Welcome. Thank you for joining us! Lower Mississippi River - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Welcome. Thank you for joining us! Lower Mississippi River Watershed Management Organization re so urc e ful. na tura lly.

Lower Mississippi River Watershed Management Organization Watershed Restoration and Protection (WRAP) Study Janna Kieffer Barr Engineering April 16, 2013 re so urc e ful. na tura lly.

T o nig ht’ s Ag e nda • Introductions • Shallow lake ecology • Lake “diagnoses” • Small group discussions re so urc e ful. na tura lly.

L o we r Mississippi Rive r Wa te rshe d Ma na g e me nt Org a niza tio n Includes portions of 7 cities: Inver Grove • Heights Mendota • Heights Sunfish Lake • South St. Paul • St. Paul • West St. Paul • Lilydale • re so urc e ful. na tura lly.

Wa te rshe d Re sto ra tio n a nd Pro te c tio n (WRAP) • Study includes four LMRWMO lakes: – Sunfish (City of Sunfish Lake) – Pickerel Lake (Lilydale/St. Paul) – Thompson (West St. Paul) – Rogers (Mendota Heights) • Outcomes of study: Clean-up or Protection Plan re so urc e ful. na tura lly.

WRAP study fo c use s o n e xc e ss nutrie nts • The Problem: Cultural Eutrophication “The accelerated increase in concentrations of nutrients, primarily phosphorus and nitrogen, in a lake as a result of human activities in the watershed” re so urc e ful. na tura lly.

E xc e ss pho spho rus fue ls e utro phic a tio n • Phosphorus feeds algae and causes algal blooms • Algae decreases water transparency re so urc e ful. na tura lly.

o the r sympto ms o f e utro phic a tio n – Loss of dissolved oxygen in water near the lake bottom – Shift in fish species from gamefish (bass & walleye) to non-game fish species tolerant of low oxygen levels (carp & bullheads) re so urc e ful. na tura lly.

Whe re do e s the pho spho rus c o me fro m? External Sources – Stormwater runoff from hard (impervious) surfaces – Leaves & grass clippings – Fertilizers – Pet/animal waste – Soil erosion – Septic systems re so urc e ful. na tura lly.

Whe re do e s the pho spho rus c o me fro m? Internal Sources – Phosphorus can be stored in lake bottom sediments and released when oxygen levels are low P P P P P P P re so urc e ful. na tura lly.

Whe re do e s the pho spho rus c o me fro m? Internal Sources – Die-off of aquatic plants releases phosphorus to the lake water re so urc e ful. na tura lly.

L a ke e c o lo g y: Sha llo w vs. de e p L a ke s re so urc e ful. na tura lly.

L a ke e c o lo g y There is a wide spectrum between deep lakes and wetlands Deep Wetlands Lakes re so urc e ful. na tura lly.

L a ke e c o lo g y Deep Wetlands Lakes Shallow lakes fall in middle of the spectrum Generally less than 10 feet deep, with max depth of 15 feet re so urc e ful. na tura lly.

Sha llo w ve rsus de e p la ke s Deep lakes thermally stratify- separating into layers based on temperature re so urc e ful. na tura lly. Graphic from Fin Farm LLC (http://www.finfarm.com/aeration.php)

Sha llo w ve rsus de e p la ke s Shallow lakes do not form stable, distinct thermal layers – Layers mix frequently throughout summer – Phosphorus released from bottom sediments will mix throughout summer re so urc e ful. na tura lly.

Aq ua tic pla nts a re impo rta nt to a he a lthy sha llo w la ke re so urc e ful. na tura lly.

Sha llo w la ke s ha ve two typic a l sta te s 1. Healthy clear water state – Lush and diverse aquatic plant population – Clear water re so urc e ful. na tura lly.

Sha llo w la ke s ha ve two typic a l sta te s 2. Turbid State (algal dominated) – Algae and sediment prevent aquatic plant growth – Without aquatic plants, water stays cloudy Poor habitat for diverse fish • population Wind and bottom feeding • fish re-suspend sediment re so urc e ful. na tura lly.

Ho w do sha llo w la ke s shift to turb id sta te ? Eutrophication – Increased phosphorus from watershed fuels algae blooms Changes in fish populations re so urc e ful. na tura lly.

Dyna mic s o f fish po pula tio n a ffe c ts wa te r c la rity Zooplankton feed on algae, • so its good to have healthy populations Many predator species can’t • survive in shallow lakes due to low oxygen levels re so urc e ful. na tura lly.

Dyna mic s o f fish po pula tio n a ffe c ts wa te r c la rity Less gamefish = more panfish and minnows More panfish = less zooplankton Less zooplankton = more algae re so urc e ful. na tura lly.

L MRWMO WRAP L a ke s LMRWMO Shallow Lakes* – Rogers Lake – Thompson Lake – Pickerel Lake LMRWMO Deep Lakes* – Sunfish Lake * Included in WRAP study re so urc e ful. na tura lly.

WRAP study- la ke dia g no se s Monitoring Lake Water Watershed Develop and Quality Sediment Modeling WRAP Plan Modeling Analysis Monitoring helps diagnose lake problems re so urc e ful. na tura lly.

WRAP study- la ke dia g no se s Monitoring Lake Water Watershed Develop and Quality Sediment Modeling WRAP Plan Modeling Analysis Diagnosis based on test and model results re so urc e ful. na tura lly.

Ro g e rs L a ke - Me ndo ta He ig hts • 107 acre lake • Shallow lake (max depth 8 feet) • Watershed = 414 acres • Land use = low density residential, park, golf course, highway re so urc e ful. na tura lly.

Ro g e rs L a ke - pro g no sis is g o o d! • Water quality is good- focus on protection • Algae concentrations are generally low • Phosphorus coming from external (watershed) sources AND some internal load • Abundant aquatic plant populations re so urc e ful. na tura lly.

Ro g e rs L a ke - a q ua tic pla nt ma na g e me nt • Moderate densities of Curlyleaf pondweed • Continued aquatic plant monitoring recommended re so urc e ful. na tura lly.

T ho mpso n L a ke - We st St. Pa ul • 7 acre lake/wetland • Shallow lake (avg depth 5-6 feet) • Watershed = 182 acres re so urc e ful. na tura lly.

T ho mpso n L a ke - dia g no sis • Water quality does not meet standards • Primary phosphorus source is stormwater runoff from developed watershed • Improvements will need to focus on reducing or treating stormwater runoff re so urc e ful. na tura lly.

T ho mpso n L a ke - a q ua tic pla nt ma na g e me nt • Moderate densities of Curlyleaf pondweed (shown in red on figure) • Continued monitoring is recommended re so urc e ful. na tura lly.

Pic ke re l L a ke • 90 acres • Shallow lake (max depth 11 feet) • Ivy Falls Creek drains most of watershed re so urc e ful. na tura lly.

Pic ke re l L a ke - dia g no sis • Water quality heavily influenced by flood waters from Mississippi River • Mississippi River floods about once every 10 years re so urc e ful. na tura lly.

Pic ke re l L a ke - dia g no sis • When flooding does not occur, primary phosphorus sources are: – Runoff from Ivy Falls Creek watershed – Wetland directly west of Pickerel Lake re so urc e ful. na tura lly.

Pic ke re l L a ke - dia g no sis • Protection and improvement measures should focus on reducing or treating stormwater runoff • May consider management of adjacent wetland to reduce phosphorus inputs to Pickerel Lake re so urc e ful. na tura lly.

Pic ke re l L a ke - a q ua tic pla nt ma na g e me nt • Moderate densities of Curlyleaf pondweed (shown in red on figure) • Continued monitoring is recommended re so urc e ful. na tura lly.

Sunfish L a ke - City o f Sunfish L a ke • 51 acre lake • Deep lake (max depth 32 feet) • Watershed = 235 acres re so urc e ful. na tura lly.

Sunfish L a ke - Dia g no sis • Water quality does not meet standards • Primary phosphorus source is internal load from lake bottom sediments • Improvements will need to focus on reducing the release of phosphorus from the sediments re so urc e ful. na tura lly.

Sunfish L a ke - a q ua tic pla nt ma na g e me nt • Moderate densities of Curlyleaf pondweed (shown in red on figure) • Eurasian Watermilfoil identified • MN DNR to conduct detailed plant survey • Continued monitoring is re so urc e ful. na tura lly. recommended

Now, we want to hear from you! • What does the data mean to you? • How do we turn lake data into impactful community knowledge? re so urc e ful. na tura lly.

Thanks for sharing your time with us tonight! re so urc e ful. na tura lly.