Minnesota – Page 2 – East Metro Water

No Mow May & Slow Mow Summer

By: angiehongmn May 9, 2025May 8, 2025

Yards and Landscapingfeatured, lawns, Minnesota, No Mow May, pollinators, yard careLeave a Comment

Participating in No Mow May is a great entry-level action that anyone can take to help protect the environment, and best of all, it is FREE!

Many people who participate in No Mow May become inspired to take the next step and transition their conventional turf lawn into a low-mow or alternative lawn. Drought tolerant turf-grass species like fine fescues reduce the need for mowing, watering, and chemicals, while low-growing flowers like Dutch white clover, self-heal, yarrow, creeping thyme, and pussy-toes can also be incorporated to provide food for native bees.

State funds help to amplify the work of local government partners in the St. Croix Watershed

By: angiehongmn May 5, 2025May 2, 2025

Keeping water clean, Partners and Updates, UncategorizedClean Water Fund, featured, Minnesota, St. Croix RiverLeave a Comment

Nearly 8000 square miles of land in Minnesota and Wisconsin drains to the St. Croix River. Within this larger basin, 915 square miles of land on the Minnesota side is included in the Lower St. Croix watershed. This encompasses 127 lakes, over 1,000 miles of rivers and streams, and approximately 152,000 acres of wetlands.

In its first four years, the Lower St. Croix Watershed Partnership reduced phosphorus to local waterways by 10,959 pounds per year, which is nearly double what the group hoped to achieve over the course of its 10-year plan.

Rivers re-wilded, fish return

By: angiehongmn February 18, 2025

Aquatic Biology, Partners and Updates, Wildlifedam removal, featured, fishing, Minnesota, remeander, rivers, streams, sturgeon, trout, WisconsinLeave a Comment

From dam removals to re-meander projects, many rivers and streams in Minnesota are regaining their wildness and seeing fish and other wildlife return.

Ice castles and cliffs plus heaves on my shore?

By: angiehongmn January 31, 2025

Uncategorizedfeatured, hiking, ice, Minnesota, nature, shorelines, travel, water, winter1 Comment

From ice castles to sculptures, and even scalable cliffs of ice, Minnesotans are adept at finding creative ways to have fun in the winter. What happens, though, when the dynamic power of ice wrecks havoc on shoreline properties?

Staying warm and upright during Minnesota’s winters

By: angiehongmn December 20, 2024December 17, 2024

Outdoor Adventuresfeatured, ice, Minnesota, snow, winterLeave a Comment

Twenty-five years later, I’m still wearing that same pair of snow pants and mukluks and I’ve picked up a few additional tricks for staying warm and upright during Minnesota’s winters.

Local cities find innovative strategies to reduce chloride pollution

By: angiehongmn December 17, 2024

Aquatic Biology, Keeping water clean, Partners and Updateschloride, featured, Minnesota, salt, winterLeave a Comment

From heated sidewalks to GPS-based snow plow systems, local cities are taking big steps to reduce chloride pollution.

Exploring the St. Croix Valley: Adventures on & off the Water

By: angiehongmn July 1, 2024July 2, 2024

Outdoor Adventures, Uncategorizedcamping, canoeing, featured, forests, hiking, Minnesota, prairie, St. Croix River, WisconsinLeave a Comment

In February of 2022, I took a week off of work, loaded up the dog, a pair of snowshoes, and copious amounts of coffee, chocolate, and wine, then headed up north to Pine County, Minnesota. My goal was to see if I could maybe, sort-of write a book. Now, two years later, this little book of mine finally makes its grand debut to the rest of the world!

The official launch party is next week (YES! You are invited!) and I’ll also be doing speaking events in Marine on St. Croix (July 9) and Lake Elmo (July 13). I’d love to see you in real life!

Three ways to help pollinators this spring

By: angiehongmn April 18, 2024April 18, 2024

Uncategorized, Wildlife, Yards and Landscapingbutterflies, featured, gardening, Minnesota, native plants, pollinators, prairieLeave a Comment

The single most important thing you can do to protect pollinators is to plant and preserve native habitat on your land and in your community. Washington Conservation District and Blue Thumb – Planting for Clean Water have resources to help you get started.

Pollinator Friendly Alliance, Washington County Parks, Washington Conservation District, and Wild Ones – St. Croix Oak Savanna are also seeking volunteers to help plant more than 1000 native plants at Lake Elmo Park reserve on Saturday, May 4 at 11am. Visit http://www.pollinatorfriendly.org to learn more and register.

713,495 Pounds of Schmooka and Counting

By: angiehongmn April 11, 2024April 9, 2024

Keeping water cleanadopt a drain, featured, Minnesota, stormwater, street sweepingLeave a Comment

In most cases, it takes less than five minutes to walk out your front door, grab a snow shovel and wheelbarrow, and scoop up the schmooka along the curb line in front of your home.

‘Tis the Season to Turn out the Lights

By: angiehongmn March 21, 2024

WildlifeBird City USA, birds, featured, Minnesota, Mississippi River, St. Croix River, Stillwater1 Comment

Allison Mcginnis might not be a twitcher, but she does love birds! In this week’s East Metro water blog, Mcginnis talks about leading Sustainable Stillwater’s Bird City Stillwater initiative and shares advice for area bird-lovers.

A few tips for the coming spring:
– Turn out exterior lights to protect migrating birds
– Protect against bird strikes with window applications
– Plant a native tree, shrub, and garden
– Join a birding hike near you or enjoy one of the brand new self-guided tours!