County adopts One Watershed/ One Plan

Cooperatively, a plan between Cook and Lake County and Cook County Soil and Water Conservation District (SWCD) and Lake SWCD to address potential threats to the Lake Superior watershed was adopted on May 16, when the Cook County Board of Commissioners signed the Lake Superior North Comprehensive Watershed (LSNW), One Watershed/One Plan resolution.

All four local governmental units involved are in the process of adopting the measure and will enter into a Memorandum of Agreement to implement the plan as it is adopted.

Cook and Lake County SWCD, along with Lake and Cook County began the planning process in 2014 as part of the One Watershed/ One Plan pilot project, with assistance from the Minnesota Board of Water and Soil Resources.

The Lake Superior North Watershed (LSNW) agreement doesn’t replace or supplant the county’s local land use, planning or zoning authority, but instead, provides a framework to provide increased opportunities for the local governments to work collaboratively for water quality protection. The plan covers the area from the Laurentian Divide south where the water flows into Lake Superior. The area north of the divide is part of the Cook County Comprehensive Water Management Plan.

Goals of the program include implementing practices, programs, and regulatory controls that effectively control erosion, sedimentation, and related pollution that harm the watershed along with strategies to protect and maintain the high-quality resources in the area.

Cook County Soil and Water Conservation District Manager Ilena Hansel said, “It has been a great process throughout the past few years. We have an active Policy Committee that is made up of elected officials. We also have a professional group of individuals from different areas of expertise and agencies on the Advisory Committee. Both committees along with the support from community and participants in the public meetings have all been key to the success of the plan being adopted. We are excited to be at this point and to begin working on implementing the plan.”