The public comment period for the draft Milwaukee River Basin TMDL has closed. DNR staff will be developing responses to feedback, making text clarifications and
provide written responses to comments. These will be included as part of the formal TMDL package submitted for approval to USEPA.
TMDL Implementation Meeting
The next TMDL Implementation meeting will be scheduled in early 2017. We anticipate scheduling the meeting after we have a chance to respond to comments and receive feedback from USEPA later in the first quarter.
Ag Sector Team
The next Ag Sector Team will be meeting Wednesday February 15th at 9am. The meeting will be held at the Sheboygan County LCD office. Contact Lisa Creegan for more information.
Soil and Water Resource Management Grants
Reminder: Any 2016 Soil and Water Resource management projects that won’t be complete this year must be extended into 2017. Extension requests (DATCP Form 200), along with the signed cost-share contracts, are due to DATCP by December 31st.
Michael Fields Agricultural Institute has produced this excellent video on efforts to build soil health and Farmer-Led Watershed Initiatives. The video focuses on efforts by the Farmer led watershed group in the Trout Creek-Mill Creek watershed in southwestern Wisconsin.
On January 10-12, 2017, agribusiness industries of Wisconsin will come together at the Alliant Energy Center in Madison, Wisconsin for the Wisconsin Agribusiness Classic. This event, formerly the Wisconsin Crop Management Conference, has been renamed to better reflect the addition of programs on feed, agribusiness, and grain management, along with a newly added session for spray rig operators. All the classic program areas – weeds, insects, disease, forages, vegetables, economics, soil and water, nutrient management – are still part of the conference.
A webinar entitled “Estate Planning for Your Family and Farm” will be held Thursday, Jan. 26, 2017, at various University of Wisconsin-Extension offices across Wisconsin. This webinar is the fifth in a series of webinars from UW-Extension that will focus on a variety of farm succession topics. This two-hour webinar begins at 1 p.m.
UW Center for Dairy Profitability, University of Wisconsin-River Falls, University of Wisconsin-Platteville and University of Wisconsin-Extension are offering two series of workshops to help farm families plan for a son, daughter or partner to return to the farm and eventually take over the farm business. The four-day workshops will be offered on the UW-River Falls campus on Jan. 13 and 14 and Feb. 3 and 4, 2017 and at UW-Platteville’s Pioneer Farm Ag Technology Center on Jan. 20 and 21 and Feb. 17 and 18, 2017.
|
The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources is seeking public comment on guidance that helps evaluate the status of the state’s surface water quality. This guidance is known as the Wisconsin Consolidated Assessment and Listing Methodology (WisCALM).
A 2018 version of WisCALM [PDF] has been drafted and is open for public comment. From December 20, 2016 to January 27, 2017, DNR is asking for public input on the updates to its assessment and listing methodology. These comments will be considered in further updates made before the guidance is used to assess water quality in early 2017.
(Milwaukee
WI) – In a major boost to improve the Milwaukee River, the Fund for Lake
Michigan is pledging $250,000 toward the long-anticipated removal of the
Estabrook Dam.
“This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to regain miles of free-flowing river,” said Vicki Elkin, Executive Director of the Fund. “The dam removal aligns perfectly with our mission to improve water quality in both Lake Michigan and its tributaries. We’re thrilled to be involved.”
Removing the dam will restore crucial habitat for native fish species including sturgeon, walleye, salmon and trout. It will also restore the river's natural flow and clear sediment and unsightly debris which accumulates upstream of the dam.
|
WDNR has launched a draft version of a new format for TMDL websites. The new format can be viewed on the draft Rock River Recovery TMDL site. The main page (aka landing page) has been simplified to provide quick and uncluttered access to most basic and fundamental information for the TMDL. It is also setup to provide an introduction to TMDLs and TMDL implementation. While the landing page will be static with very limited updates, it provides direct linkages to dynamic pages. These are the pages where more advanced and most up-to-date information will be stored. There are a number of benefits to this framework, including;
- convenient grouping of information types by "tabs",
- links to dynamic data sets, GIS data, and reporting documents,
- facilitates timely updates,
- provides breadth and depth of data repository and archives to maintain historic information,
- and links to dynamic mapping applications.
This is a draft site and we are looking for feedback on it. We will be continuing to refine and populate the dynamic pages throughout 2017. If you have thoughts or suggestions, please feel free to submit them to Mark Riedel, TMDL Project Manager. Where possible, we will work to incorporate suggestions that improve functionality and add value to the dynamic pages.
|
There are no status updates to report for the MDV. The final MDV package was mailed to the EPA on March 30, 2016. Upon EPA approval, the multi-discharge variance package will become an additional tool for WPDES permit holders facing restrictive phosphorus limitations. As the department works with EPA towards approval of the multi-discharger variance package, additional status updates will be provided.
|
 Grant Information
The National Wildlife Federation is accepting
applications for farmers and conservation professionals, i.e. “champions”, to
conduct outreach to promote cover crops and provide region-specific information
and farming knowledge to farmers and crop advisors. Selected applicants will
receive financial support for time, travel, and presentation materials, a
training on messaging and presentation tools, and access to an elite network of
other cover crop champions. Applicants are sought from the following states:
Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa, Illinois, Missouri, Indiana, and Ohio. http://www.nwf.org/~/media/PDFs/Wildlife/NWF_CCC_RFP-Dec2016_final_v1.ashx
|
|
