Keeping water clean – Page 21

St. Croix Stories

By: angiehongmn October 17, 2016

Keeping water cleanSt. Croix RiverLeave a Comment

The St. Croix River has changed dramatically over the years. What do you think it will look like 40 years from now?

Two Llamas and a Prairie

By: angiehongmn October 12, 2016

Keeping water clean, Partners and Updates, Yards and Landscapingconservation, prairie, small farms, Washington Conservation DistrictLeave a Comment

“For our 25th anniversary – the silver anniversary – we got a doe with silver ears and two baby goats.” Becky Vierling smiles as she talks about the small farm in Denmark Township that she and her husband Philip bought in 2003. When the Vierlings took on a more than 100-year old farm house with…

Recipe for Saucy Homegrown Algae

By: angiehongmn September 15, 2016

Keeping water cleanalgae, algae blooms, clean water, non-point source pollutionLeave a Comment

Interested in whipping up a batch of blue-green algae for your next family gathering? Here’s what you’ll need.

The Economics of Clean Lakes and Rivers

By: angiehongmn July 27, 2016

Keeping water clean, Outdoor Adventureseconomic value, outdoor recreation, St. Croix RiverLeave a Comment

According to the Outdoor Industry Association, outdoor recreation in the United States generates 6.1 million jobs and $646 billion in consumer spending every year. In Minnesota, that translates into 118,000 jobs, $11.6 billion in consumer spending, and $815 million in state and local tax revenue.

Way Down Upon the Suwannee River

By: angiehongmn June 20, 2016

Keeping water cleanerosion control, fertilizer, phosphorus1 Comment

The Suwannee River Mine, which opened in northern Florida in 1965, was once one of our nation’s most productive sources for rock phosphate, the raw material used to manufacture phosphoric acid (phosphorus).

When you flush, where does the water go?

By: angiehongmn May 12, 2016

Keeping water cleanE. coli, groundwater, Septic Systems, streams, Valley Branch Watershed District, wastewaterLeave a Comment

Across Minnesota, 533 streams and river reaches have unsafe levels of E. coli or fecal coliform, which are bacteria found in human and animal feces.

Another reason to turn out the lights

By: angiehongmn May 9, 2016

Keeping water cleanclean water, energy conservation, mercuryLeave a Comment

You might be surprised to learn that mercury from the air is, by far, the leading cause of pollution in our Minnesota lakes and rivers.

A chat about scat

By: angiehongmn April 20, 2016

Keeping water cleandog poop, E. coli, water pollutionLeave a Comment

Are you four years old? Forty-four years old? Do you like to talk about poop? Come on, admit it. Poop is a little bit funny isn’t it? Two years ago we went on vacation to Jamaica. My son, who was two at the time, had just learned how to use the toilet three weeks before…

Volunteers needed for 2016 Earth Day Clean-up Events

By: angiehongmn April 12, 2016

Keeping water cleanEarth Day, litter, Washington County, Washington County Environmental CenterLeave a Comment

Plastic bottles, bags, cigarette butts and other garbage in streets and roadside ditches are eventually washed into lakes and rivers when the snow melts or it rains. The Mississippi river gathers runoff (and trash) from 1,245,000 square miles and carries it to the Gulf of Mexico.

Calling all horse owners

By: angiehongmn March 17, 2016

Keeping water cleanHorses, pasture management, Washington Conservation DistrictLeave a Comment

The Washington Conservation District offers free site visits for all Washington County landowners and can provide advice and sometimes financial assistance to control noxious weeds, prepare pasture management and whole-farm plans, and complete projects to reduce mud, repair gullies, and reestablish vegetation along streamside and wetland areas, or install fencing to keep horses and other livestock out of wetlands, lakes and streams. This year’s horse workshop is scheduled for Monday, March 21, 5:30-8:30pm at the Washington Conservation Center in Oakdale.