2018 State of Water Conference
April 12-14, 2018
Breezy Point Resort
Thank you to all who joined us from across the state at the 2018 State of Water Conference, held April 12-14, 2018 at Breezy Point Resort! It was an inspiring and productive gathering of community members, lake and river associations, and staff from water resource organizations and agencies who care deeply about the work of protecting and caring for our lakes, rivers, streams. and wetlands.
We are grateful to speakers Amy Skoczlas Cole and Sen. Carrie Ruud, the presenters, and the sponsors and exhibitors who all made the conference possible!
Pre-conference workshops
Effective Practices for Engaging Your Community
Leslie Yetka, Director of Programs, Freshwater Society
Deirdre Coleman, Program Coordinator, Freshwater Society
Alex Van Loh, Program Assistant, Freshwater Society
Kris Meyer, Project Coordinator, Freshwater Society
The Blue-Green Beast: Managing Algae
Dick Osgood, Co-Founder, Lake Advocates, @DickOsgood
What’s the Buzz: Insects and Water Quality
Jessica Wyn Miller, Environmental Entomologist, Owner of Dragons Wynd
Grassroots Organizing for Clean Water Policy
Francisco (Paco) Ollervides, Leadership Development Manager, Great Lakes Region – River Network
Jeff Forester, Executive Director, Minnesota Lakes and Rivers Advocates
Presentations
TRACK 1
Session 1: Clearing Up Serpent Lake
Melissa Barrick, District Manager, Crow Wing Soil and Water Conservation District
Jeff Hrubes, Clean Water Specialist, Board of Water and Soil Resources
Jay Michels, Partner/Project Manager, Emmons and Olivier Resources, Inc.
Session 2: Promoting Water Quality Stewardship in Agriculture
Bill Fitzgerald, MAWQCP Program Coordinator, Minnesota Department of Agriculture
Jim Lahn, MAWQCP Area Certification Specialist, East Otter Tail Soil and Water Conservation District
Darren Newville, District Manager, East Otter Tail and Wadena Soil and Water Conservation Districts
Andrew Schock & Andy Dombeck, Otter Tail/Wadena County MAWQCP Certified Farmers
Session 3: Managing Runoff, Addressing Erosion, and Growing Shoreline Gardens
Paul Radomski, Research Scientist, Minnesota Department of Natural Resources
Heather Baird, Forest Fisheries Landscape Coordinator, Minnesota Department of Natural Resources
Greg Berg, Lakeshed Specialist, Stearns County Soil and Water Conservation District
Session 4: Using Adaptive Strategies for Effective Watershed Management
Mike Kinney, District Administrator, Comfort Lake-Forest Lake Watershed District
Session 5: From Policy to On-the-Ground Organizing: Managing Salt Use to Protect Minnesota’s Waters
Brooke Asleson, Chloride Coordinator, Minnesota Pollution Control Agency
Walter Levesque, Master Water Steward, Stop Over Salting (SOS) Member
Sue Nissen, Master Water Steward, SOS Leader
Session 6: Capturing Runoff in Climate-Resilient Yards
Rich Harrison, Registered Landscape Architect, Metro Blooms
John Bly, Education Program Manager, Metro Blooms
TRACK 2
Session 1: Visualize Your Strategy and Take Action
Annie Felix-Gerth, Water Programs Coordinator, Board of Water and Soil Resources
Julie Westerlund, One Watershed One Plan Coordinator, Board of Water and Soil Resources
Session 2: Three Perspectives: the Vital Role of Organized Lake Groups
Jeff Forester, Executive Director, Minnesota Lakes and Rivers Advocates
Dan Cibulka, Water Resource Specialist, Sherburne SWCD, MN COLA, Sherburne COLA
Dave Majkrzak, President of Pelican Lakes Property Owners Association, Otter Tail County COLA
Session 3: What the Heck are Harmful Algal Blooms and What Should I DO about Them?
Marte Kitson, Extension Educator, University of Minnesota Sea Grant Program
Pam Anderson, Supervisor, Minnesota Pollution Control Agency
Session 4: We Have Lake Data… Now What?
Moriya Rufer, Aquatic Ecologist, RMB Environmental Laboratories
Ellie Kriese, Lakes Program Coordinator, RMB Environmental Laboratories
Session 5: How a Lake Improvement District (LID) Can Serve Your Lake
Jay Elshaug, Chair, Pelican Group of Lakes Improvement District
Moriya Rufer, Aquatic Ecologist, RMB Environmental Laboratories
Session 6: Chloride Pollution: What You Need to Know and What You Can Do About It
Erica Sniegowski, Program and Project Manager, Nine Mile Creek Watershed District
Gael Zembal, Education and Outreach Coordinator, Nine Mile Creek Watershed District
TRACK 3
Session 1: Protect the Sponge: Forest Cover for Lake Water Quality
Dan Steward, BWSR Watershed/PFM Coordinator, Brainerd Office of BWSR
Mitch Brinks, GIS Consultant, SWCD Technical Services Area 8
Session 2: Poplar River: A Collaboration for Success
Karen Evens, Watershed Project Manager, Minnesota Pollution Control Agency
Session 3: Doing it Wright: Regional Watercraft Inspection as a Strategy to Fight AIS
Kathryn Jonsrud, Communication Education Team Lead, Wright Regional Inspection Program
Alicia O’Hare, Water Resource Specialist, Wright Soil and Water Conservation District
Session 4: Coolwater Fish Habitat in a Changing Climate
Shahram Missaghi, Extension Educator, University of Minnesota Extension
Session 5: Success Stories for Water Protection in Central Minnesota
Todd Holman, Mississippi Headwaters Program Director, The Nature Conservancy
Session 6: Floating Wetland Filters and Native Plants
Margaret “Peggy” Obear, Non-point Source Pollution Coordinator, Prairie Island Indian Community
Autumn Boos, Director of Sales and Marketing, Midwest Floating Island and Bro-Tex, @MFI_Islands
TRACK 4
Session 1: A Community Member’s Guide to Aquatic Plant Monitoring
Emelia Hauck Jacobs, Field Services/Plant Taxonomist, RMB Environmental Laboratories
Session 2: Using Citizen Water Monitoring to Effect Change
Shannon Martin, Citizen Water Monitoring Coordinator, Minnesota Pollution Control Agency
Laurie Sovell, Citizen Water Monitoring Coordinator, Minnesota Pollution Control Agency
Karl Koenig, Becker County Soil and Water Conservation District
Pam Olson, Citizen Lake and Stream Monitoring Program Volunteer
Session 3: Building a Volunteer Program in a Small Organization
Gael Zembal, Education and Outreach Specialist, Nine Mile Creek Watershed District
Erica Sniegowski, Program and Project Manager, Nine Mile Creek Watershed District
Session 4: Citizen Science and Volunteers in the Fight Against Aquatic Invasive Species; Part 2; Part 3
Megan Weber, AIS Extension Educator, University of Minnesota
Dan Larkin, Assistant Professor and Extension Specialist, University of Minnesota
Julia Bohnen, Researcher, University of Minnesota
Session 5: Landscaping for Clean Water: Collaborative Education and Action; Part 2
Joe Barten, Resource Conservationist, Dakota County Soil and Water Conservation District (SWCD)
Session 6: Amplifying Volunteer Impact
Deirdre Coleman, Program Coordinator, Freshwater Society
Alex Van Loh, Program Assistant, Freshwater Society