 Photo Credit: Dane County Land and Water Resources Department.
Yahara Watershed Improvement Network (Yahara WINS) is a groundbreaking initiative to clean up the local watershed in Madison, Wisconsin. A collaborative strategy called watershed adaptive management, led by Madison Metropolitan Sewage District, brings together various stakeholders in the community and government to reduce phosphorus pollution in the watershed. While an essential nutrient in soil, excess phosphorus runoff into surface waters causes severe algae blooms that can destroy ecosystems. By facilitating projects on the landscape engineered to reduce phosphorus runoff, along with removing legacy sediment, Yahara WINS was able to prevent more than 50,000 pounds of phosphorus from entering local waters in 2019. Yahara WINS, which started as a pilot program, has been successful enough to receive funding for the next 20 years.
Read more here.
Sector Team Updates
In Wisconsin’s Great Lakes Region, Dave and his three sons, Matthew, Ross and Derek, manage New Horizons Dairy. Matthew and Ross work closely with the cattle and Derek works closely with his father to explore cropping opportunities on over 2,500 acres.
Derek works to ensure their farm continues to thrive, focusing on conservation that is environmentally sound and profitable. He partnered with NRCS through the Environmental Quality Incentives Program to install a variety of conservation practices to meet his families farm needs. Watch the video to hear his journey..
|
You may have noticed Clean Boats, Clean Waters volunteers checking boats at a local boat landing, or maybe you are a volunteer or are interested in learning more. Clean Boats, Clean Waters includes teams of volunteers, as well as some paid staff from the DNR, Sea Grant and other organizations. Boat inspectors help perform boat and trailer checks, disseminate informational brochures and educate boaters on how to prevent the spread of aquatic invasive species. Read more...
Invasive/Native Showdown: Curly-Leaf Pondweed vs. Clasping-Leaf Pondweed
by: Steven Schwartz
The genus of Potamogeton, the pondweeds, is infamous among those passionate about aquatic plants and ecosystems. Not only does it encompass dozens of species here in the Midwest alone, those species can be incredibly similar in their appearance to one or more other kinds of pondweed, making it sometimes difficult for even seasoned plant identifiers to know pondweed from pondweed. One of these pondweeds, curly-leaf pondweed, is incredibly invasive and is often mistaken for the native clasping-leaf pondweed. Thankfully, the two species we have for this month have some key differences to let you know which is which. Read more...
|
Swim for clean lakes
When it comes to Madison’s lakes, it’s not only the fish that count on clean water for swimming. Hundreds of swimmers plunge into our lakes each year, especially as part of our vibrant triathlon scene.
Whether you are a competitive swimmer looking for a great training opportunity, or a recreational swimmer who cares about clean water, Big Swell Swim is the perfect opportunity to make a difference and help protect our lakes. Register for Big Swell Swim Madison
Big Swell Madison
Sunday, August 9th, 2020
Law Park and Lake Monona
Ride to the Barns has grown to be a significant fundraiser for Tall Pines Conservancy thanks to loyal support across lake country. In today's challenging times, your participation this year means more to our organization than ever before! With your help this year, we can bring back the ride you know and love in 2021 - bigger and better than ever before! Tall Pines Conservancy is continuing this event for the 12th year as a DIY (Do-It-Yourself) ride event.
Registration Fee
$75 per person
Special pricing for teams of 6 or more.
Contact Beth at beth@tallpinesconservancy.org for more information.
|
Salt Symposium shapes the chloride conversation, presenting developments in salt use optimization for people and the environment. Presentations on Day 1 will focus on chloride use in water softening, fertilizer, and dust suppressants. Day 2 will be all about the latest developments in chloride reducing approaches for winter maintenance. Keynote addresses and award presentations will be given both days.
Go to https://fortinconsulting.regfox.com/salt-symposium-2020 to register.
|
Madison Metropolitan Sewerage District has published the 2019 Yahara WINS Annual Report. Yahara WINS partners make investments in practices that keep phosphorus on the land throughout the watershed, preventing it from running off into lakes and streams. Each year, partners who work with farmers in the watershed to implement these practices report on the total pounds of phosphorus runoff they have prevented in the past year. The Yahara WINS annual report is now available online on the Yahara WINS website.
"Yahara WINS partners kept over 50,000 pounds of phosphorus on the land in 2019, nearly doubling the projected reduction for the year in the adaptive management plan. Practices that led to this reduction included cover crops, grassed waterways, low-disturbance manure injection, and novel approaches like manure composting and grazing initiatives."
|
|
