 Join Milwaukee Waterway Restoration Partnership for their Fall Family Fun event at Lincoln Park. Meet at the Lincoln Park boat launch (4950 N Milwaukee River Pkwy). Shown with the black star on the map above.
Fall Family Fun at Lincoln Park
Sunday, October 16 | 10:00 AM - Noon
Join the Milwaukee Waterway Restoration Partnership for this FREE family fun event to:
Meet at the Lincoln Park boat launch (4950 N Milwaukee River Pkwy). Register HERE
The SEWRPC Regional Chloride Impact Study is a comprehensive study to identify significant sources of chloride to the environment as well as the levels of chloride in surface water and groundwater in Southeastern Wisconsin. As part of this study, Commission staff installed automatic monitoring sensors and collected monthly water samples at 42 stream sampling stations in the Region. Staff also collected quarterly water samples from six lakes located within the Region. This dataset includes over 13 million measurements taken by the automatic sensors and over 1,300 water samples. Update...
Sector Team Updates
from: Brownfield News
A Wisconsin farmer found using conservation practices not only improved soil health and water quality, it improved his bottom line.
Joe Bragger grows crops and operates a dairy in Buffalo County, Wisconsin, which is in the driftless region missed by the glacier, and he often says the kitchen table is the only flat surface on his farm. Bragger worked with Discovery Farms Wisconsin to monitor water runoff for eight years, and after using cover crops and a variety of forages along with corn and soybeans, the soil is staying in place and holding water. “When we got the numbers back, and less than 2% of the precipitation that fell annually on this farm left in the form of runoff because of those macropores, because of that soil health, we’re capturing that water (for) groundwater recharge and crop production.”
Bragger tells Brownfield he no longer plants close to a tree line. “That first row of corn is a great row of corn. Prior to that, you could watch it taper from the width of that 12-row planter. You could see it going from the height here down to about four feet tall and we blamed the deer. It ain’t the deer, it’s that competition for nutrients and sunlight.”
He says not wasting money on inputs for the unproductive ground near trees is netting nine dollars an acre more in value for the rest of the field and saving labor. Read more...
The benefits of no-till and cover crops to soil health are well known. However, the economic advantages of the two practices are harder to quantify. To determine how no-till and cover crops might affect farmers’ bottom lines, the National Association of Conservation Districts (NACD) and Data Research analyzed data from several farms.
The analyses suggested that economic benefits to corn and soybean farmers adopting cover crops or no-till can run as high $100 per acre. Read more...
Farmers and forest landowners will want to plan ahead and sign up early for USDA conservation funding. Jeff Vander Wilt, USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) Acting State Conservationist in Wisconsin, announced farmers and forest landowners interested in Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) or Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP) producer contracts need to apply by November 4, 2022, for funding in fiscal year 2023.
Although NRCS accepts applications year-round, please apply now for fiscal year 2023 funding consideration. Applications are being taken at all USDA Service Centers  in Wisconsin. Applications received after November 4th, will automatically be deferred to the next funding cycle.
EQIP and RCPP are the primary programs available to farmers and landowners for farm and woodland conservation work, offering payments for more than 120 conservation practices. Last year, Wisconsin NRCS invested $34 million in conservation practices through EQIP and RCPP practices. Read more...
Many cover crop benefits depend on successful cover crop growth, or biomass, but cover crop biomass can vary widely across farms because it is influenced by a range of environmental and management factors. Using citizen science, we’re partnering with farmers across the Great Lakes region to better understand how and why cover crop growth varies across real farms to help identify ways to maximize their benefits for soil health, water quality, and other environmental and agricultural outcomes.
This Digital Cafe will feature Etienne Herrick, a Ph.D. student in the Blesh Soil and Agroecosystems Lab at the University of Michigan, who will provide an overview of the citizen science project and preliminary findings from our first year of data collection.
REGISTER
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DNR is excited to introduce the hiring of 4 permanent FTE AIS Regional AIS Coordinators. These four will be joining Shelby Adler (South Central Regional AIS Coordinator) to fulfill the 5 Regional Coordinator model that will allow Wisconsin to provide a more consistent and effective delivery of the AIS Program.
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Patrick Siwula: Southeast Regional AIS Coordinator
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Amanda Smith: Northeast Regional AIS Coordinator
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Alex Selle: North Regional AIS Coordinator
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Tyler Mesalk: Northwest Regional AIS Coordinator
The four Regional AIS Coordinators will be starting in their permanent roles on Sept. 25th.
Invasive Species Alert: Starry Stonewort
Starry Stonewort (Nitellopsis obtusa), an invasive macroalgae, has been detected in 3 new lakes in Washington & Waukesha Counties.
The associated lake groups are working with DNR on next steps regarding the new Starry Stonewort populations. Starry Stonewort spreads via bulbils, which are small, seed-like reproductive structures that this species produces below the sediment. Fragments of Starry Stonewort containing these bulbils can be easily pulled from the sediment and transported on boat motors and equipment.
Please remember these steps to help prevent the spread of aquatic invasive species:
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INSPECT boats, trailers, and equipment
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REMOVE all attached aquatic plants and animals
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DRAIN all water from boats, vehicles, and equipment
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NEVER MOVE plants or live fish away from a waterbody
Webinar - October 20, 2pm
Water resource management is a field at the nexus of agriculture, natural resources, social science, public health and economics - all of which provide a wealth of professional opportunities. Yet, many students have limited exposure to watershed management as a field of study or a future professional opportunity. This edition of The Current Webinar Series will feature research on environmental education - who we are reaching and who we aren't - and showcase two programs aimed at engaging youth and young professionals in water resource management.
Webinar - October 5, 11am
Join the Algal Bloom Action Team (ABAT) this October as we host three great HABs researchers. Corey Markfort, Ph.D. and Greg LeFevre, Ph.D. will discuss the exploration of complex HABs mixtures and mid-range remote sensing in Iowa lakes. Then Jennifer Graham, Ph.D. will discuss the structured decision-making research around cyanoHABs management in New York state parks.
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By Jenny Seifert, Lisa Merrifield, and Anne Sawyer. Cross posted with the Human Capital blog
Watershed management is an inherently participatory process. Achieving clean water goals requires the inclusion of diverse views and considering the equity of impacts and solutions – yet, underrepresented communities aren’t always, well, represented in watershed planning efforts.
Many practitioners and educators who work in watershed management understand the importance of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), but there have so far been few spaces for conversation about what it means to advance DEI in watershed management. At the recent Climate Intersections Conference, hosted in July 2022 by the North Central Region Water Network, we organized a symposium to create a conversation space for this important topic.
Here we share five takeaways from the symposium, which included a kick-off panel discussion by practitioners with experience advancing DEI in community-based work: Jennifer Niemi, Director of Native Studies at College of St. Scholastica; Melanie Bomier, Assistant Manager of Carlton Soil and Water Conservation District; and Andrea Crouse, Community Development Manager at Zeitgeist Arts. Read more...
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Oct. 11, 2022
9:00 – 10:30 AM
This webinar will be hosted by the WI DNR and UW Madison-Division Extension. It will provide an overview of the BMP Implementation Tracking System (BITS) and the use of this system to submit Urban Nonpoint Source (UNPS) Construction Grant and Urban Targeted Runoff Management (Urban TRM) Grant final reports. This webinar is targeted towards county and municipality staff who have an active UNPS Construction or Urban TRM grant, may be applying for a such a grant in the future, or are interested in learning more about BITS. You will receive a confirmation email after you register.
Registration link: https://uwmadison.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJYod-2ppjMjGNRMzFa0eObiC8jD0y9Bq7c-
The Post-Construction Storm Water Management for Ground-Mounted Solar Guidance document is available for review and comment until October 27, 2022. The guidance is available on the Department’s storm water publications and guidance webpage.
Ground-mounted solar installation projects are becoming increasingly frequent, creating a need for guidance to address to post-construction storm water management that meets the post-construction performance standards of ss. NR 151.122 to 151.124, Wis. Adm. Code. This guidance identifies the conditions under which the vegetation under and around ground-mounted solar arrays may be considered a storm water management practice sufficient to satisfy post-construction performance standards.
To comment on the guidance document:
- Submit your comments via email to dnrguidancedocuments@wisconsin.gov by midnight on October 27, 2022.
- Keep comments specific and directly related to this guidance document.
- You may insert your comments into the Adobe pdf document, or otherwise indicate the page or line numbers to which your comments refer. If you have general comments applicable to the entire guidance document, please note them as such.
After the notice period is complete, all comments will be considered. Revisions may be made to the draft document and the final guidance document will be made available to internal and external stakeholders.
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from: Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District
This year marks the 50th Anniversary of the Clean Water Act. This "Golden" anniversary celebrates a legislative act that impacts us each every day. The Clean Water Act is the reason we have clean water to drink and rivers that do not catch fire. We all take this for granted.
Fifty years is a long time. Many areas of the Country are facing extreme droughts, flooding, or infrastructure that is failing. These water stressors will have significant impacts on our health and the lives we lead. While it is important to celebrate these golden years, it is also important to learn from others on how to partner to protect our water resources.
Over the last 20 years, the leadership exemplified by the Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District (MMSD) has transformed Milwaukee into one of the nation’s water management leaders through our efforts to treat wastewater, reduce overflows to Lake Michigan, use of natural infrastructure to manage water where it falls, removing concrete from our rivers, and taking aggressive steps to remove 100-year-old sediments from the bottom our waterways. MMSD has done this through partnerships with the Environmental Protection Agency, Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, and a diverse contingent of local groups who care for our waterways. Read more...
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Grants
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) encourages people and groups wanting to restore and protect critical wetlands, agricultural lands and grasslands to consider enrolling their property into conservation easements. The Farm Bill has provided USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) with technical and financial assistance to help private landowners, tribes, land trusts, and other groups protect these valuable lands.
The Agricultural Conservation Easement Program (ACEP) focuses on restoring and protecting wetlands as well as conserving productive agricultural lands and grasslands. Landowners are compensated for enrolling their land in easements.
Applications for ACEP are taken on a continuous basis, and they are ranked and considered for funding once a year. The deadline for the Agricultural Land Easements (ALE) and Wetland Reserve Easements (WRE) for fiscal year 2023 is October 31, 2022. Read more...
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