Riparian Resources Specialist Stearns County Soil & Water Conservation District Waite Park, Minnesota, United States
This presentation will cover the logistics of shoreline and streambank restoration and erosion control projects from a Minnesota perspective. Information will highlight projects from over 25 years experience in working along lakes and rivers. The goal is for attendees to walk away with the ability be to read the system (lake, stream, watershed) and develop techniques to implement project outcomes based on the natural resource characteristics. This approach will assist attendees in knowing why to conduct a shoreline restoration and the things to consider when implementing a project. Items to be covered - why natural shorelines are important, values of restored shorelines to fish, wildlife and water quality, products to use, tools for designing and implementing, how changes in hydrology effect projects, examples of projects, examples of project failures to learn from, resources for funding, maintenance considerations, and long term protection measures. Concepts and examples will include: leaving a shoreline as-is, when is a project a project, getting started, identifying the root cause of issues, considerations from upland runoff, streams move naturally - how to read this and the watershed, when does a project cross property boundaries, bio-engineering, Toe Wood, discussion about why to use something other than rock, when is a project cost effective, why vegetation is key, and lastly to keep in mind a project is never done. We will also touch on how Minnesota is developing design standards for shoreline and streambank projects. In addition, the many dedicated funds that Minnesota has for water and habitat projects. Other resources will be mentioned like the Midwest Glacial Lakes Partnership Planner, how to promote restorations and shoreline protection thru workshops, individual site visits as well as thru local groups like lake associations. Lastly, we will cover how to grow in this profession by learning from mine and others mistakes.
Learning Objectives:
Attendees with be given background on various shoreline and streambank properties. With this information, behavior of how to manage shorelines and associated projects will be developed.
Attendees will identify shorelines issues (or non-issues) and become familiar with how to “read” the circumstances. This will promote thinking of a shoreline zone as a whole and how a project would be designed and implemented.
In the end many examples will be used to identify sound practices and learning techniques. Many times, mother nature doesn’t agree with how we design a project and attendees with see how we can learn from those situations.
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