Minnesota lakes – East Metro Water

Minnesota Water Stewards goes statewide

By: angiehongmn October 23, 2025October 22, 2025

Keeping water clean, Partners and Updatesfeatured, Freshwater Society, Minnesota, Minnesota lakes, Mississippi River, nature, North Woods and Waters of the St. Croix Heritage Area, St. Croix River, St. Croix Valley Foundation, volunteering, Washington Conservation District, Washington County ParksLeave a Comment

David, Kim, Barb and Mike are part of an elite cadre of volunteers helping to engage communities across Minnesota and western Wisconsin in grass-roots projects to protect and restore lakes, rivers, and streams.

Beginning in 2026, Freshwater is taking the program statewide and removing the enrollment fee so that more people can participate. Locally, the St. Croix Valley Foundation has provided grant funds to Washington Conservation District (WCD), Freshwater, and North Woods and Waters to train-in a new cohort of volunteers, starting in 2026.

Meet our 2025 Natural Shoreline Award winners!

We are excited to announce the winners of our inaugural Natural Shoreline Awards, sponsored by the East Metro Water Resource Education Program and Lower St. Croix Watershed Partnership. These awards recognize Minnesotans who are protecting lake, stream, and wetland habitat in Chisago, Isanti, Ramsey and Washington Counties.

Flowers bloom in the shadow of a great white bear

By: angiehongmn September 5, 2025

Aquatic Biology, Keeping water clean, Local Achievements, Partners and Updatesfeatured, Minnesota Board of Water and Soil Resources, Minnesota lakes, rice creek watershed district, Washington Conservation District, water conservation, White Bear Lake, wildlife habitat1 Comment

White Bear is a lake with a storied past. At 2438 acres, it is the second largest lake in the Twin Cities metro, and its history features a legendary fight with a giant bear, steamships, gangsters, famous authors, legal battles, and even an amusement park. Recently, efforts led by the Washington Conservation District have focused on improving habitat and reducing stormwater runoff from small communities located along the southeast shore of the lake.

Score your shore: A tool to measure the health of your lakeshore property

By: angiehongmn June 13, 2025

Aquatic Biology, Wildlife, Yards and Landscapingfeatured, lakes, lakeshore, Minnesota, Minnesota lakes, native plants, shoreline, up northLeave a Comment

Maintaining and restoring lakeshore habitat isn’t just good for wildlife, it also helps to protect valuable real estate from literally washing away.

Keeping invaders out of Minnesota waters

By: angiehongmn May 24, 2025May 20, 2025

Aquatic BiologyAIS, Aquatic Invasive Species, featured, Minnesota lakes, starry stonewort, zebra musselsLeave a Comment

In 2024, Minnesota deployed more than 800 watercraft inspectors to public boat launches around the state to help staunch the spread of zebra mussels, spiny waterflea, and other aquatic invaders. The goal? Preserve Minnesota’s famed “good life” and protect fishing, tourism, and cultural mainstays such as wild ricing and “up north at the cabin.”

One reason for optimism is that we are seeing fewer new infestations and better compliance with state laws for watercraft cleaning and inspections.

Unfortunately, however, the DNR still reported 41 new AIS infestations in Minnesota lakes and rivers last year.

two hot air balloons touch down on a lake

Minnesota Lakes – What’s in a Name?

By: angiehongmn April 4, 2025

Aquatic Biology, Uncategorizedbeauty, featured, lakes, lifestyle, Minnesota lakes, nature, travelLeave a Comment

Minnesota is home to 200 Mud Lakes, 150 Long lakes, and 120 Rice lakes.

In addition to their actual names, the Minnesota DNR also assigns lakes a shoreland classification – natural environment, recreational development, or general development – that is used to guide lot size, setbacks, and land uses on surrounding properties.

With spring in sight, local communities prepare for an early boating season

By: angiehongmn February 26, 2024

Aquatic Biology, Partners and UpdatesAIS, curlyleaf pondweed, featured, Minnesota lakes, watercraft inspections, zebra musselsLeave a Comment

From 2016 to 2023, the number of inspected watercraft In Washington County with drain plug violations dropped from 7% to 1%. This is an indication that watercraft inspections and AIS education programs are working.

Living Large on a Small Lake – Exploring Natural Environment Lakes

By: angiehongmn October 26, 2023

Aquatic Biology, Keeping water cleanfeatured, lakes, Minnesota lakes, shallow lakesLeave a Comment

As much as we like to focus on the biggest and the best, however, roughly 70% of Minnesota’s lakes are actually considered natural environment lakes, a shoreland classification that is generally applied to shallow lakes with limited capacity to absorb the impacts of development and recreational use.

Is it safe to fish and swim?

By: angiehongmn August 18, 2023August 15, 2023

Aquatic Biology, Keeping water cleanfeatured, fishing, impaired waters, Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, Minnesota lakes, Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, swimming, water quality1 Comment

How can you determine if your favorite local lake is safe for fishing and swimming? Though water quality data is collected and updated regularly, finding the information online isn’t terribly intuitive.

A healthy shore is a happy lake

By: angiehongmn April 6, 2023April 5, 2023

Aquatic Biology, Keeping water clean, Yards and LandscapingChisago SWCD, featured, lakes, lakeshore, Minnesota lakes, native plants, shorelineLeave a Comment

Shoreline landscaping workshops: April 18 and May 8

In the Land of 10,000 lakes, more and more lakeshore landowners are turning toward natural solutions that combine bio-engineering with deep-rooted, native plants to stabilize the land along the water’s edge while also maintaining connected corridors of habitat for beneficial insects, fish, birds, frogs, turtles, and other kinds of wildlife