East Metro Water

Brown’s Creek fish hoping for a big chill

By: angiehongmn December 11, 2018December 11, 2018

Aquatic Biology, Keeping water clean, Local Achievements, WildlifeBrown's Creek, Brown's Creek Watershed District, designated trout stream, featured, science, streams, thermal study, troutLeave a Comment

This is a story about trout. It’s also a story about local history, changing landscapes, and people trying to do the right thing. Somewhere in the wetland dappled landscape near the now-closed Withrow Elementary, water begins to gather and form a stream we now call Brown’s Creek. The stream flows through soggy fields in Grant…

It’s all about the bees

By: angiehongmn December 4, 2018

Keeping water clean, Local Achievements, Partners and Updates, Wildlifebees, butterflies, Conservation farming, cover crops, featured, habitat restoration, monarchs, pollinatorsLeave a Comment

Washington Conservation District recognizes Pam Arnold & Laurie Schneider for their conservation efforts The bee is a curious ambassador for the Earth. They are little. They sting. They tiptoe across flowers on insect legs, waving insect antenna, and peering out at the world through kaleidoscoped insect eyes. The females do all of the work, and…

Thankful for toilets that flush

By: angiehongmn November 21, 2018November 21, 2018

Keeping water clean, Local Achievementsclean water, featured, Mississippi River, sanitation, toilets, wastewater1 Comment

‘Tis the season for gratitude, and this Thanksgiving I’m counting flushing toilets among my many blessings in life. What did people do before toilets were invented? Well, depending on where they lived, they either walked outside to use the outhouse in the freezing cold or did their business in a chamber pot and then dumped…

Tip-toeing through the Tamaracks

By: angiehongmn November 20, 2018November 20, 2018

Groundwater, Outdoor Adventuresfeatured, groundwater, Tamarack Nature Preserve, Wetlands, WoodburyLeave a Comment

If you sit very quietly in the middle of a tamarack fen and close your eyes, you can hear a goose honking in the distance, a red-winged blackbird trilling from the cattails, and 24 little kids, desperately trying to be still. Woodbury’s Tamarack Nature Preserve is the southern-most tamarack swamp in Minnesota and a jewel…

A clear path ahead for Moody Lake

By: angiehongmn November 6, 2018November 6, 2018

Keeping water clean, Local Achievements, Partners and Updatesalgae blooms, alum treatment, comfort lake - forest lake watershed district, featured, Moody Lake, phosphorus, round barnLeave a Comment

Comfort Lake – Forest Lake Watershed District rounds out multi-year project with fall alum treatment In 1871, Elof and Eva Modig migrated to the United States from Sweden, purchased land near a small lake in southern Chisago County (at $1.25 an acre) and settled down to build a house and begin farming wheat. Over the…

Mooneye, sturgeon and microplastics in trout

By: angiehongmn November 6, 2018November 6, 2018

Aquatic Biology, Wildlifefeatured, freshwater mussels, microplastics, science, St. Croix River, St. Croix Watershed Reserch Station, sturgeon, trout, Warner Nature CenterLeave a Comment

In the swiftly flowing waters of the St. Croix River, a federally endangered species of mussel called the spectaclecase shelters among boulders on patches of gravel and sand. It’s not easy to make babies when you’re spectaclecase. First, the male must release sperm into the river current, hopefully upstream of a lady mussel. If a…

Watershed rules guide water-friendly development

By: angiehongmn October 31, 2018October 31, 2018

Keeping water clean, Partners and Updatesenvironmental regulations, erosion control, lakes, land development, watershed management, WetlandsLeave a Comment

For each Scrabble game, there must be at least two players and no more than four. Tiles can only be placed from left to right or from top to bottom. Words placed diagonally or backwards are not allowed. The person with the most points at the end of the game wins. To make pickles, stir…

Like water flowing east

By: angiehongmn October 10, 2018

Uncategorizedconservation, environment, fall, featured, infrastructure, National Park Service, St. Croix River, Wild and Scenic RiverLeave a Comment

Clouds and mountains all tangled together up to the blue sky a rough road and deep woods without any travelers far away the lone moon a bright glistening white nearby a flock of birds sobbing like children one old man sitting alone perched in these green mountains a small shack the retired life letting my…

So long sweet summer! Prepping lawns and gardens for the winter

By: angiehongmn October 2, 2018October 2, 2018

Buckthorn, Yards and Landscapingbees, buckthorn, fall, featured, gardening, lawn care, lawns, leaves, vegetable gardensLeave a Comment

By now, you’ve probably picked the last of the tomatoes, peppers and eggplants growing in your vegetable gardens. The predicted frost never quite made it to my house last weekend, but I know it’s only a matter of time before the winter temps will settle in for good. As you begin to prepare your lawn…

South Washington Watershed District celebrates 25 years of flood prevention and habitat restoration

By: angiehongmn October 1, 2018

Keeping water clean, Local Achievements, Partners and UpdatesCottage Grove, featured, Great River Greening, Grey Cloud, Mississippi River, south washington watershed district, Washington County, WoodburyLeave a Comment

Volunteer event scheduled for Oct. 11 in Woodbury Three years ago, volunteers gathered in a wind-swept field on a rainy spring day to plant 3000 young oak trees for a future oak savanna. The site – located on the border between Woodbury and Cottage Grove – is part of a conservation corridor created by South…