- Concurrent Session IV: 10:00–11:30 a.m.
- Concurrent Session V: 1:15–2:45 p.m.
- Concurrent Session VI: 3:15–4:45 p.m.
8:00–9:30 – Welcome and Morning Plenary
The Mighty Mississippi Through The Lens of Nutrients and Gulf Hypoxia: How Does Minnesota Fit In?
Lori Sprague, Program Manager, Integrated Water Availability Assessments, US Geological Survey, Water Mission Area
A presentation highlighting the successes and challenges from the headwaters here in Minnesota all the way to the mouth of the Gulf of Mexico. The keynote will address major accomplishments in water resource management for the Mississippi, and answer questions about the health of the river. Presenters will also tackle future concerns about the health and needs of this critical river system.
9:30–10:00 – Poster and Vendor Refreshment Break
Track A
Improved Modeling and Tools for Water Management
10:00–10:20 – 1084: Integration of Multiple Watershed Based Models and Tools Address Water Quality Impacts
10:20–10:40 – 1095: A New Tool and an Updated Inventory for Minnesota Lakes
11:00–11:20 – 1011: Simulating Agricultural BMP Pollutant Removal with the Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT)
11:20–11:30 – Q&A
Track B
Lake Management Successes
10:00–10:20 – 1098: Persistence Pays Off—Route to Sweeney Lake Delisting Follows Long and Winding Path
10:20–10:40 – 1018: Reestablishing Como Lake’s Aquatic Plant Community by Transplanting Native Vegetation from a Donor Lake
10:40–11:00 –1097 Can Nutrient TMDLs Restore Nutrient Impaired Lakes
11:00–11:20 – 1055: Saving Lily Lake: A Neighborhood Landmark
11:20–11:30 – Q&A
Track C
Human Dimensions
10:40–11:00 – 1058: Sustainable Aquaculture to Prevent Invasive Species and Increase Local Food Security
11:00–11:20 – 1077: Top 10 things to consider when Instituting a Stormwater Utility
11:20–11:30 – Q&A
Track D
Designing and Building Resilient Infrastructure
10:00–10:20 – 1036: Assessing Stormwater Adaptations for Extreme Rainfall Events
10:20–10:40 – 1022: MnDOT’s Road to (Hydraulic) Resiliency: An Overview of Past, Present and Future Initiatives
10:40–11:00 – 1072: A Successful Approach to Floodplain Management: Lakeville 179th Street Bridge LOMR
11:00–11:20 – 1075: Development of a Channel Stabilization Project for the Benefit of Lake Traverse
11:20–11:30 – Q&A
Track E
Special Session
10:00–11:30 – Assessing BMP Effectiveness for Water Quality Outcomes with Remote Sensing
Kevin Silverstein, University of Minnesota Supercomputing Institute; Brad Jordahl Redlin, Minnesota Department of Agriculture; Leif Olmanson, University of Minnesota Department of Forest Resources; David Porter, University of Minnesota Supercomputing Institute; Derric Pennington, University of Minnesota Department of Applied Economics
Coauthors: Daniela Miteva, Yu Shing Cheng, Amit Pradhananga
The Minnesota Agricultural Water Quality Certification Program (MAWQCP) is a voluntary program offered by the Minnesota Department of Agriculture (MDA) that certifies farmers who proactively implement conservation practices that protect our water resources. Through partnerships with the University of Minnesota (UMN), data collected by this effort are being used to improve our understanding of how Farmer Best Management Practice (BMP) adoption relates to positive water quality and water resource outcomes, while simultaneously preserving farmer privacy.
The Minnesota Agricultural Water Quality Certification Program: Conservation Implementation via Site-Specific Risk Assessment. Brad Jordahl Redlin, Minnesota Department of Agriculture
Using Remotely Sensed Water Quality Data from an Automated High-Performance Computing Environment for Watershed Assessment and BMP Effectiveness. Leif Olmanson, University of Minnesota Department of Forest Resources
From Farm To Lake: Data at 0 & 786 km. David Porter, University of Minnesota Supercomputing Institute
Hanging Landscapes: Does Farm Water Quality Certification Alter Cover Crop Coverage in Minnesota? Derric Pennington, University of Minnesota Department of Applied Economics
11:30–12:15 – Lunch
12:15–1:00 – Luncheon Session: Art and Engineering: A Partnership for the Planet
Paige J. Novak, Department Head and Joseph T. and Rose S. Ling Chair in Environmental Engineering, Department of Civil, Environmental, and Geo- Engineering, University of Minnesota; Gudrun Lock, Artist-in-residence, Weisman Art Museum, University of Minnesota
The water system is all one system, however, management approaches have been historically in silos: wastewater, stormwater, groundwater, surface water. This luncheon plenary examines the boundaries of professional water resource management and suggests alternative approaches.
Track A
Considerations for Implementing Green Stormwater Infrastructure
1:15–1:35 – 1063: Maintenance-Informed Green Infrastructure Design
1:55–2:15 – 1065: Constructing Linear GSI: What’s Working, What’s Not, and What Might Be
2:35–2:45 – Q&A
Track B
River Habitat and Connectivity
1:15–1:35 – 1020: The Effects of Dams on Native Fish Communities
1:35–1:55 – 1019: Reconnecting Rivers with Rock Arch Rapids Dam Modifications
1:55–2:15 – 1107: Evaluating Aquatic Organism Passage at Stream Crossings
2:35–2:45 – Q&A
Track C
Connecting People with the Groundwater They Use
1:15–1:35 – 1089: Recent Advances in Groundwater Flow Modeling for Aquifer Protection in Minnesota
1:35–1:55 – 1048: Data Visualization as a Tool to Help Address Inequities Among Private Well Users
1:55–2:15 – 1043: Findings from the First Minnesota Private Well Forum: A Call for Action
2:15–2:35 – 1049: Groundwater Age Distributions in Drinking Water Supply Management Areas
2:35–2:45 – Q&A
Track D
Contaminant Pathways and New Treatment Technologies for Municipal Wastewater
1:15–1:35 – 1074: Pilot Trials of Sulfate Reduction in Municipal Wastewater by Chemical Precipitation Technology
2:35–2:45 – Q&A
Track E
Special Session
1:15–2:45 – Adequate Outlet for Agricultural Drainage
Speaker: Rita Weaver, Minnesota Board of Water and Soil Resources (BWSR)
Panel: Chuck Brandel, ISG; Ethan Jenzen, DNR; Philip Solseng, Friends of the Mississippi; John Biren, Association of MN Counties
Adequate Outlet for Agricultural Drainage State laws require that whenever a drainage system is enlarged that drainage authorities determine whether the ditch or stream will be adequate for the new flow regime. However, how adequacy is defined has left much room for debate. A subcommittee of the state’s Drainage Work Group met to develop recommendations for evaluating the adequacy of the drainage outlet. This special session will include a panel to discuss the approach for mediating this polarizing subject and the recommendations of the subcommittee.
2:45–3:15 – Poster and Vendor Refreshment Break
Track A
Redevelopment Green Infrastructure
3:35–3:55 – 1071: Brownfield to Headwaters: Implementation of the Highland Bridge District Stormwater System
3:55–4:15 – 1013: Connected Habitat, Public Places, and Surface Stormwater at Minneapolis’s Upper Harbor
4:15–4:35 – 1110: BMP Mosaic, Meeting Standards with Multiple BMP Types and Reuse
4:35–4:45 – Q&A
Track B
Wetland Tools, Critical Peatlands, and New and Historic Impacts of Invasive Species on Aquatic Ecosystems
3:15–3:35 – 1033: Minnesota’s Peatlands—A Hidden Storehouse of Clean Water, Carbon and Critical Habitat
3:55–4:15 – 1017: A Historic Look: Zebra Mussel-Induced Mercury Concentration Increases In Minnesota Fish
4:15–4:35 – 1060: A New Aquatic Invasive in Minnesota: The Diatom Didymosphenia Along Lake Superior’s North Shore
4:35–4:45 – Q&A
Track C
Water Quality: Implications for Drinking Water and Rivers
3:15–3:35 – 1050: Drinking Water Governance in Minnesota: Key Lessons from an In-Depth Assessment
3:35–3:55 – 1046: Safe Drinking Water for Everyone, Everywhere in Minnesota
3:55–4:15 – 1108: Long-Term Changes in the Magnitude and Timing of Nutrient Loads in the Upper Mississippi River
4:15–4:35 – 1079: Assessing the English Coulee to Balance Water Quality and Flood Protection
4:35–4:45 – Q&A
Track D
Innovative Monitoring Approaches
3:15–3:35 – 1100: A Novel Suspended-Sediment Sampling Method: Depth-Integrated Grab (DIG)
3:55–4:15 – 1101: Iron-Enhanced Sand Filter Monitoring and Assessment Challenges
4:15–4:35 – 1094: Low-Cost Diagnostic Monitoring: A Water Quality Improvement Project Targeting Tool
4:35–4:45 – Q&A
Track E
Special Session
3:15–4:45 – Should We Be Putting Greater Emphasis on Source Reductions?
Larry Baker, Jacques Finlay, Grace Wilson, Connie Fortin, and Randy Neprash
Several decades of concerted effort to reduce runoff pollution has led to very modest reductions in the numbers of impaired waters that have been legally “restored”. Part of the problem is nonpoint source pollution management remains focused on downstream trapping of pollutants, for example, in the 30,000 stormwater ponds in Minnesota. This symposium asks the question: should we be increasing our utilization on source reduction practices? Have we reached the limit on what is economically attainable by relying largely on engineered "best management practices" (BMPs)? When do structural BMPs fail, releasing contaminants to downstream waters? What are the limitations of source reduction, and where is the optimum balance between source reduction and constructed BMPs?
The first presentation will be an overview of source reduction practices, with an eye toward the future, followed by a talk on the limitations of stormwater ponds. The next two talks will address new possibilities for source reduction, one a synthesis of findings, a study to quantify rates of coarse organic movement from residential streets, followed by a proposal to modify construction practices to reduce the need for road salt. The last talk will address the question: what are the regulatory barriers and opportunities that would be needed to promote broader utilization of source reduction for stormwater management?