South Washington Watershed District

In Woodbury, a stormwater park takes shape Construction is underway at Hasenbank Park in Woodbury, where the South Washington Watershed District and City of Woodbury are combining nature, art, and human engineering to build a one-of-a-kind …

Log jam on the bridge

Debris is removed from the river at the County Road 75 bridge on Grey Cloud Island. Crews will work to restore the travel lanes and guardrail into the evening.

Thank you HR Green, Inc. for helping to caretake the forest at Hassenbank Woods!

Happy Pollinator Week 🐝

Native plants like these Wild Lupine, milkw**d, and bunch grasses are essential for pollinators like bees! 🌿🐝 Unlike turf grass, their deep roots stabilize soil, prevent erosion, and help rainwater replenish groundwater. Plus, they filter pollutants and protect our waterways.🌱💧

📸: Sarah Lilja

Here's some great advice for natural mosquito control!

Nice evening. What you can’t see but are present in this picture is about a dozen dragonflies whizzing about in the prairie, eating probably the most abundant evening meal: mosquitoes.

Dragonflies can eat hundreds of mosquitoes a day - both larvae and adult. They can help keep your yard a mosquito-free zone if you cultivate a good habitat for them.

For starters:
- Plant native plants such as black-eyed susans, Joe Pye w**d, yarrow and meadow sage, and milkw**ds

- avoid using chemicals or pesticides in your yard.

- if you have a year-round water feature or pond that doesn’t freeze completely in the winter, you can help support baby dragonflies! Be sure you have some tall vegetation to climb and flat rocks in a few areas for them to sun on.

Dragonflies can fly miles to hunt, so even if you don’t have a water source, you can still get dragonflies to your yard!

May the sweep be with you 🙌

Back in 2023, we asked you to name the City of Woodbury, MN - Government first street sweeper, and you delivered! Check out how Obi-Wan Cleanobi is doing on its first summer out on the town.

Credits & Partners
🎥: South Washington County Telecommunications Commission - SWCTC
🤝: Ramsey-Washington Metro Watershed District
🤝: City of Woodbury, MN - Government

Obi-Wan Cleanobi - Street Sweeper In 2023 the City of Woodbury along with the South Washington Watershed District and Ramsey Metro Watershed District held a contest to name a street sweeper. ...

Hey residents! is a great way to jumpstart your new native pollinator garden with a little cash incentive! The program also provides an immense library of guidance on how to plan your garden. Apply today!

NEWS RELEASE: The program is now accepting applications for spring 2025 pollinator habitat grants.

This program aims to increase habitat for at-risk pollinators in residential settings across the state by providing people with reimbursement-based funding, workshops, coaching and gardening resources. Anyone who lives in Minnesota and has a yard, deck, or other outdoor space for planting can apply to be reimbursed for up to $400 in costs associated with establishing new pollinator habitat in their yards.

Deadline: November 30, 2024
Application: https://bluethumb.org/lawns-to-legumes/apply/
Details: https://bwsr.state.mn.us/node/12096


Blue Thumb - Planting for Clean Water Minnesota Environment and Natural Resources Trust Fund Metro Blooms

Photo courtesy of a Lawns to Legumes gardener.

Some more photos of our amazing volunteers who braved the morning rain yesterday to pull garlic mustard at City of Woodbury, MN - Government's Hasenbank Park.

📸: Sarah Lilja, SWWD Artist-in-Residence

Thank you to everyone who helped to cut and pull garlic mustard at Hasenbank Stormwater Park this morning! You all did great work. 🙌

Clean streets = clean lakes and rivers. Please sweep up your grass clippings after mowing!

As the mowing season begins, a friendly reminder that sweeping grass clippings off of pavement and from the streets after mowing is an important step in helping to prevent storm water pollution.🌱 When grass clippings flow into local waterways, they feed the algae that turn lakes and rivers green. Help keep our waterways clean by adopting and keeping a storm drain clean near you!

The gears are in motion down at Hasenbank Park in Woodbury! Created by award-winning Minnesota artist Christopher E. Harrison, the gears are an artistic representation of how water flows and are a part of a series of public art instillations which relate to the larger theme of "Water Works" featured in the park.

View Christopher E. Harrison's other works on his website https://www.harrisonartstudio.net/

Check out the project details on our website https://www.swwdmn.org/projects/

Dreaming of living on one of our many Minnesota lakes?

Buying Lakeshore Property 101 is a free webinar for anyone looking to buy a cabin, lake property, or even those who have recently bought lakeshore property. At this webinar, you will learn about the different types of lakes and how to confidently select a lake that suits your needs. We will also cover all the basics of lake living, including ways you can prevent algae growth, steps to protect your property and any other questions you may have. There will also be a Q&A panel of realtors who can give you tips and tricks for buying a lake property!

Register at: www.tinyurl.com/buylakeshoreproperty
May 7th from 6:00 to 7:30pm

Hosted by the Rum River Watershed Partnership and Lower St Croix Watershed Partnership.

Want to learn more about projects and programs in our watershed? Check out our story map! You can see maps that show how the landscape in our area has change since 1990 and learn more about priority water issues such as climate change, chloride pollution, and groundwater.

If you haven't already, please take our quick 10 question survey to share your input for our 2026-35 Watershed Management Plan: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSd6-1I61jLwwndlFFUfZ3bpuHgRVgLaJWOEMV4CDwtDA8_AbQ/viewform

South Washington Watershed District Watershed Management Plan Update 2026-2035

Residents of Cottage Grove, Grey Cloud Island Township, Landfall, Newport, Oakdale, St Paul Park, and Woodbury can now sign up for the Food Scraps Pickup Program! To get started, visit www.FoodScrapsPickup.com or call 651-661-9393 to sign up and order food scrap bags for free.

Washington County is also selling compost bins and rain barrels at a discounted rate for county residents: www.co.washington.mn.us/2813/Compost-Bin-and-Rain-Barrel-Sale

Composting is an important way to reduce landfall waste and also create rich compost to improve your soil health. Rain barrels help to reduce stormwater runoff and conserve groundwater resources.

ALERT!

The Minnesota Department of Health has new and updated guidance on fish consumption for the Mississippi River from St. Paul to Wabasha, due to a mixture of pollutants — including per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) — found in fish tissue. This area extends from Ford Dam Parkway in Saint Paul to Wabasha, including Pools 2, 3 and 4 and all of the Mississippi River lakes and backwaters in Minnesota. The MN Department of Health recommends:
• People who are or may become pregnant, people who are breastfeeding or plan to breastfeed, and children under age 15 do not eat fish from these locations.
• People not planning to become pregnant and those over age 15 limit fish consumption to one serving a month from these locations.

For more information on safe-eating guidelines for fish in Minnesota, refer to the Minnesota Department of Health’s Fish Consumption Guidance website: https://www.health.state.mn.us/communities/environment/fish/specificwaters.html

A rain garden is an all-in-one package for making your yard more environmentally friendly. ✅

💧 Rain gardens filter water, slowing and soaking up polluted stormwater before it reaches our streams, rivers, and lakes.

🐦 Rain gardens offer habitat and sustenance for wildlife, include native pollinators and birds that keep our ecosystems running smoothly.

🌼 Many of the native plants in rain gardens can withstand drought, helping improve soil health and providing habitat even when its not a rainy season.

Learn how to create your own rain garden with our free Resilient Yards Online Learning Series. Register at https://bluethumb.org/events/

More progress... our alum treatment facility is starting to look like an actual building!

Progress! While the extremely warm and dry weather of late remains concerning, it has allowed construction to begin again on our alum treatment facility at Wilmes Lake! We'll have a building shell in place soon!

For more project information:https://www.swwdmn.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Wilmes-Alum-Factsheet-20231107.pdf

SWWD is beginning a process to update its Watershed Management Plan. The new plan will cover the years 2026­­–2035 and establish the goals and programs that will guide our work over this time. Consistent with our mission, we’re hoping to gain insights on natural resource issues that are important to you. How can you help?

We invite you to answer 10 quick questions about the lakes, rivers, and wetlands near you. https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSd6-1I61jLwwndlFFUfZ3bpuHgRVgLaJWOEMV4CDwtDA8_AbQ/viewform

Learn more about SWWD and the important issues we are tackling, by viewing this interactive StoryMap:
https://storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/5d87378939cf4bd38776a4aa2bc107e0

SWWD is looking for a Water Resources Program Coordinator to join our team! Applications are due March 21. For more information, visit:

SWWD Job Announcement Water Resources Program Coordinator | South Washington Watershed District SWWD Job Announcement Water Resources Program Coordinator February 21, 2024 The South Washington Watershed District seeks a full-time Water Resources Program Coordinator.  Job Posting (PDF) Position Description (PDF) About the Position The South Washington Watershed District (SWWD) is seeking a Wat...

Resident Reminder! SWWD's Clean Water and Watershed Resiliency Cost-Share Program is open for 2024 and taking applications! Follow the link below for more information. A site visit and project design assistance are also available through the Washington Conservation District.

Water Quality Cost Share Program | South Washington Watershed District The South Washington Watershed District (SWWD) Clean Water and Watershed Resiliency Cost Share Program offers financial assistance to encourage and enable citizens, municipalities, and businesses to use innovative practices to protect and improve lakes and streams within the district. Opportunities....

Today is World Wetlands Day! How better to celebrate than with a recent MPR News report about how Minnesota's Wetland Conservation Act is making some progress in maintaining and (slightly) increasing the acreage of wetlands statewide!

https://www.mprnews.org/story/2024/01/15/report-shows-gain-in-minnesotas-wetland-acres

Looking for an item to add to your winter safety kit? Chicken grit is a great alternative to salt!🐣 This crushed stone (also sold as "traction grit") is an increasingly popular alternative to sand as it's both more effective at providing traction and easier to clean up. It also reduces the need for salt and deicing chemicals, which are large sources of water pollution.
Chicken grit can be found at many hardware stores and home centers. (Fun fact: it is traditionally used as a digestive aid for chickens and that's the reason for the name!)

Check out the 2023 education highlights from our fabulous partners at the Washington Conservation District!

One question we often get from the public is, "What is a Watershed District?" Here is your chance to learn! SWWD's Deputy Administrator, John Loomis, will be hosted for a webinar by the League of Women Voters - Woodbury, Cottage Grove, MN on January 29, 2024 at 7:00pm to discuss "Watershed Districts 101". Follow this link to learn more and to register:

Welcome! You are invited to join a webinar: Watershed Districts 101. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email about joining the webinar. The South Washington Watershed District (SWWD) is a special purpose local unit of government covering approximately the southern third of Washington County. SWWD was established in 1993 to address intercommunity flooding at the Woodbury – Cottage Grove border. SWWD continues work on addressing flo...

Proof we actually had some snow fall in 2023... here is a beautiful shot of Markgrafs Lake from December 5. SWWD is currently working with SRF Consulting Group, Inc. on a Stormwater BMP Feasibility Study to prioritize our future work to improve water quality in Markgrafs Lake.
📷: © Sarah Lilja, SWWD 2023-24 Artist-in-Residence

The Watershed Administrator Who Wouldn’t Wear a Tie At this year’s Minnesota Watersheds annual conference, Matt Moore was recognized with an Outstanding Watershed Administrator award and the Trout Brook Restoration was selected as Minnesota Watershe…