balmm currents
Basin Alliance for the Lower Mississippi in Minnesota
May 22, 2001

BASIN-WIDE BACTERIA REDUCTION PROJECT PLANNED: With the Southeastern Minnesota Water Resources Board as lead partner, BALMM is planning a
basin-wide project aimed at achieving water quality standards for fecal coliform bacteria by 2010. Key elements of the project were outlined at the April 18 BALMM meeting and at a May 21 meeting of the Water Resources Board. A Lower Mississippi River Basin "Sewage Summit" is planned for June 6 at the MPCA Rochester office to start crafting the details of the project. The broad outlines are as follows. Recent water quality monitoring for fecal coliform bacteria shows widespread exceedence of the state chronic standard of 200 organisms/100 milliliters throughout the basin. This includes 20 stream reaches officially designated as impaired by fecal coliform, plus several dozen additional sites that have been intensively monitored in the past three years. Across the basin, fecal coliform concentrations average about 400 organisms per 100 milliliters - twice the chronic standard. Thus, a basinwide goal of a 50 to 60 percent reduction in fecal coliform
concentration is proposed as an ultimate goal for the project. To achieve this goal, the same degree of reduction (50 to 60 percent) in major sources of fecal coliform bacteria will be attempted through implementation of several BALMM strategies. These include strategies for feedlot management, manure management, urban stormwater, centralized wastewater treatment, and acceleration of residential wastewater treatment for noncompliant Individual Sewage Treatment Systems (ISTS). Local units of government are accelerating feedlot improvements with assistance in 8 counties from a 319 grant obtained last year by the SE MN Water Resources Board. Now, the Water Resources
Board will help to shape and coordinate a BALMM project focussed on ISTS. Counties will be joined by University Extension, the MPCA and other partners in working toward a goal of developing a draft project proposal by mid-summer. For more information, contact Bea Hoffmann at 507/457-5223.

CONSERVATION SECURITY ACT INTRODUCED: Five members of Congress from
Minnesota were among the 14 Senators and 14 Congressmen co-sponsoring the Conservation Security Act, which was introduced today. These include Democrats Jim Oberstar and Betty McCollum, and Republican Jim Ramstad. Minnesota Senators Mark Dayton and Paul Wellstone also were among the bill's co-sponsors. BALMM supports the Conservation Security Act as a means of strengthening incentives for conservation (see item below).

The Conservation Security Act of 2001 was reintroduced into Congress May 22. This legislation, introduced in the Senate by Tom Harkin (D-IA) and Gordon
Smith (R-OR), and in the House by John Thune (R-SD) and Marcy Kaptur (D-OH), will provide financial incentives to help farmers find viable solutions to
environmental concerns.

The Conservation Security Act of 2001 rewards producers who implement resource-conserving conservation practices on working lands. Through a
voluntary, incentive-based individual farm plan, farmers will have the opportunity to address a full range of conservation concerns related to
agriculture, including soil, water and energy conservation, wetland and wildlife habitat restoration and enhancement, and greenhouse gas emissions
reduction and carbon sequestration.

"This visionary piece of legislation provides the help many farmers have been seeking to make their operations more environmentally sustainable. It
will set a new direction for the nation's farm policy," said former Member of Congress, David Minge, of Montevideo, MN. Minge was the chief House
sponsor of this legislation in the previous Congress and is now working as a consultant to the Minnesota Project and other groups. "The Conservation
Security Act offers tremendous potential to motivate farmers for a new era of farming where federal payments are used to purchase tangible, measurable
environmental benefits," said Minge.

"This legislation is vitally important and will allow farmers to embrace good conservation practices and receive fair payments for their good work,"
said Senator Mark Dayton, an original cosponsor of the bill. "The bill not only encourages farmers to adopt new conservation practices, it rewards
those farmers who have already put these important practices to use. As Congress begins to rewrite a new farm bill, I want this type of initiative
to be a central part of our national farm policy," said Dayton.

"For Midwest farmers, the Conservation Security Act offers a fresh new approach to federal farm assistance," said Mike McGrath, a cattleman from
Lanesboro, MN. "It provides annual payments to producers who implement conservation practices without idling productive land. Many producers who
have been largely ignored by past farm programs will really benefit from this program," said McGrath.

The stewardship incentives in the Conservation Security Act will complement other conservation programs already in place. Participants in this new
program are responsible for developing conservation security plans that identify targeted resources, with maximum flexibility for choosing land
management practices suitable for their individual farms.

"We thank Minnesota's leaders for cosponsoring this important conservation legislation. Senators Dayton and Wellstone, and Representatives Oberstar,
McCollum, and Ramstad know we can stimulate our family farms with powerful new tools for agriculture, and provide all residents with cleaner water,
cleaner air and greater resource protection," said Loni Kemp, Senior Policy Analyst with the Minnesota Project, and co-chair of the National Campaign
for Sustainable Agriculture.

BALMM ADOPTS FARM BILL POSITION: At its May 16, 2001 meeting, BALMM adopted the following Issues Paper as a position on the Federal Farm Bill. It supports the Conservation Security Act, which is about to be introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives:

Introduction: This BALMM issues paper is based on the Lower Mississippi River Basin Plan Scoping Document, Strategy 3D (Improve Conservation
Incentives) and the results of a March 21, 2001 BALMM discussion on conservation incentives:

Farmers' choices of resource management practices are affected by economic incentives that arise both from the market place and public policies for
agriculture. There is a need, firstly, to identify disincentives to the use of best management practices that are embedded in current laws and rules.
Secondly, there is a need to determine whether existing conservation programs effectively appeal to the full range of agricultural producers and
landowners - from large corporate farms to hobby "farmettes". Thirdly, there is a need to test new forms of incentives besides traditional cost-sharing.
Finally, there is a need to provide incentives that produce long-lasting changes in conservation practices instead of short-lived changes that end as
soon as external funding sources cease.

Recommendations: BALMM offers the following suggestions as a start toward addressing these needs:

1. Reduce or eliminate disincentives to sustainable resource management in the current federal farm bill. First among these is the manner in which
commodity price supports favor the production of row crops, primarily corn and soybeans, and not hay and pasture. The latter are more conserving land
uses that provide perennial land cover. In nine SE Minnesota counties, over the past 25 years the proportion of cropland devoted to soybeans has
increased from 18 to 32 percent, while that used for small grains and hay has declined from 14 and 22 percent to 4 and 16 percent, respectively. This
shift in land use has serious consequences for soil erosion and nutrient leaching and runoff, particularly in sensitive karst topography. To address
this issue, BALMM suggests one of the following actions:

* Federal designation of hay and managed pasture as commodity crops eligible for federal price support;
* Support for regional pilot projects where the effectiveness and feasibility of the above proposal would be attempted on a limited scale.

2. Through the Conservation Security Act or similar federal legislation, provide positive economic incentives to support conserving uses
of farmland in a manner that:
* Compensates farmers who already are doing a good job of practicing conservation;
* Provides incentives to producers for adopting more conserving land use practices;
* Sustains the livestock industry by providing incentives to grow well-managed hay and pasture;
* Provides local or regional flexibility to allow for differences in farming practices

3. Maintain or increase funding for existing federal conservation programs such as the Conservation Reserve Program, Wetlands Reserve Program
and the Environment Quality Incentives Program.

4. Conservation compliance: Conduct spot checks on an adequate percentage of farm conservation plans in each county to determine compliance
with the federal farm program.


'STORM CHASER' TRACKS TRANSPARENCY IN ROCHESTER STREAMS: Monitoring for transparency just before and just after it rains can be revealing,
particularly if you check several related sites at the same time. I regularly monitor three sites on the South Zumbro system in Rochester - one
"downstream" site, and two upstream sites. One upstream site is on the Southwest edge of the city, a bridge that runs behind Apache Mall. This
site serves as an indicator of rural runoff influences. The other site is on Silver Creek, a tributary that comes into Rochester from the east, where
lots of development and construction activity is going on. It serves as an indicator of urban runoff.

On Sunday, May 20, at 7:30 pm, I monitored in the evening at the three sites. It had only rained 1/10 inch within the past 24 hours. The downstream
site measured 30 centimeters of transparency - down 5 cm from the previous day, but still relatively good for this site. The upstream sites showed a
complete contrast. The one by Apache Mall, indicating rural runoff, was running as clear as can be - a full 60 centimeters of transparency. The site
on Silver Creek, indicating urban influences, was running a very low 13 centimeters of transparency. The churning water roared under the bridge.
Both the turbidity and the fast flow seemed very puzzling, since it had rained so little.

Sunday night it rained about one and a half inches. Since I was curious to see how that had affected stream clarity, I remeasured transparency at all
three sites the next day. Transparency had been cut almost in half at the downstream site (16 cm) and the Apache Mall site (35 cm) at 7:00 am. Later
in the day (1 pm) I monitored Silver Creek again, and found it had dropped to 9 centimeters transparency. On the way to the site, driving south on East
Circle Drive, to the east side of the road I saw an example of what could have been contributing to this instance of relatively very high turbidity.
In a valley just south of Century Highschool the earth had been scraped bare. Tendrils of a small brook looked like narrow slits in the silt, which
had washed away to reveal a cobble "floodplain" - if one can speak of floodplains in such an artificial landscape. One could well imagine that
this site alone, or a few like it, could be generating enough runoff to turn Silver Creek chocolate brown. At any event, it bears further investigation.
- Norman Senjem, BALMM currents editor.


STREAM SENTINELS: Bruce Johnson, Executive Director of the Rivers Council of Minnesota, addressed a plenary session at the Minnesota Lakes and Rivers
Conference in Brainerd May 4. Among his comments, which dealt with the multi-faceted (fragmentary) nature of water resource governance in
Minnesota, was the following reference to the role of citizens in managing the state's water resources:

"Ninety-nine percent of conflict is miscommunication or lack of communication. We are dealing with socio-economic ecosystems just as
diverse and complex as natural ecosystems, and we better understand the people that inhabit them before we make rules, fund programs or issue
mandates. In fact, it's the citizens of Minnesota that can tell us how to fix problems. In many ways they already are. Take a look at which plans
are implemented and which are on the shelf. I'll bet many of those gathering dust on the shelf were written under an unrealistic deadline by a
government employee who didn't have enough time to fully involve all stakeholders. How about those unenforced laws or ordinances on the books,
or those under funded programs? A tool is only as effective as the energy put into it.

An active, empowered citizenry must be regarded as a key source of energy for the life of any watershed resource management initiative. They are the
bridge across corporate and program boundaries. They are the Sentinels-whether they know it or not-of our resources. Let's face it,
there aren't a few thousand resource managers in Minnesota employed by various agencies, there are 4.5 million resource managers--give or take a
couple of million visitors each year. Each makes daily decisions that affect our environment. When tackling a water resource management issue, we
must ask, "How likely is it that we will succeed without the people that are not in the room?" And to those who smugly look at citizens and their local
governments as amateurs in water resource management, I remind you that amateurs built the Ark, the Titanic was built by professionals.

"Mahatma Gandhi once said, "We must be the change we wish to see." Here's how the Rivers Council of Minnesota hopes to build bridges in water resource
management. Through our River Voices program, we will find and work with citizens-even if it's just a few. We can't afford to waste one calorie of
their energy. Second, we intend to listen to them and understand their perspective. ...Third, we will work to get resources to citizens. Whether
it is help in building organizational capacity, linking them with technical assistance like the experts here in this room or finding funds-we should be
getting them the resources that let them do what they do best: working for change in their community. Finally, we will foster regular communication
among the many different people, agencies and organizations working to protect our water resources. This conference has many examples in the
sessions, workshops and even the partnership formed with MLA to make it happen.

"Engaged, empowered citizens have made a difference, and they must be given the opportunity to continue to do so. Rivers Council of Minnesota looks
forward to working with those who are here, and those who are not, in managing Minnesota's precious water resources."


USGS REPORTS ON WATER QUALITY IN UPPER MISS. BASIN: Water resources are affected by land use, soils, and geology in the Upper
Mississippi River Basin, according to a recently published report by the U. S. Geological Survey (USGS). Urban, agricultural, and forested land use in
combination with geology and soil type result in different degrees of water-resource quality. Surface-water quality was better in forested
watersheds than in urban or agricultural watersheds. Ground-water quality was better in aquifers with overlying soils that reduced direct
infiltration.

The study of the Upper Mississippi River Basin, conducted from 1995-98, as part of the USGS National Water-Quality Assessment Program, found that
streams in forested watersheds like the St. Croix River Basin had less nutrients, sediment, and organic contaminants than streams in agricultural
watersheds like the Minnesota River Basin or urban areas like the Twin Cities Metropolitan Area. "Land use a major factor affecting water quality in streams and ground water. However, the type of soils in the watershed or overlying shallow aquifers could have a significant effect", said Jim Stark, the project
chief. The findings indicate that agriculture, urbanization, and natural land uses continue to affect water quality.

URBAN STREAM QUALITY HARDEST HIT: The quality of urban streams has been affected more than streams in agricultural or forested areas. One component of the study examined biological communities and habitat. Urban streams had reduced fish and invertebrate species richness (numbers of species) and
biological diversity compared to agricultural and forested streams. Several factors may be responsible for the comparatively
poor condition of aquatic resources in urban streams, including contaminants in the water and sediment, and reduced habitat.

Reduced habitat in urban streams was associated with loss of riparian vegetation, channelization, impoundments, and changes in the pattern of
streamflow. The rise and fall of the water in urban streams after rainstorms or snowmelt are much more rapid than streams in other land-use settings.
Impervious surfaces such as parking lots, roads, and building roofs do not allow precipitation to soak into the ground; therefore, runoff reaches the
streams more quickly and streamflow increases and decreases rapidly. Higher flows scour the stream bottom, reducing habitat.

Agricultural streams in the study were found to receive nonpoint source inputs of nutrients and sediment. Nitrate concentrations in streams in
artificially drained agricultural areas exceeded the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (USEPA) drinking water standard of 10 milligrams per
liter in about 20 percent of the samples. Stream channels and habitat were also affected by channelization and loss of riparian buffers. The importance of riparian buffers for agricultural streams was shown with a special study.

RIPARIAN TREES BOOST WATER QUALITY: This study found that streams with more trees and shrubs along the banks in riparian buffer zones had more fish and invertebrate species and better ecological integrity than streams without riparian buffer zones. Streams in forested basins like those in the northern
part of the study area were relatively unaffected except by localized activities such as minor wastewater effluent discharges, pesticide
applications at tree farms, leaks from septic systems. Nutrients and pesticides did not exceed drinking water standards or criteria to protect
aquatic life. Concentrations of nutrients and pesticides were.small compared to urban and agricultural streams.

OVERLYING SOILS AFFECT GROUND WATER QUALITY: Ground water supplies about 75 percent of the public and industrial water supply. The major source for this water is the Prairie du Chien-Jorden aquifer. The local quality of the water in the aquifer depends on land use and the type of bedrock or glacial
deposits above it. In areas where water can readily seep through the overlying soils to the aquifer, 8 percent of the nitrate samples exceeded
the USEPA drinking water standards. In areas where water could not readily reach the aquifer due to low-permeability glacial tills, nitrate standards
were not exceeded. Some pesticides were detected in ground water. In areas overlain by till, atrazine (a herbicide used with corn) was detected in 36
percent of the wells, whereas in areas without a low-permeability layer, it was detected in 52 percent of the wells.

The USGS report, "Water Quality in the Upper Mississippi River Basin, Minnesota, Wisconsin, South Dakota, Iowa, and North Dakota, 1995-1998",
published as USGS Circular 1211, is available on the World Wide Web as downloadable portable document files (PDF) at http://water.usgs.gov/nawqa or
in printed form (single copies of the report are at no cost) from Branch of Informa-tion Services, P.O. Box 25286, Denver, CO 80225, or by fax request
to 303-202-4693. Please specify USGS report C-1211.

ABOUT BALMM: A locally led alliance of land and water resource agencies has formed in order to coordinate efforts to protect and improve water quality
in the Lower Mississippi River Basin. The Basin Alliance for the Lower Mississippi in Minnesota (BALMM) covers both the Lower Mississippi and Cedar
River Basins, and includes a wide range of local, state and federal resource agencies. Those involved in forming the alliance include Soil and Water
Conservation District managers, county water planners and regional staff of the Board of Soil and Water Resources, Pollution Control Agency, Natural
Resources Conservation Service, Department of Natural Resources, Minnesota-Wisconsin Boundary Area Commission, the Southeastern Minnesota
Water Resources Board, the Cannon River Watershed Partnership, and others. BALMM meetings are open to all interested individuals and organizations. See
"Coming Events" for details.

Send comments and items for future editions to:
balmm currents editor: Norman Senjem, MPCA
Phone: 507/280-3592
Fax: 507/280-5513
norman.senjem@pca.state.mn.us