Elm Creek Watershed Green Lands, Blue Waters Annual Conference November 20-21, 2013 Linda Meschke, Rural Advantage.

Elm Creek WatershedGreen Lands, Blue Waters Annual Conference

November 20-21, 2013Linda Meschke, Rural Advantage

Elm Creek Watershed

Elm Creek

HUC 10 173,000 acres Land Use

Agricultural Corn Soybeans Swine

Towns Bergen Trimont Northrup Jackson

Why Elm Creek?

Watershed is Impaired Does not meet MN Water

Quality Standards Impairments:

Affected Designated Use: Aquatic Life

Pollutant or Stressor Fishes – Bio-assessment Turbidity

Downstream Impairments:

Lower MN River Dissolved Oxygen

Blue Earth River Fecal Coliform Turbidity

Statewide Mercury

Why Elm Creek? [continued]

Progressive farmers who are leaders in their industry. [Farmer Led]

History of doing & participation in conservation programs.

University of Minnesota leadership & involvement. Local leadership from agencies and producers.and Confidence that a successful program can be

done here that can be replicated elsewhere.

What is Working to Drive Change?Key Principles:

Farmer Led [Listen & Apply Their Ideas]

Keep the raindrop where it falls. Cheapest and most effective way to treat water. Further the raindrop moves, the more costly and the

less effective treatment is.

Manage your land in a way that enhances the biological aspects of the soil to increase productivity and reduce nutrient leaching.

Increase soil organic matter.

Target Priorities:How Can Continuous Living Cover Be Applied?

Nutrient Management Commercial Fertilizer Manure

Cover Crops Drainage Water

Management Soil Erosion Soil Health Buffers

TOTT is simply a series of upland, riparian and in-stream practices that work together to cumulatively leverage pollution reductions from agricultural systems. 1. Upland

Cover Crops Soil Health Building Residue Management Extended Crop Rotation Nutrient Management Controlled Drainage

2. Near Outlet Bioreactors Saturated Buffers Water Storage Two Stage Ditches Constructed Wetland

3. Downstream Microbial & Macroinvertebrate Habitat Hyporheic flow w/Constructed Riffles Biochar & Slag Iron in Constructed Glides

Tile Outlet Treatment Trains

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3

Demonstrating Farmer Led Conservation in Elm Creek Watershed - Rural Advantage

What is Next?

Tile Outlet Treatment Trains

Drainage Management

MN Ag Water Quality Certainty Program Conservation

Planning CLC Mindset