Crystal Spring Scientific and Natural Area (SNA) in Scandia was established just four years ago. It contains a crystalline spring that pours out of the side of a rock wall, deep in an emerald chasm.
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All articles filed in streams
Lending a helping hand to Afton’s Trout Brook
South Washington Watershed District partners with Great River Greening and Vail Resorts A coldwater stream flows through the hills of Afton Alps and Afton State Park, bringing life to a valley in the woods. Over the past 150 years, Trout Brook has weathered the rise and fall of logging in region, decades of farming, and…
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Salt levels are rising in Minnesota waters and it’s not just winter to blame
The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency would like you to think about salt, and not just because we saw snow on May 19. As chloride concentrations continue to rise in lakes, rivers, and groundwater around Minnesota, the agency is working with partners to develop a Statewide Chloride Management Plan that will help to keep our freshwater…
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Brown’s Creek fish hoping for a big chill
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…
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Celebrate water and nature at Brown’s Creek Park – Sept. 29
He’s standing in an open field, late November, and the sun is glowing through the goldenrod and bluestem. Sun kissing son. There are times like this when the natural world is so beautiful, I want to open my eyes just a little bit wider and etch the memory into my heart. When the Brown’s Creek…
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Secrets to success: Cleaner water and healthy landscapes
It shouldn’t be a secret, but you might be surprised to learn that 49% of lakes in Washington County have improving water quality. Trout are surviving and may be reproducing in Brown’s Creek again. Woodbury has cut its annual groundwater use by nearly 35 million gallons in only one year, and Bone Lake in Scandia…
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Statewide Feedback on Water Issues Echoes Local Concerns in East Metro and St. Croix Valley
Data shows that 40% of Minnesota lakes, rivers and streams are classified as impaired, and the East Metro and St. Croix Valley are no exception.
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Minnesotans Call for New Legislation to Promote Smart Salting
Written in partnership with Watershed Partners: http://www.cleanwatermn.org More than ten years ago, the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) came to a frightening realization. After testing lakes and streams in the Twin Cities metro area, they discovered that chloride levels in many were climbing, and that some were already too salty to support fish. Further testing…
Read MoreCommunity Water Meetings Offer Citizens the Opportunity to Help Shape Minnesota Policy
The Stillwater Town Hall meeting will be held on Oct. 5. There will be smaller community water meetings on Thursday, Sept. 21, 6:30-8:30pm at the White Bear Lake City Hall; Tuesday, Sept. 26, 6:30-8:30pm at the R.H. Stafford Library in Woodbury; and Wednesday, Sept. 27, 6:30-8:30pm at the Marine Town Hall.
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How Do You Know if a Stream Is Healthy?
Collecting water quality data from streams is not nearly as easy as collecting data from lakes and rivers.
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