Searching for treasure and coming up nettle

In Chisago and Washington Counties, 100% of the water we drink comes from groundwater. This beautifully designed natural system provides us with a steady supply of pure, clean drinking water that is filtered by layers of gravel, sand and soil. Unfortunately, however, we’re beginning to see elevated levels of nitrate from fertilizer and chloride from road salt and water softener salt in the groundwater that people are drinking.

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St. Croix River – Wild and Scenic, Close to Home

In theory, a person could hop into a kayak, canoe, or SUP and paddle from Marine to Stillwater in much less than seven hours, but what would be the point? Stopping to lounge in the shallow water and enjoy the beaches and wildlife in the St. Croix River is the best part of the journey.

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Saturday, Sept. 10 stacked with opportunities for nature enjoyment and stewardship

This Saturday, Sept. 10 serves up a wide array of activities for nature enthusiasts, including planting trees, stenciling storm drains, chowing down on tacos and ice cream, and enjoying bluegrass in the prairie.

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Lower St. Croix Watershed Partnership ramps up support for local farmers

In addition to hiring Jennifer Hahn as a Minnesota Extension agronomist to serve the region, the partnership is hosting workshops for large and small-scale farmers; offering incentive payments for cover crops, nutrient management, prescribed grazing and tillage management; and conducting listening sessions with beginning farmers at Big River Farms in May Twp. 

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The secret life of the St. Croix’s freshwater mussels

“The St. Croix River is a rare example of a complete and intact river ecosystem,” explains Marian Shaffer, an Aquatic Biologist with the National Park Service. “In fact, all of the freshwater mussel species that existed in the St. Croix Riverway before European settlement are still here today.”

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Fossils, glaciers, and the water we drink

Groundwater provides 100 percent of the drinking water for people in Washington County and 70 percent of the drinking water in Minnesota.

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Preserving a piece of paradise in the St. Croix Valley

Paul Goodwin and his family have established a 49-acre conservation easement on land abutting Silver Creek near Stillwater, MN and are working to convert 14-acres of fallow farmland to prairie and oak savanna.

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Intersex fish and cocaine shrimp

Scientists lay the blame for these strange phenomena on endocrine-disrupting chemicals and pharmaceutical compounds, such as pesticides, medications, and even common household products like shampoo.

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In the in between

We’re in the season of in between, both literally and metaphorically. The leaves have fallen but the snow has not. A crisp layer of ice coats the corners of the lakes and rivers, not yet thick enough to support our weight, but cold and sharp enough to keep us from impulsively leaping in for one last swim.

In the time of in between, look for the simple pleasures in life. The magic is still happening, just a little bit more quietly.

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Debate over Enbridge Energy’s Line 3 oil pipeline floats quietly through the St. Croix River Valley

Since Aug. 5, Relay for Our Water participants have been transporting water from the Mississippi River headwaters through the state to protest construction of the Line 3 oil pipeline.

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