tuesday, March 28, 1:30-2:30 p.m.
On behalf of the Cumulative Impact Framework project team, we would like to invite you to a presentation by authors of the CalEnviroScreen report from California’s Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment to talk about their experience with this innovative environmental justice data tool! This is a chance to get a closer look at how data and research have been applied to address complex environmental challenges in California, and then explore how Minnesota can learn from California’s work. Our project team is closely reviewing a variety of data, tools, and resources to help move cumulative impacts work forward at our agency.
This will be an hour-long, virtual session with a presentation followed-up with time to ask California staff questions about their work. It will also be a recorded event for people who cannot attend the session
Join Teams meeting.
Boys in Blue documentary with group discussion afterward
Tracy Ferrero and Miranda Nichols will host 4 sessions on this documentary about the North High Minneapolis Football team. We will be showing the documentary in its entirety April 3 Episode 1, April 10 Episode 2, April 17 Episode 3, April 24 Episode 4. Each episode is worth 1 Idea credit.
Episode 1: April 4, 1-2:30 p.m. Click here to join the meeting
Episode 2: April 10, 1-2:30 p.m. Click here to join the meeting
Episode 3: April 18, 1-2:30 p.m. Click here to join the meeting
Episode 4: April 25, 1-2:30 p.m. Click here to join the meeting
IDI Qualified Administrator Certification Course
Monday-Thursday, April 3-6, 11 a.m.-3:30 p.m.
Interested in becoming a Qualified Administrator (QA) of the Intercultural Development Inventory (IDI)? As we roll out the IDI agency-wide, the MPCA is in need of more qualified administrators to host group and individual debriefs for staff. Minnesota Management and Budget is offering an online IDI qualifying seminar for individuals to be trained and licensed as IDI QAs. The cost of the three half-day qualifying seminar will be paid for by the MPCA. Registration deadline: March 20.
For more information about the IDI QA Certification course, email here. Check out step-by-step instructions on how to enroll.
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Well-being webinar: Overcoming procrastination
Wednesday, April 5, noon-1 p.m.
Take an hour to focus on your health by attending one of MMB's Well-being webinars. All sessions are held from noon to 1 p.m. Check out the next webinar: Overcoming procrastination, Wednesday, April 5. Don’t put off adding this to your calendar.
Check out other upcoming Wednesday WorkLife Webinars on the webinar webpage.
Courageous Conversation: The Myth of meritocracy
Wednesday, April 5, 2-3 p.m.
Meritocracy is one of the foundational pillars of modern capitalism and is defined as the holding of power by people selected on the basis of their ability. Meritocracy asserts that race, gender or discriminatory factors do not play a role in determining success. Unfortunately, meritocracy is only true to its definition in an ideal world. Rather than democratizing American society, meritocracy has contributed to increasing inequality and the decline of the middle class. This interactive training will explore how meritocracy and equity are not interchangeable and illuminate why meritocracy is a dangerous myth that acts as a barrier to and equitable society.
Join Teams meeting.
Statewide PFAS treatment and destruction costs
Wednesday, April 19, 10-11 a.m.
Please join us to learn about PFAS water treatment and destruction technologies, their costs, and affordability. Barr Engineering and Hazen will present on currently available technologies that are capable of treating and destroying PFAS in wastewater, biosolids, landfill leachate, and compost contact water. You’ll better understand these technologies and the costs of building them at a statewide scale.
This event is open to all state employees and will be hosted both on Teams and in-person at the MPCA St. Paul office, Room LL South. Join the meeting.
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Metro Skywarn Storm Spotter training
Metro Skywarn Storm Spotter training is for all staff, but especially those who work outdoors. and covers the basics of spotting storms and safety considerations for all outdoor weather hazards. This training is coordinated with the National Weather Service. Staff who attend this training will be certified storm spotters who can report severe weather to the National Weather Service. Those staff who are in the regional offices will be certified with the NWS forecast offices that serves their home location. Staff who are highly encouraged to take this training are supervisors, managers and staff who work in outdoor environments. (Note: This training is the same training the staff in the Watershed Division are getting, thus staff in the Watershed Division do not need to duplicate this training.)
There will be two sessions offered to accommodate staff schedules (staff only need to attend one, both are the same):
April 19, noon-1:30 p.m. Join the meeting.
May 9, noon-1:30 p.m. Join the meeting.
Weather Radar and Satellite training
This session is a follow-up to the storm spotter training for those staff who are interested in learning more about radar and satellite technology. There is only one session offered this year: May 11, noon-1:30 p.m. Join the meeting.
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8 Hour HAZWOPER Refresher classes
This course is required for staff who respond to hazardous substances released in the environment. The course satisfies the OSHA requirements for uncontrolled hazardous waste operations, response, and management. The course will cover the levels of PPE, toxicology, chemical safety, and managing an incident. Sign up through ELM. A minimum of eight attendees is required to hold each class. Below are upcoming classes.
R32PCASAF002-093 In-person – St. Paul April 6
R32PCASAF002-090V Virtual May 31
In the news
Nuclear plant admits it accidentally leaked 400,000 gallons of radioactive water
"We knew there was a presence of tritium in one monitoring well," MPCA spokesman Michael Rafferty told the Associated Press, "however Xcel had not yet identified the source of the leak and its location. Now that we have all the information about where the leak occurred, how much was released into groundwater, and that contaminated groundwater had moved beyond the original location, we are sharing this information," he added, noting that the contaminated water has been contained to Xcel-owned land and doesn't pose any concerns to human health. — Futurism
Hazardous chemicals in the house
Our hazardous chemicals topic this month was prompted by the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA), and I was glad they suggested it. Mercury. — New Prague Times
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Recently in social media at the MPCA!
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