10/27/2004 Env Bd Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

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Cji USE IndeDndent Your on motion ion to Fa ° ingtok Mince into Meeting next week will focus on Vermillion River's future Thursday, August 26, 2004 By Nathan Hansen, editor The Vermillion River has a long history, but now the people who are in charge of caring for the river want to talk about its future. On Aug. 30 groups including the city of Farmington, Empire Township and the Vermillion River Watershed Planning Commission will host a meeting to talk to Farmington area residents about the river and the issues that could affect its health in the years;to come. According to Daniel Huff, watershed program director for Friends of the Mississippi River, another of' the meeting's hosts, those issues include water quality, flooding and protection of natural habitat. Monday's meeting will also give residents a chance to identify their own issues, and to talk about how willing they are to do something about problems that have been identified over the past two years as the watershed planning commission developed a plan for the river's future over the next decade. "They want to make sure everybody's informed on their intentions," said Farmington mayor Jerry Ristow, a member of • watershed planning commission. "That's what this meeting is for." ues :^ ^cording to Huff there are some serious issues to discuss. Studies in recent years have shown high levels of fecal ;form bacteria in the Vermillion. Though the bacteria itself is not dangerous, it is easy to detect and is typically a sign of bigger problems. The Environmental Protection Agency has listed the Vermillion as impaired because of fecal coliform levels, and Huff said there have been reports of kayakers in the Hastings area getting sick after spending time in the river. The cause of the pollution is not entirely clear. Much of it probably comes from fame runoff; but failing septic systems also could be a cause. There are other water quality issues. There is increased sediment in the river, due in part to the runoff created when farm fields are paved for roads or filled with homes, and there are signs of nutrient pollution. According to Huff, rapid development in Farmington and other parts of Dakota County can be blamed for some of the problems, but it is also part of the reason some of the problems are finally being noticed. "The more people you get to the area, the more likely you are to have people in contact with the water, and they're more likely to get sick," Huff said. Runoff increases created by new developments are a problem for other reasons, Huff said. Runoff water from streets tends to be warmer than water that has come through fields or seeped through the ground. That damages the habitat for trout, which need cool, clear water. The Vermillion is the only trophy trout stream in the metro area. Water quality . issues are not limited to the river itself, though. Recent studies have found evidence of contamination in drinking water east of Highway 52. Though the river itself is not used for drinking. water, water from the Vermillion can seep into groundwater aquifers. According to Huff, 26 percent of private wells in the eastern part of the watershed have nitrate levels higher than state standards, and the city of Hastings has had trouble managing nitrates. Rapid development in the upstream areas of the watershed and the loss of natural buffer areas have led to flooding problems downstream, ail there are concerns about the loss of natural environment. The Vermillion watershed is home to two threatened Ipbcies, the loggerhead shrike and the Blanding's turtle. And while the watershed planning commission will not target its efforts specifically to tecting those species, efforts to protect the river should also help protect their natural habitat Solutions Part of Monday's meeting will focus on resident's opinions of the issues that exist in the Vermillion watershed, and on what residents are willing to do to address them.