Kerrie Berg said she felt like she received an early Christmas present when she learned that the Minnesota Board of Water and Soil Resources (BWSR) announced Cook County Soil and Water Conservation District (SWCD) will receive an $829,000 grant, funded by the Clean Water, Land and Legacy Amendment’s Clean Water Fund, to clean up the sediment in the Poplar River.
It will be a present even more appreciated by the river’s brook trout, rainbow and coho salmon.
“Cook SWCD is excited about this opportunity, which we estimate will get us to our goal of delisting the Poplar River,” said Berg, district manager for Cook County SWCD.
The grant is part of the Targeted Watershed Demonstration Program, a new approach to addressing water pollution that focuses funding on watersheds where actions needed for water quality improvement, are known and can be achieved in a fouryear window of time.
“The Poplar River watershed is an important resource for the North Shore. This program will enable Cook County SWCD to target conservation practices where they can make the biggest difference for the benefit of the watershed,” said John Jaschke, BWSR’s executive director.
The Soil and Water District and landowner partners have worked steadily toward improving the three miles of impaired reach of the river, said Berg.
“We are extremely pleased to receive this grant award,” said Tom Rider, co-owner of Lutsen Mountains and president of the Poplar River Management Board (PRMB).
“The goal has always been to have the Poplar River removed from the Impaired Water List. This grant will have a big impact in a short time period and will serve as a success story in a region that is both environmentally and economically important,” Rider added.
The PRMB was formed in 2005 by landowners in and along the Poplar River in order to protect and improve the water quality of this segment of the river. The lower Poplar River is defined as the section from the falls north of Lutsen Mountains, to where it empties into Lake Superior. PRMB formed in response to this section of river becoming listed on the MPCA Impaired Rivers List in 2004.
According to Berg, the Targeted Watershed Grant represents a continuation of over 10 years of private and public research and construction projects designed to reduce nonpoint pollution entering the Poplar River and Lake Superior. PRMB, the Cook County SWCD, the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) and other stakeholders identified and implemented$1.7 million in sediment reduction projects in the watershed.
Berg said the $829,000 Targeted Watershed Grant would be used for in-stream stabilization, upland runoff erosion control, and implementation of water bars on ski slopes, and native grass and forbs [herbaceous flowering plant] planting. She also said there would be culvert improvements, ditching and small stream restorations of tributaries to help control sediment from entering the river.
“We expect to develop new research and design guidelines for erosion control on ski runs that could be a model for resorts across the country,” Rider said. “This new work will build on the accomplishment of current efforts and provide benefits in sediment reduction to the Poplar River for decades to come.”
In 2012 PRMB spearheaded the sediment reduction Ullr Tightline project. Last year two smaller projects: the Mystery Mountain Flow path and Lower Eagle Mountain Road were completed, as well as a bigger job, the Caribou Highlands Flow path, which involved installing erosion control measures along the strip of land between Caribou Highlands, which sits on a bluff, and the river. That project captured storm water originating on the Caribou Highlands property. The land directly adjacent to the river is owned by Lutsen Mountains and includes a ski trail and an access road.
Last year MPCA issued a report on data trends regarding the sediment levels in the river. Measurements gathered from 2009 to 2011 showed a 35 percent reduction from previous levels.
“With the maturing effect of BMPs [best management practices] implemented in 2011 and 2012 along with implementation of additional BMPs currently planned, a continued decrease in sediment loading should be expected,” stated the MPCA report.
“We have had great success working with the landowners in the Poplar River watershed and TAC (technical service area 3), the soil and water engineers and technicians out of Duluth, Berg said. “It has been a great opportunity to work with local contractors on the work. They really know the area and have very competitive bids. Our last big grant was under budget and we were able to complete an extra project, a detention basin at the bottom of Mystery Mountain,” she said.
Water pipeline
A $4 million-plus water pipeline is also being completed that will bring water from Lake Superior to properties from Superior National at Lutsen Golf Course to the ski runs at Lutsen Mountains, eliminating the need for homes and businesses in the area to draw water from the Poplar River.
That project, said PRMB president Rider, will provide snowmaking water for the ski area, irrigation for Superior National, firefighting water for local, state, and federal agencies, and drinking water for property owners and resorts in the vicinity of the ski area.
Rider said it would help protect the area’s aquifers, which are currently being overtaxed by too many drilled wells and address concerns about snowmaking withdrawals from the Poplar River. When this pipeline is completed, said Rider, Lutsen Mountains has agreed to give up its permit to withdraw water from the Poplar River.
The pipeline will carry water uphill close to 450 feet in elevation over a horizontal distance of 2.1 miles.
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