MPCA Award Helps Launch Seven Mile Creek Program

(April 08, 2012)Nicollet Soil and Water Conservation District (SWCD) and Great River Greening are recipients of a $265,000 grant from the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) to enhance water quality within Seven Mile Creek in southern Minnesota. The grant will enable Great River Greening to place a full-time employee with the SWCD to engage landowners and implement conservation practices on their lands over the coming two years.In partnership with Nicollet SWCD, Minnesota DNR, Fishers and Farmers Partnership, Natural Resources Conservation Service and a host of others, Great River Greening is working to bring added resources and capacity to reach more landowners and elevate progress.  The partners will work with farmers to implement a suite of conservation practices that manage rainwater runoff and reduce sediment and nutrients from entering Seven Mile Creek.

“We believe that clean water and vibrant agricultural economies aren’t inherently at odds, and that often the best solutions to local water quality issues are crafted locally,” [grg_quote_name]-Great River Greening’s Executive Director, Deborah Karasov.[/grg_quote_name]

Seven Mile Creek is one of several planned watershed programs for Great River Greening throughout the Mississippi River drainage in Minnesota, demonstrating innovative approaches to water quality by targeting small watersheds, working locally with farmers, local community members, organizations and government agencies, and implementing conservation practices that work - for water resources and landowners alike. The creek is a tributary to the Minnesota River and one of a small number of designated trout streams in south-central Minnesota.