Twin Ports Freshwater Folk invites you to their August 6 presentation, "Unique Watershed and Nutrient Dynamics Influencing the Ecology of the Straight River in Minnesota’s Becker and Hubbard Counties” by Kevin Stroom, a Duluth watershed scientist with the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA).
In-person attendees are invited to the Duluth MPCA conference room for networking, sandwiches, and plenty of fresh water at 11:30 a.m. The online and in-person presentation will begin at noon. Sadly, the Zoom option is sandwich-free.
This event is free and open to the public. Registration is required for in-person and virtual attendance.
Location
Duluth MPCA, conference room
525 Lake Ave. S., Suite 400
Duluth, MN 55802
Parking
Attendees should inform the gate attendant at the MPCA lot that they are attending a meeting at the MPCA.
Registration
Event schedule
- 11:30 a.m. Lunch and networking (in-person only).
- 12:00 p.m. Attendee announcements.
- 12:05 p.m. Seminar.
- 12:45 p.m. Moderated question-and-answer session
- Adjourning by 1 p.m. at the latest.
Speaker Bio
Kevin Stroom received his B.A. in biology from Bethel College and his M.S. in water resources science from the University of Minnesota Twin Cities. After graduation, Kevin worked at the University of Minnesota Duluth's Natural Resources Research Institute with Carl Richards and Lucinda Johnson. From 2001 to 2007, Kevin served as a contract macroinvertebrate taxonomist for the U.S. EPA office in Duluth. In late 2007, he joined the Brainerd office of MPCA during the expansion of the biological monitoring program with Minnesota's Clean Water, Land and Legacy Act. He later transferred to the MPCA Watershed Unit, working first in Brainerd and then in Duluth. Currently, he investigates impaired streams and studies stream stressors in north central and Northeast Minnesota.
Presentation Abstract
The Straight River, a coldwater system and popular trout fishery near Park Rapids, Minnesota, has been assessed as impaired for dissolved oxygen and is on Minnesota’s 303(d) list. An investigation into the cause of the oxygen impairment was undertaken, with a focus on nutrient concentrations. The river flows through the Pineland Sands aquifer, a very large and readily-accessible water source. DNR has estimated that groundwater constitutes about 97% of the river’s flow. The aquifer is used by the agricultural industry to facilitate growing potatoes for a large potato processing company in Park Rapids. These fields are densely located along the length of the river.
A rapid expansion of irrigated acres from about 2010-2016 was quantified via GIS and compared with historical and new nutrient data. A rise in nitrate concentrations was found in stream water, coinciding with the increase in irrigated acreage, suggesting a plausible influence of agricultural management on groundwater nitrate levels and stream nitrate levels via groundwater transport. Periphyton is abundant in the stream’s clear waters and is the likely cause of the depressed nocturnal oxygen levels. Daytime oxygen concentrations are well above saturation levels. The findings are an interesting example of strong groundwater/surface water connections.
Development of a groundwater model for the area surrounding the Straight River would be very helpful to determine the locations of greater landscape sensitivity, the speed of nitrate travel to the river, and locations where possible treatment could occur. Findings on irrigation influences on the river (flow and temperature) from DNR monitoring will also be briefly mentioned.
About TPFF
Twin Ports Freshwater Folk (TPFF) is an informal gathering of people from the Twin Ports who are engaged in freshwater research, policy, or regulation issues. Meetings take place on the first Wednesday of every month and include networking, informal discussion, and a seminar.
Event Sponsors
- Minnesota Sea Grant
- Great Lakes Toxicology and Ecology Division of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
- Minnesota Pollution Control Agency
- Large Lakes Observatory at the University of Minnesota Duluth
- Natural Resources Research Institute at the University of Minnesota Duluth
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Contact:
Alex Frie, research and fellowship coordinator, Minnesota Sea Grant, University of Minnesota and University of Minnesota Duluth.
Image credit: Tim Kiser/Wikimedia Commons.
