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On April 11, more than eighty -five people gathered at the
<br />Dakota County Extension and Conservation Center in
<br />Farmington for the first annual Vermillion River.
<br />Congress. Attendees included state and local agency
<br />staff, high school students doing water monitoring on
<br />the river, watershed citizens, and city and township
<br />representatives. Department of Natural Resources
<br />(DNR) Commissioner Allan Garber was also in atten-
<br />dance and Metropolitan Council Commissioner Ted
<br />Mondale delivered the keynote speech concentrating on
<br />smart growth- initiatives.
<br />Vermillion River Congress: participants visit a
<br />streambank in the city of Vermillion recently restored
<br />with bioengineering techniques.
<br />Presenters enlightened the crowd on topics such as
<br />the river's physical characteristics, streambank restora-
<br />tion projects, and a variety of projects and programs
<br />happening in the watershed. Attendees also traveled by
<br />bus to the Vermillion River to view a recently completed
<br />restoration project, and helped create a vision for the
<br />future of the watershed by offering their thoughts and
<br />suggestions on a variety of topics. An afternoon panel of
<br />local city staff and township officials also engaged the
<br />crowd on how the river affects local planning decisions,
<br />what local governments are doing to protect the river,
<br />and how they educate the public on river issues.
<br />When asked how they enjoyed the Congress, one
<br />participant commented, "It helped me see the bigger
<br />picture. There are so many more factors involved in
<br />environmental protection than I ever thought. I will
<br />champion environmental causes with a new passion and
<br />knowledge now." Others also vowed to become more
<br />involved and many were surprised by the number of
<br />projects and people working to help protect and restore
<br />the river. •
<br />The Congress was made possible by contributions
<br />from many-businesses and organizations including
<br />Alcorn Beverage Co, Bachman's, Inc., Cabela's, Dakota
<br />County Soil and Water Conservation District, Dakota
<br />Electric Association, Dire Wolf Publishing Services,
<br />Farmington Bakery, Farmington Greenhouse, First State
<br />Bank of Castle Rock, Hampton Bank, Helices Farms, Inc.,
<br />Judy Sloan and Family, Premier Bank Metro South,
<br />Subway of Farmington, Town's Edge Conoco, Vermillie
<br />Elevator, Inc., and Vermillion State Bank. •
<br />Congress planners included.the Dakota County
<br />Environmental Education Program, Minnesota Pollution
<br />Control Agency, Minnesota Department of Natural
<br />Resources, Trout Unlimited, Dakota County Soil and
<br />Water Conservation District, and Friends of the
<br />Mississippi River.
<br />For a copy of the handouts on the Vermillion River,
<br />contact Charlotte Shover, Dakota County Environmental
<br />Education Program, 651 - 480 -7734.
<br />Dwain Otte and Suzanne Savanick, Supervisors for the
<br />Dakota County Soil and Water Conservation District
<br />(SWCD), and Brian Watson, District Manager, recently
<br />spent two days at the state capitol and the Kelly Inn. in St.
<br />Paul discussing resource management issues and
<br />meeting with local legislators. A number of subjects were
<br />discussed, including general service grants for SWCDs,
<br />increase in cost -share funding available to landowners,
<br />technical assistance for feedlot and manure manage-
<br />ment, local water plan implementation, wetland issues,
<br />shoreland buffer protection programs, and other issues.
<br />The event, sponsored by the Minnesota Association
<br />of Soil and Water Conservation Districts ( MASWCD),
<br />began at the Kelly Inn in St. Paul in the evening with a
<br />legislative discussion featuring Senator Jane Krentz,
<br />chairperson of the Senate Environment and Agricultural
<br />Budget Division; Joe Bagnoli, from Governor Jesse
<br />Ventura's office; Owen Knutson, president of the
<br />MASWCD; Ron Harnack, executive director to the
<br />Minnesota Board of Water and Soil Resources; and Bill
<br />Hunt, state conservationist for the USDA Natural
<br />Resources Conservation Service (NRCS).
<br />Following a morning legislative briefing at the Kelly
<br />Inn, the SWCD people met with legislators at the Capitol
<br />Building. We enjoyed meeting with and discussin
<br />natural resource management issues with the follo '
<br />legislators: Representative Bob Milbert, Representati
<br />Tom Pugh, Representative Dan McElroy, Representative
<br />Ken Wolf, Representative Dennis Ozment,
<br />Representative John Tuma, Representative Jerry
<br />Dempsey, Senator James Metzen, Senator Pat Pariseau,
<br />and Senator Deanna Wiener.
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