Julia Noordyk

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East River Collaborative garners a visit from the governor and new grant funding

On: July 18, 2024

In: Adam Bechle, East River Collaborative, flood resilience, Governor Tony Evers, Julia Noordyk, The Nature Conservancy

The Nature Conservancy's Kari Hagenow shows Governor Tony Evers a map of the East River watershed

The Nature Conservancy’s Kari Hagenow (left) shows Gov. Tony Evers (middle) and Department of Administration Secretary Kathy Blumenfeld (right) a map of the East River watershed. Photo: Wisconsin Sea Grant

On a sunny Tuesday at Van Beaver Park in Green Bay, the East River Collaborative hosted Gov. Tony Evers on a walking tour that showcased four years of work building flood resilience along the East River.

Earlier this week, Evers announced $1.3 million in funding for Wisconsin’s Great Lakes communities through the Wisconsin Coastal Management Program. The East River Collaborative — collectively supported by Wisconsin Sea Grant, The Nature Conservancy, and NEW Water, the brand of the Green Bay Metropolitan Sewerage District — was one of 31 projects to receive grants. The Fund for Lake Michigan will also be providing financial support for the East River Collaborative’s project.

Julia Noordyk, water quality and coastal communities outreach specialist with Wisconsin Sea Grant, expressed gratitude for the program’s continued support of the collaborative. “They have really invested in the East River flood resiliency project since the beginning,” she said.

Spurred by historic flooding in March 2019, the East River Collaborative formed in 2020 to bring communities together to improve water quality and build resilience to floods.

The Nature Conservancy’s Kari Hagenow discussed this history while gesturing to flood maps on easels. Previous WCMP funding allowed the collaborative to create maps and models of the flooded area, conduct interviews and develop a framework for increasing flood resiliency in communities along the river.

“In terms of phosphorus and sediment, [the East River] is one of the highest loading tributaries to the bay of Green Bay, so we know that the work that we’re doing will not only benefit flood resilience, but it’s also going to benefit water quality in the bay of Green Bay and better fish and wildlife habitat in the system,” said Hagenow.

Six people of the East River Collaborative project time pose for a photo with Tony Evers.

The East River Collaborative project team poses for a photo with Gov. Evers. From left to right: Nicole Van Helden, Julia Noordyk, Kari Hagenow, Gov. Tony Evers, Whitney Prestby, Adam Bechle, Natalie Bomstad, and Angela Kowalzek. Photo: Wisconsin Sea Grant

Gov. Evers and the tour group then crossed the park to get a better view of the river, which rolled peacefully as a great blue heron flew overhead.

The same park, however, was less serene in 2019 when nearby homes were evacuated and inundated with floodwaters. Noordyk discussed how the new grant will allow the collaborative to better engage with and elevate the concerns of residents hardest hit by flooding.

“We are really trying to expand our capacity to do more community engagement in underserved neighborhoods and try to get voices at the table, understand what’s going on and what people think,” said Noordyk.

The grant will fund a new partnership with the University of Wisconsin–Madison Division of Extension Natural Resources Institute and Wello, a local health equity nonprofit, to develop a survey and gather feedback from the community. The goal, Noordyk said, is to bring those perspectives to the table when municipalities start planning projects.

The tour also showcased the work that East River communities have already undertaken to soak up water and increase recreational opportunities. Brad Lange, village administrator of Allouez, discussed the development of a future “water trail” in the East River.

“The state doesn’t have many water trails, but we are looking at creating kayak-canoe launches,” said Lange. The goal would be for paddlers to traverse the river unobstructed from the town of Ledgeview to downtown Green Bay.

A kayaker in a red kayak paddles along the East River

A kayaker paddles down the East River at the perfect moment. Photo: Wisconsin Sea Grant

Bellevue Village Administrator Ben Krumenauer also discussed the village’s improvements to the East River Trail, a 10-mile multi-use path along the river that experiences flooding throughout the year. The village will be repairing deteriorating boardwalks and repaving sections of the trail.

To the tour group’s delight, the value of recreation was on full display. While Krumenauer spoke, a kayaker appeared in the river behind him and paddled quietly downstream. It was a picture-perfect moment that someone jokingly questioned as orchestrated.

“We can’t pay [for] that perfection,” laughed Krumenauer.

In his final remarks, Governor Evers echoed the value of wetlands for soaking up water and supporting recreation. Not only will local communities benefit from these projects, he said, but also bikers, hunters, anglers and paddlers across the state.

“This is also going to offer opportunities for increased recreation,” said Evers, and “using the river in a good way.”

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Jenna Mertz

Northeastern Wisconsin communities build flood resilience at the local and watershed level

On: June 5, 2024

In: Adam Bechle, East River, East River Collaborative, flood resilience, green infrastructure, Julia Noordyk, The Nature Conservancy

A group of people stand on a paved path alongside the East River in Green Bay near the site of worst flooding in 2019

A group surveys a site along the East River in Green Bay that was hardest hit by flooding in 2019. Photo: Lamont Smith, The Nature Conservancy

Since 2020, the East River Collaborative has demonstrated that it takes a village—and coordination between municipalities, state and federal government, nonprofits and universities—to improve water quality and flood resilience at the watershed level.

“It’s very challenging for municipalities to work across boundaries with other municipalities,” said Julia Noordyk, water quality and coastal communities outreach specialist with Wisconsin Sea Grant. Noordyk works alongside partners at The Nature Conservancy and NEW Water (the brand of the Green Bay Metropolitan Sewerage District) on a core team that provides coordination and technical assistance to communities in the East River watershed.

“Every community is extremely different, and we’re not there to tell them what to do,” said Noordyk. Municipalities in the watershed span the rural-urban spectrum and vary in population, budget size and capacity.

“We’re there to listen and to figure out how to help them achieve flood resiliency based on what their community’s goals are.”

The 40-mile-long East River spans three counties in northeastern Wisconsin—Calumet, Manitowoc and Brown—and passes through agricultural, suburban and urban landscapes before it meets the Fox River and empties into the Bay of Green Bay. Historic flooding in March 2019 resulted in 50 houses being condemned and spurred the creation of the East River Collaborative the following year.

Since that time, the collaborative has worked with communities to identify shared goals across the watershed and developed maps and models to visualize flooding impacts. Now, with a new wave of grant funding, the collaborative is moving to the next phase: developing an implementation plan to identify and prioritize new projects.

People plant pollinator plants along the East River

Volunteers replace turf grass with native plants along the East River in Ledgeview. Photo credit: Stephanie Schlag, town of Ledgeview

To help communities make these decisions, the East River Collaborative team is building a new tool to evaluate how well different nature-based solutions capture, slow and clean stormwater on the landscape. Nature-based solutions include practices like planting native plants, using rain barrels, building agricultural runoff storage systems and stabilizing streambanks.

Even though the tool is still in the planning stages, communities aren’t waiting to get local projects off the ground.

At the fourth annual East River Collaborative Winter Forum in February, partners gathered virtually to share their work restoring wetlands, removing invasive species, planting pollinator plants and designing canoe/kayak launches for the East River water trail—among many other projects.

“[The implementation plan] has really been a catalyst for other communities to think about this and start moving forward on resiliency themselves,” said Noordyk.

Another goal of the implementation phase is to build relationships with underserved residents who are likely to experience flooding and need the most support to recover from it due to factors like income, language and age.

A federal grant from NOAA Digital Coast will allow partners to connect with and learn from other municipalities that have worked with underserved communities on similar projects. The team is also pursuing funding for a survey that will gather residents’ feedback on strategies to prepare for and reduce flooding.

Adam Bechle, Wisconsin Sea Grant coastal engineering specialist and member of the East River Collaborative core team, is particularly excited to work with partners on establishing a flood warning system for the river.

“We worked with the Army Corps of Engineers and the National Weather Service and other partners to figure out what needs to happen so that the Weather Service can start putting together a forecast model,” said Bechle.

Both he and Noordyk said it’s been encouraging to see communities’ sustained interest in working together on these issues, even when flooding isn’t an imminent threat.

“We still have the same number of people showing up to meetings as when we kicked off,” said Bechle.

The East River Collaborative has been funded by the Wisconsin Coastal Management Program, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, The Fund for Lake Michigan and National Fish and Wildlife Foundation. To learn more, visit the East River Collaborative’s website.

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Examples of Sea Grant Efforts to Improve Aquatic Invasive Species Research, Outreach, and Management

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Jenna Mertz

Wisconsin Sea Grant staff contribute to special “Oceanography” journal issue

On: May 1, 2024

In: aquatic invasive species, Bonnie Willison, Emma Hauser, Jonathan Pennock, Julia Noordyk, Marie Zhuikov, Mona Behl, National Sea Grant College Program, oceanography, science communication, Sea Grant special issue, stormwater management at great lakes marinas, storytelling in the field, Tim Campbell

Sea Grant research and outreach projects took center stage in the latest issue of “Oceanography,” the official journal of The Oceanography Society. Published yesterday, the issue features 36 articles contributed by Sea Grant authors across 29 programs and the National Sea Grant Office.

“Sea Grant’s success and impact continues to rely on the power of collaboration,” said Jonathan Pennock, director of the National Sea Grant College Program. “This special issue showcases and celebrates the breadth of Sea Grant’s work.”

Articles cover a range of topics including aquaculture, marine debris research, green infrastructure, science communication and community partnerships, highlighting the wide scope of contributions Sea Grant makes to the environmental and marine sciences.

Tim Cambell, Julia Noordyk, Bonnie Willison and Marie Zhuikov with Wisconsin Sea Grant co-authored five articles with staff from other Sea Grant Programs across the country. Emma Hauser represented the Wisconsin program on the cover. Many other staff members helped review the articles, providing input and editing services.

Campbell, aquatic invasive species outreach specialist, contributed to two articles:

SPOTLIGHT • Alien Language: Reflections on the Rhetoric of Invasion Biology

Noordyk, water quality and coastal communities outreach specialist, contributed to:

SPOTLIGHT • Advancing Stormwater Management at Great Lakes Marinas with Green Infrastructure: Outreach, Implementation, and Applied Research

Willison, video and podcast producer; and Zhuikov, senior science communicator; contributed to:

Storytelling in the Field with Sea Grant’s Science Communicators

Hauser, aquaculture education and outreach specialist, is featured in one of the cover images holding a net over an aquaculture tank.

Ultimately, this special issue is a reflection of Sea Grant’s scientific contributions and a look toward what is to come. Mona Behl, associate director of Georgia Sea Grant and a contributor to the special issue, said she hopes this issue will inspire new opportunities.

“Sea Grant is just one of many organizations that is committed to increasing the usefulness of science for societal good,” Behl said. “We invite readers of this special issue to join us in envisioning new pathways for collaboration, impact and innovation to propel toward a future where scientific advancements are accessible, equitable and transformative.”

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Wisconsin Sea Grant

Updated Wisconsin Clean Marina Guidebook benefits boaters and marinas

On: May 24, 2023

In: Julia Noordyk, National Safe Boating Week, Theresa Qualls, Wisconsin Clean Marina Program

by Elizabeth White

It’s National Safe Boating Week and the runup to the unofficial kick-off of summer, Memorial Day, which makes it a good time to spotlight the news that the Wisconsin Clean Marina Program has an updated tool to help marina owners and operators meet state and federal requirements, protect water quality and save money and resources.

Theresa Qualls, Wisconsin Clean Marina coordinator, rolled out the third edition of the “Wisconsin Clean Marina Best Management Practices Guidebook” at the Wisconsin Marine Association Conference in Wausau last fall. The guidebook includes a checklist of best management practices (BMPs) organized by topic (for example, stormwater management or petroleum control) and color-coded by requirement status (mandatory by law, required for Clean Marina program or recommended). That checklist is followed by chapters with complete explanations and suggestions for meeting each requirement. Supplemental material includes boater rack cards; samples of signage; stormwater pollution prevention plans; spill prevention, control and countermeasure plans; emergency response plans; and contracts.

Port Washington Marina is certified as a clean marina. Photo: Mari Mitchell

Marinas, related industries and services contribute more than $2.7 billion to Wisconsin’s economy. Through the initiative, marinas can prevent pollution and protect fish, wildlife and public health. They know that clean water is important to boaters and Wisconsin’s coastal communities

For marinas that are interested in becoming certified Clean Marinas, instructions for certification and the necessary forms are included in the guidebook.

2022 was a successful year for the Clean Marina Program with two new, two re-certified and two new pledged Clean Marinas—bringing the total current number of certified Clean Marinas to 22.

Julia Noordyk, Wisconsin Sea Grant water quality and coastal communities specialist, said, “The guidebook is a comprehensive tool to help marinas adopt a range of practices that create safer and healthier places to work and recreate along the Great Lakes.”

The guidebook was reviewed by members of the Clean Marina Technical Team (marina operators and staff from the Wisconsin Coastal Management Program, Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources and Wisconsin Sea Grant) and additional subject area experts and regulatory agency representatives.

Qualls said, “As the program continues to grow, the updated guidebook will be a valuable resource providing marinas with current information to implement practices and become certified. 2022 was a great year working with marinas throughout the state as they do their part to protect water quality for boaters to enjoy.”

The guidebook is available for download from the Wisconsin Clean Marina Program website, go.wisc.edu/w62790. There’s also a recent video about a marina operator talking about the program go.wisc.edu/36l2l9

The Wisconsin Clean Marina Program is administered by the University of Wisconsin Sea Grant Program in partnership with the Wisconsin Marine Association, Wisconsin Coastal Management Program, Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources and Fund for Lake Michigan.

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Margaret Ellis: Bringing a voice back to the land

On: April 5, 2023

In: Cofrin Center for Biodiversity, First Nations Graduate Assistant, Julia Noordyk, Margaret Ellis, Oneida, University of Wisconsin-Green Bay, Wequiock Creek Natural Area

Margaret Ellis, First Nations Graduate Assistant, Wisconsin Sea Grant. Submitted photo.

Margaret Ellis is the latest person to fill the First Nations Graduate Assistantship with Wisconsin Sea Grant and the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay’s Cofrin Center for Biodiversity. Ellis has all the qualifications that look good on paper, plus others that are just as meaningful.

Ellis has a master’s in global Indigenous nations studies with an environmental focus from the University of Kansas and is working toward a Ph.D. in education at UW-Green Bay in First Nations entrepreneurial and small business operations.

“I have the skills; I have the knowledge. My master’s degree was years ago, but you know, I’ve continued to live my life in a certain way that reflects a responsibility to earth and water,” Ellis said.

She also has connections to the Wequiock Creek Natural Area, a 76-acre property with forests, wetlands and prairie she will work on along the lower bay shore area of Green Bay. The area is being restored and is culturally significant to the Oneida, Potawatomi, Ho-Chunk and Menominee nations. Ellis, a member of the Oneida Nation, has been visiting Wequiock Creek since she was a child.

“It was a free place to go and it was beautiful,” she said. “There’s a little waterfall there and so my family would always go there to picnic or just walk around. I was excited to find that connection to the project. I want to bring a voice back to that land and reconnect those nations with the Wequiock area.”

In addition to continuing the tradition of organizing a spring tobacco blessing, Ellis will be helping the Cofrin Center to develop interpretive signage and plant signage featuring Indigenous viewpoints and language. “It’s really about supporting restoration efforts for the natural area and ensuring that the Indigenous knowledge and voice are represented by all the nations that once used the land,” she said.

Wisconsin Sea Grant staff members walk the dry bed of Wequiock Creek. Image credit: Marie Zhuikov, Wisconsin Sea Grant

In between her degrees, Ellis co-founded Kenco Tribal Marketing Initiative, a full-service marketing and procurement agency serving tribal businesses, plus she owns Mirax, LLC, an apparel business for nonprofits and Native nations. For her Ph.D. dissertation research, she is building off this to create a small business model that is based on the Oneida Thanksgiving Address. Ellis explained that the address gives thanks to all the elements that are on Earth and in the cosmos – water, the sun, plants and the animals. “I want to support small businesses in creating something that keeps those elements in mind. It’s all about sustainability and conscious consumerism,” Ellis said.

Through her business success, academic achievements, and community grassroots efforts Ellis achieved the National Center for American Indian Enterprise Development 40 under 40 Award, which recognizes Native American citizens for outstanding leadership and community contributions.

Julia Noordyk, Wisconsin Sea Grant water quality and coastal communities specialist, is Ellis’s supervisor. She’s thrilled that Ellis accepted the position.

“Margaret is such an impressive person. She has a lot of positive energy that she’s willing to share. She’s determined to bring the voices of Indigenous women to the table and integrate business practices that protect water resources. I am hopeful that through this position, Sea Grant can help support her academic and professional goals,” Noordyk said.

Ellis recently posted an announcement about her Sea Grant graduate assistantship on social media. She said, “The post just went crazy! I had so many shares, comments and likes. It made me think it’s a sign that I’m in the right place.”

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Wisconsin Sea Grant gratitude for 50 years shines in a new 50th anniversary video

On: November 16, 2022

In: 50th anniversary, Athelstan Spilhaus, Julia Noordyk, Moira Harrington, Video

In the week before Thanksgiving, Wisconsin Sea Grant is considering gratitude. Why are we thankful? 2022 marked a yearlong 50th anniversary commemoration. We have been grateful for the opportunity to provide decades of service to Wisconsin’s coastal communities, promote freshwater learning and contribute research findings to benefit the whole Great Lakes Basin.

A brand-new 50 years video celebrates this past and looks to Great Lakes science for our future through reflections from staff members collected throughout the past 12 months.

Grainy image of bluffs and water. People canoeing.

A new video celebrates Wisconsin Sea Grant’s 50-year legacy.

“Wisconsin was the first state in the Great Lakes region to develop a Sea Grant program,” said Moira Harrington, Sea Grant’s assistant director for communications. “In a state with a long history of environmental stewardship and the home of such environmental giants as John Muir, Aldo Leopold and the founder of Earth Day, Gaylord Nelson, we are particularly proud to have also embraced the Sea Grant model to use research, education and outreach to better understand, use and protect our globally significant freshwater assets. We’re also proud to share this video that recounts the history.”

The new six-minute video uses archival video to revisit touchpoints such as the 1963 proposal from scientist Athelstan Spilhaus to establish a national Sea Grant College Program, Congress’s adoption of the program in 1966 and ratification of the binational Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement during the Nixon administration.

In vintage footage, the video also depicts unfortunate chapters of the lakes—the arrival of the nonnative sea lamprey and its negative effects on the fishery, pollution shutting down beaches due to open pipes gushing contaminants and nutrient runoff tainting waters.

Two fish with round jaws up along the wall of a glass tank.

Nonnative sea lamprey have had an effect on the Great Lakes food web. The video has footage of the fish. Photo by Titus Seilheimer.

The somewhat grainy footage then shifts, giving way to contemporary shots of Sea Grant-funded research and education and extension initiatives. A concluding quote best summarizes what probably all of us could get behind, “I really believe that we need to talk about hope. We have to give people a strong vision of where we want things to do because as soon as we do that we start moving toward it rather than focusing on the negative things that have happened in the past,” Julia Noordyk, water quality and coastal communities specialist said.

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Julia Noordyk and celebrating an anniversary in a “pretty special place”

On: November 1, 2022

In: East River, flooding, green infrastructure, Julia Noordyk, nature-based

Sea Grant has had both a focus on and staff dedicated to the understanding and stewardship of the Green Bay watershed for nearly 50 years, dating back to when the Sea Grant Green Bay Subprogram was established on the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay campus in the late 1970s.

Close-up of smiling woman with long blonde hair.

Julia Noordyk, water quality and coastal communities outreach specialist.

Julia Noordyk now fulfills this longstanding Sea Grant responsibility for the bay of Green Bay, which she termed “a pretty special place.” The bay itself spans 1,600 miles. It’s at the heart of the world’s largest freshwater estuary, laced with agriculture and manufacturing. It’s also a storied place where Indigenous people have lived for 10,000 years and where the first European to have come to what is now known as Wisconsin stepped off a boat in Green Bay onto Red Banks, roughly a mile from the city of Green Bay.

In her role as water quality and coastal communities outreach specialist Noordyk weaves the legacy of this commerce, agriculture and human interaction into contemporary conversations and actions.

Noordyk said she educates people about, “green infrastructure, really working through codes and ordinances to reduce barriers to implement green infrastructure.”

Her second priority is community flood resilience, with a focus on the East River, one of the only undammed rivers in northeastern Wisconsin. It’s a tributary of the Fox River, which flows to the bay and is high in nutrient and sediments. Reducing runoff through nature-based infrastructure protects surface waters from contaminants and can reduce East River flooding.

This is what Noordyk sees as an evolution in water quality approaches for what she likes to call the “fresh-tuary.” “Historically, the (Sea Grant) office was set up and really focused on the Fox River, the bay of Green Bay and water quality. A lot of that was driven by industrial pollution like PCBs and also agricultural runoff,” she said. “That’s been most of the work for last 50 years, which is awesome. Now, the PCB cleanup is over, and things are improving.”

She continued, “Agriculture runoff is still one of the biggest issues in our area for water quality, but what has been changing over the past couple decades is how we think about restoration more broadly.”

Noordyk said there’s been a movement to address water challenges that communities care about and connect those issues to water quality. Front and center, she pointed to flooding. “How can we help solve problems that have benefits to both water quality and flood mitigation?”

Answering her own rhetorical question, Noordyk said, “We have to give people hope with science and with working to solve these environmental issues.” That is her goal for the next 50 years of Sea Grant’s work in her region.

As for the future of the human dimensions of her work, Noordyk said, “A small piece of my efforts is working towards a more inclusive workforce, making connections with our First Nation communities and the bay of Green Bay.”

Noordyk hosted a graduate assistantship that supported an Indigenous-identifying student in exploring the Great Lakes. She said, “That person is really focused on helping make connections between restoration and projects with UW-Green Bay and First Nations. It’s to bring the voice back to the land from a First-Nation perspective.”

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Noordyk named a Lake Michigan Champion of Conservation

On: August 15, 2022

In: East River, green infrastructure, Julia Noordyk, Lake Michigan Champion of Conservation, Lake Michigan Stakeholders, Titus Seilheimer, Wisconsin Clean Marina Program

Julia Noordyk, Sea Grant’s water quality and coastal communities specialist, was named a Lake Michigan Champion of Conservation in an awards ceremony Friday as part of the annual Lake Michigan Day event, held this year in Manitowoc. The Lake Michigan Stakeholders bestowed the award.

“I am humbled by this honor and know that any success would not have been possible without the inspiration and partnership of all of my excellent colleagues. I am also extremely grateful to the municipalities for their commitment in improving their communities through green infrastructure and look forward to continuing to support their visions,” Noordyk said.

Man and two women sitting outside looking at a laptop computer

Julia Noordyk (right) engages with colleagues, discussing coastal resilience concerns while sitting on the shore of Lake Michigan. Photo: Narayan Mahon

Noordyk has been with Sea Grant for more than nine years, coming from the Maine Coastal Program where she worked as a senior planner focused on outreach programs in offshore wind energy, water quality and coastal public access.

Now based in Green Bay, she has devoted herself to public engagement. Noordyk serves on the Green Bay Sustainability Commission. She said she counts among the most-rewarding actions in her time on the commission the support offered to city staff to build flood resilience, removal of green infrastructure barriers and the March 2, 2021, common council adoption of a resolution to value and protect local waters.

She is also co-leading the East River Collaborative, which is committed to building resilience in Brown County’s East River watershed. The area has seen repeated flooding. The collaborative is developing a hydrologic computer model to understand current and future flood risk; forming an East River Watershed Resilience Community of Practice; structuring a community-based watershed resilience framework that is establishing a vision, goals and near-term actions for building community capacity and flood resilience; and accelerating nature-based solutions designed to improve flood-resistance, water quality and quality of life.

The awarding organization also noted Noordyk’s leadership as the Wisconsin Clean Marina Program manager on clean marina protocols that both boost a marina’s bottom line and keep the waters cleaner. Example practices are reducing fuel spills, properly storing hazardous materials, capturing boat wash water and managing stormwater. Last year, Noordyk and partners added a marina resiliency checklist to the clean marina certification process. The self-assessment identifies risks, vulnerabilities and information gaps. It provides a blueprint for coastal communities and marinas to prioritize, plan and initiate enhancements to ensure marina resiliency to coastal hazards

Sea Grant’s Fisheries Specialist Titus Seilheimer said, “In my decade of working with Julia, she has been a constant inspiration for me. Every time I hear about what she is working on and the impacts that it is having, I think, ‘Wow, how can I be more like Julia?’ She is the definition of a Lake Michigan Champion.”

This is the sixth year champion awards have been given. In addition to Noordyk, other 2022 winners are the Glen Hills Youth Team, Bill Moren and Clean Farm Families of Ozaukee County, led by Andy Holschbach and Mike Paulus.

The Lake Michigan Stakeholders organization is made up of professionals in the fields of environmental management, academic research, education, community outreach, outdoor advocacy, agriculture and private industry. Its members collaborate to promote and celebrate the health and viability of Wisconsin’s Lake Michigan basin through stewardship and education.

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Green Bay Natural Area restoration begins with gathering

On: June 18, 2021

In: Amy Wolf, Julia Noordyk, restoration, Stephanie Dodge, Wequiock Creek Natural Area

Amy Wolf speaks during the Wequiock Creek Natural Area gathering. Image credit: Daniel Meinhardt

This spring, a small but dedicated group of people gathered in the woods near the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay campus to commemorate restoration efforts that are beginning on the Wequiock Creek Natural Area.

Contributing to the restoration is Stephanie Dodge (formerly Stephanie King), a First Nations graduate assistant with Wisconsin Sea Grant. Dodge, an enrolled Oneida Nation Member, is incorporating Indigenous oral histories into work on the Wequiock Creek wetlands. The area is ancestral lands for the Ho-Chunk Nation, Menominee Nation, and Potawatomi, as well.

During the gathering of First Nations folks, Dodge listened to the group’s ideas, thoughts and feelings about what the wetlands means to them. Along with restoration team partners at the UW-Green Bay Cofrin Center for Biodiversity, Dodge shared intentions and goals for the land.

The gathering opened with a tobacco offering and Menominee prayer by David Grignon, tribal historic preservation officer with the Menominee Indian Tribe.

David Grignon and Stephanie Dodge. Image credit: Daniel Meinhardt

“It is my hope that good things happen at the site and a natural ecosystem can be developed and maintained,” Grignon said.

Dodge obtained the tobacco from a garden center near Wequiock Creek. The owners are friends of her mentor, Julia Noordyk, Wisconsin Sea Grant water quality and coastal communities outreach specialist. Dodge traded white corn flour products for it. Trading versus buying the tobacco is another example of incorporating traditional ways.

The group then toured the area and continued their discussions. The east shore of Green Bay, which includes Point au Sable, Wequiock Creek and Red Banks, remains a significant area for First Nations, who have been connected to this land for millennia.

“We hope this is just one of more gatherings and conversations to come,” said Bobbie Webster, natural areas ecologist for the Cofrin Center for Biodiversity.

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Sea Grant staff project faves, Julia Noordyk

On: December 18, 2020

In: East River Resiliency Collaborative, Julia Noordyk

Julia Noordyk on the East River. Submitted photo.

As 2020 winds down, we asked staff members at Wisconsin Sea Grant what their favorite project was this year. Although work was a bit more challenging than usual due to our altered work circumstances, everyone managed to stay productive, and even find fulfillment.

Julia Noordyk, our water quality and coastal communities outreach specialist, said the East River Resiliency Collaborative was her favorite 2020 project. “The need to holistically address flooding and water quality in this Green Bay watershed has been talked about by stakeholders and communities for over a decade. I am thrilled that the Wisconsin Coastal Management Program and Fund for Lake Michigan saw the value in this project and helped us make it a reality!” she said.

The project formed a new partnership among Wisconsin Sea Grant, the University of Wisconsin-Madison department of civil and environmental engineering, The Nature Conservancy and NEW Water (the brand of the Green Bay Metropolitan Sewerage District).

First to fill a First Nations Graduate Assistant position

On: October 5, 2020

In: First Nations Graduate Assistant, Julia Noordyk, Stephanie King

Stephanie King of Oneida, Wisconsin, is breaking new ground. Not only is she first to fill a position with Wisconsin Sea Grant designed to strengthen relationships with First Nation tribes in the Green Bay area, she is in the first cohort of the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay’s First Nations Education Doctoral Program.

Stephanie King. Image by Stephanie King.

Although her position, which also involves the UW-Green Bay’s Cofrin Center for Biodiversity, is just beginning, King said her role will be to incorporate Indigenous knowledge and traditional ecological knowledge as part of a team that’s restoring wetlands north of the Green Bay campus on Wequiock Creek.

“That area is ancestral lands for the Ho-Chunk Nation, Menominee Nation and I believe the Potawatomi, as well,” King said.

The assistantship opened at just at the right time. King, who is enrolled in the Oneida Nation but was raised on the Menominee Reservation, was laid off from her cultural wellness work for the Oneida Nation due to COVID-19 factors.

“I was excited when I saw the position. When I was reading through the announcement, the requirements brought my higher educational experience and passions full circle. I thought it would be a unique opportunity to share my experiences and knowledge with others and the team. I decided to throw my name in the hat and see what happened,” King said.

One of the reasons King’s name was plucked from that proverbial hat was her academic background. King has an associate degree in sustainable development from the College of Menominee Nation, a bachelor’s degree in family, consumer and community education from UW-Madison and a master’s degree in educational leadership with a focus on adult education from UW-Oshkosh.

Julia Noordyk, Wisconsin Sea Grant water quality and coastal communities outreach specialist, is King’s mentor. “Stephanie’s knowledge and experience working with people of all ages and backgrounds is a good fit for Wisconsin Sea Grant,” Noordyk said. “I am always focused on how we can most successfully engage with our audiences, so her expertise in education and outreach lends perfectly to this.”

King had the chance to visit the Wequiock Creek sites and “got an idea of some of the potential goals that all the different people involved have. There are still conversations to be had about what the First Nations communities would like to see as well, so that will come next,” King said.

King also said this position fits well with her life goals. “My foundation for my education, my work and my research has been with a passion to give back to my community and to my people. In any opportunity I take, I always look at how is this going to benefit others and benefit the community as well as my family in a good way, in a positive way.”

While on paper Noordyk is King’s supervisor and mentor, Noordyk acknowledges there is already more to their relationship. “Stephanie comes to this assistantship with a deep understanding of education, outreach and communication with First Nations people. It would be foolish of me not to learn as much as possible from her, too.”

News Releases – Wisconsin Sea Grant

https://www.seagrant.wisc.edu/news/first-to-fill-a-first-nations-graduate-assistant-position/

East River Watershed study to address flooding and pollution

On: September 8, 2020

In: East River Flooding Project, Fund for Lake Michigan, Julia Noordyk, Wisconsin Coastal Management Program

Flooding along the east side of Green Bay in March 2019. Image credit: WBAY-TV.

In March 2019, a massive snowmelt combined with heavy rain over frozen ground disrupted lives and flooded homes along the East River near and in Green Bay. A total of 50 homes were condemned.

A new partnership that includes Wisconsin Sea Grant seeks to address conditions that caused the flooding and work with communities within the East River Watershed to increase their resiliency to such events. Other project partners include NEW Water (the brand of the Green Bay Metropolitan Sewerage District) and The Nature Conservancy. The communities include Brown County, Calumet County, Manitowoc County, the cities of Green Bay and De Pere, the villages of Allouez and Bellevue, and the towns of Ledgeview, Rockland, Wrightstown and Holland.

Julia Noordyk, Wisconsin Sea Grant’s water quality and coastal communities outreach specialist, explained that although this formalized partnership is new, the project partners often work individually with these communities.

“One thing that’s unique is that we want to work within the watershed and not just within municipality boundaries or county borders,” Noordyk said. “Working beyond their borders is very challenging for local governments. So the partnership between NEW Water, The Nature Conservancy and Sea Grant is really to help provide that coordinating capacity and bring together those communities that are being affected by flooding and water quality issues to help them learn how to move forward.”

The year-and-a-half-long project, which was recently funded for $50,000 by the Wisconsin Coastal Management Program and $123,000 by the Fund for Lake Michigan is comprised of four parts. The first is an East River Flood Study. Noordyk explained that this will involve development of a hydrologic computer model to understand current and future flood risk for the watershed. Sea Grant’s Coastal Engineer Adam Bechle will take the lead on that. He will work with Chin Wu, professor in the department of civil and environmental engineering at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, to develop the hydrologic model.

Noordyk said the East River is a major tributary to the Fox River, which flows into the bay of Green Bay. Besides the flooding risk, the East River provides the highest load of sediment and unwanted nutrients to the bay, which contributes to poor water quality and clarity, and toxic blue-green algae blooms.

Flooding in Fond du Lac in March 2019. Image credit: Fond du Lac Police Department.

“The upper parts of the watershed are dominated by agriculture. In the lower parts, it’s more urban and developed suburban areas,” Noordyk said. The clay soils and compacted land in the upper watershed contribute a lot of agricultural pollution and excess water runoff. Once this water reaches the paved surfaces in the urban areas that were developed over floodplains and have outdated and aging stormwater infrastructure, it can cause flooding issues. Warmer winters are compounding the problem, with more frequent and intense rainstorms resulting from a changing climate in the region.

The project’s second part involves formation of an East River Watershed Resilience Community of Practice. This will be facilitated by an East River Resiliency Fellow who has been hired by The Nature Conservancy with Noordyk’s guidance. Through regular meetings, the coordinator will help build knowledge and relationships among local officials and staff, practitioners, scientists, NGOs and outreach specialists in the watershed.

The third part is development of a community-based watershed resilience framework. Noordyk and the resilience coordinator will work with the communities to draft the vision, goals and near-term actions for building community capacity and flooding resilience.

David Hart, Wisconsin Sea Grant’s assistant director for extension, will lead the final part of the project, which involves working with the UW-Madison Cartography Lab to create interactive maps to communicate the flood study’s findings and recommendations to the communities and partners involved.

News Releases – Wisconsin Sea Grant

https://www.seagrant.wisc.edu/news/east-river-watershed-study-to-address-flooding-and-pollution/

Field office graduate research assistant jumps from watershed planning to clams

On: June 23, 2020

In: Cofrin Center, Julia Noordyk, Megan Hoff, shellfish assessment biologist, University of Wisconsin-Green Bay

Megan Hoff recently completed her graduate research assistantship in Green Bay, working for Sea Grant Staffer Julia Noordyk. This was the first time such an opportunity has been offered at one of our field offices. Hoff’s work for Noordyk and for her master’s degree in environmental science and policy at the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay involved working with the community to develop a watershed management plan for Mahon and Wequiock creeks, which flow through the campus.

Megan Hoff on the Oregon Coast. Image by Austin Yantes

I caught up with Hoff recently, just after she finished a drive across the country to Oregon, where she is starting a new job in Newport as a shellfish assessment biologist. Yes, she’ll be working with clams.

You may wonder how that relates to all the community work she did for her assistantship post. Never fear, Hoff will not abandon her people skills entirely for the company of mollusks.

True, she will be working to document where different species of clams are found along the bays of the Oregon coast, but she will also be on the beach surrounded by beachgoers and people who like to clam recreationally.

Hoff described it like this: “My graduate research assistantship enabled me to not only graduate with my master’s degree debt-free, but I also graduated armed with a suite of new and improved technical and personal skills. Julia and the rest of the Sea Grant folks inspired me and prepared me to address coastal and watershed-based community management and planning challenges. Although the shellfish management challenges are not exactly the same, they still require similar ways to think about how to tackle them.”

Hoff credits her community science communication work with Sea Grant for giving her a leg up on her competition for this full-time permanent job.

“The folks here in Oregon thought my interdisciplinary skills were something unique that I could contribute to their program. My skills in interacting with community members will be really useful and valuable in transitioning to my new life in Oregon,” Hoff said.

Although she is thrilled by this new opportunity, leaving Wisconsin was hard for Hoff.

“I was sad to leave, especially since I didn’t get to say any proper in-person goodbyes to any of the folks I worked with because of social distancing and COVID-19. But I felt so supported and appreciated. Julia and the UW-GB Cofrin Center for Biodiversity staff gave me so much of their time, effort, energy, words of praise and encouragement over the last two years. Without that, I wouldn’t have been as successful.”

Given Hoff’s strong skill set from her academic and Sea Grant experiences, I somehow suspect her success will continue.

Blog – Wisconsin Sea Grant

https://www.seagrant.wisc.edu/blog/field-office-graduate-research-assistant-jumps-from-watershed-planning-to-clams/

Environmental improvements coming to Barker’s Island

On: February 26, 2020

In: Adrea Crouse, Barker's Island Inn, Barker's Island Marina, green infrastructure, Julia Noordyk, Todd Breiby

Barker’s Island in Superior looks different than it did a year ago. Construction on the island’s public beach rearranged and added structures to help improve water quality and provide a better experience for swimmers.

More changes are in store for the next two summers, all designed to reduce stormwater runoff and protect water quality in the Superior Bay and ultimately, Lake Superior.

Conceptual designs were recently completed for work at the Barker’s Island Marina and will be completed in 2020 for areas around Barker’s Island Inn, thanks to several grants and cooperation among the two businesses and Sea Grant programs in Wisconsin, Michigan, and Ohio, as well as the City of Superior, the Wisconsin Coastal Management Program, The Ohio State University, and the Wisconsin Marine Association.

Three projects at the marina will begin work this summer. Four others at the inn will begin in 2021. Here’s the rundown.

Barker’s Island Marina will be updated in 2020 with a stormwater wetland. The project will treat runoff from the service area and parking lot. Image by Marie Zhuikov, Wisconsin Sea Grant.

Barker’s Island Marina

A stormwater wetland will be created at Barker’s Island Marina in 2020 in an unused area along the coast to treat runoff from the service area and parking lot. Currently, runoff from these areas flows into a ditch and the harbor. As part of this, the marina will be graded and repaved to direct water toward the stormwater wetland. They will also install a boat wash station.

Julia Noordyk, water quality and coastal communities outreach specialist with Wisconsin Sea Grant, explains the importance of boat wash stations. “Copper anti-fouling paints are used on the bottoms of boats. At the end of the season when they’re power-washed, it just all sloughs off. You have some heavy metals potentially going into the water body. Boat wash stations are a really great thing. They capture the water rather than having it just drain directly into the lake.”

The second area is the parking lot at the marina where boats are stored for winter. The lot currently features a stormwater pond that doesn’t function properly. It sometimes floods, putting people and boats at risk. The design team plans to install an underground pipe so the pond can drain properly, plus a forebay to capture sediment coming off the parking lot, which will improve water quality.

If enough funds are left after the first two fixes, the third will be to install a large cistern to catch water off the roof of the marina maintenance building, delaying its flow into the bay. The water could be used for rinsing tanks and other water supply needs by the marina.

These activities are supported by a grant designed to advance stormwater management at Great Lakes marinas through the Great Lakes Protection Fund. As part of this project, a tool is being developed that will help marina owners and operators choose the best green infrastructure projects for their operations. Barker’s Island Marina is one of three marinas in the states of Wisconsin, Michigan, and Ohio chosen to test the tool and install the green infrastructure practices. Researchers from The Ohio State University and the Lake Superior National Estuarine Research Reserve will monitor the site before and after installation to record changes in water quality.

After completing the projects and adopting other best-management practices, Barker’s Island Marina will become a certified Clean Marina in the state of Wisconsin. The Clean Marina Program is designed to reduce pollution from marinas to protect Wisconsin’s waterways. Program staff conduct site visits to verify marina practices and provide training and technical support to marina and boatyard managers.

“I’m impressed by Barker’s Island Marina’s willingness to participate in this project and go through the certification process,” Noordyk said. “They understand that healthy water quality and a clean Lake Superior is crucial to their business plan.”

“It’s a unique opportunity to advance green infrastructure and help improve water quality at the marina, as well as improve its resiliency to coastal storms, and flooding,” said Todd Breiby, program coordinator with the Wisconsin Coastal Management Program, which is partnering with Sea Grant on the Great Lakes Protection Fund grant. “We’re hoping what we learn on Barker’s Island can be transferred to other locations and marinas around the state.”

The marina sits on city land, so the city of Superior is also involved.

“There’s a lot of really good energy on Barker’s Island right now,” said Andrea Crouse, water resources program coordinator with the city. “We know that a lot of boaters spend time on the water because they love being around water, and they value programs like the Clean Marina Program. We expect this will be a draw for people who are out on sailboats or motorboats on the lake – knowing that they could dock at a place where there’s a clean marina certification and good practices is something that people feel good about.”

Barker’s Island Inn

The parking lot at Barker’s Island Inn will get a “green” makeover in 2021. Image by Marie Zhuikov, Wisconsin Sea Grant.

Crouse said the city was recently awarded a grant for just under $500,000 from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation’s Sustain Our Great Lakes Program to improve stormwater storage and reduce runoff impacts on Barker’s Island, including a “green” parking lot around Barker’s Island Inn. Conceptual plans call for installing infiltration medians and pervious surfaces around the lot edges in 2021 to discourage water runoff, and planting native trees and shrubs.

“We’re also exploring dark-sky lighting options for the parking lot,” Crouse said. “We’re thinking not only about water quality, but about how we can keep this a safe and well-lit area for people using it, while minimizing the ambient light that’s shining up into the sky or being directed to places that are problematic for wildlife.”

Across the road from the lot is a sandy area used as a catamaran launch, however, it was never an official site. Crouse said the area is eroding, sending sediment into the harbor. Plans involve creating an official launch and installing grass paving, which is a grid of plastic that can withstand the weight of vehicles and heavy foot traffic. This will stabilize the shoreline and prevent soil compaction and erosion.

And that walking trail that currently dead-ends across from the inn? Crouse said it’s going to be expanded. “Most people like walking in a loop, so we’re going to lengthen the trail to go around the hotel property and allow walkers to extend their hike,” she said. The trail will be constructed with low-impact practices, possibly a porous asphalt.

The final of the areas slated for work in 2021 are the tennis courts behind the inn. “They are in rough shape right now,” said Crouse. “We’ll be talking with the inn to discuss whether they want to keep one of those courts or none of them . . . But we’ll be removing several of them, at least, and putting in a green playground area so there will be more room for children and families that are using the space, as well as folks that are using the marina.”

Crouse said the timing of the projects is fortunate. “…Knowing that these projects might be happening at a similar time will allow us to be really efficient with city effort and funds so we can design these as much as possible in tandem. It’s a huge benefit to the public for us to be able to coordinate these projects together.”

News Releases – Wisconsin Sea Grant

https://www.seagrant.wisc.edu/news/environmental-improvements-coming-to-barkers-island/