On:
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.”

The post East River Collaborative garners a visit from the governor and new grant funding first appeared on Wisconsin Sea Grant.

Original Article

News Releases | Wisconsin Sea Grant

News Releases | Wisconsin Sea Grant

https://www.seagrant.wisc.edu/news/east-river-collaborative-garners-a-visit-from-the-governor-and-new-grant-funding/

Jenna Mertz

On:
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.

The post Northeastern Wisconsin communities build flood resilience at the local and watershed level first appeared on Wisconsin Sea Grant.

Original Article

News Releases | Wisconsin Sea Grant

News Releases | Wisconsin Sea Grant

https://www.seagrant.wisc.edu/news/northeastern-wisconsin-communities-build-flood-resilience-at-the-local-and-watershed-level/

Jenna Mertz

On:
In: Carly Lapin, Clam Lake Wisconsin, Deb Connell, Deidre Peroff, Donald Chosa, Kristen Blann, Manoomin Psin Knowledge Symposium, Spring Lake Wisconsin, Spur Lake Wisconsin, The Nature Conservancy, Thomas Howes, Todd Haley, Tony Havranek, wild rice, wild rice nutrition facts, Wisconsin Sea Grant wild rice poster, WSB

Science Communicator Marie Zhuikov attended a Wild Rice Symposium recently, along with hundreds of other people. Image credit: Marie Zhuikov, Wisconsin Sea Grant

Wisconsin Sea Grant sponsored a recent symposium on wild rice, which I had the chance to attend as did Deidre Peroff, our social science outreach specialist. The “Manoomin/Psin Knowledge Symposium” was held at the Black Bear Resort in Carlton, Minnesota, in mid-November.

The manoomin display that Wisconsin Sea Grant and Nature Conservancy staff helped create. Image credit: Marie Zhuikov, Wisconsin Sea Grant

Symposium-goers were offered instant inspiration by a large manoomin display at the registration table, which was created by Peroff, our creative manager Sarah Congdon, and Kristen Blann with The Nature Conservancy.

Most interesting were sessions where speakers described what wild rice means to them and tips for harvesting it.

Here are seven key things to keep in mind when harvesting wild rice in the fall and the names of the people who offered the advice:

  • Unprocessed wild rice features a long tail-like barb that can have uncomfortable consequences for unwary harvesters. It can sometimes get stuck in people’s tear ducts, requiring careful extraction! If this happens to you, you’ll be crying “warrior tears.” (Donald Chosa, Bois Forte Band of Chippewa)
  • Harvesters sometimes also inhale the rice and the barbs get stuck in their throats, making it hard to breathe and eliciting coughing. It’s a good idea to bring bread along while harvesting in case this happens. Eating the bread can dislodge the rice barb from a person’s throat. (Deb Connell, ricer, Lac du Flambeau)
  • “Don’t harvest rice at your convenience. Harvest it when it’s ready.” (Todd Haley, Lac du Flambeau Band of Ojibwe)
  • If your canoe tips over while ricing, it does not have any special Ojibwe cultural meaning other than, “It means you’ll get wet!” (Donald Chosa, Bois Forte Band of Chippewa) (I was especially keen on this information after my recent “immersive” wild rice experience.)
  • Lift weights to strengthen your arms for ricing for about a month beforehand. (Donald Chosa, Bois Forte Band of Chippewa)
  • Having music playing in the canoe makes the ricing day go faster. (Various speakers)
  • The best way to learn how to rice better is to copy someone’s movements who is a good ricer. (Donald Chosa, Bois Forte Band of Chippewa)

I also learned about three projects in Wisconsin that were successful in bringing wild rice back to lakes where it had disappeared. These involved Spur Lake (Oneida County), Clam Lake (Burnett County), and Spring Lake (Washburn County).

Nutritious wild rice is a true super food when compared to white rice, as noted in this image from one of the symposium speakers.

Carly Lapin with the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) said that Spur Lake, a historically important wild rice lake, began having trouble in 2009 when water levels became too high for wild rice to grow. She attributed this to beaver population recovery in the area and human alternations of the landscape. Also, aquatic invasive plant growth was out competing the wild rice.

Lapin said the DNR conducted a hydrologic study on the lake in cooperation with the Sokaogon Chippewa community to determine what was causing the water retention. In 2021, resource managers took advantage of naturally low water levels to remove competing vegetation with a mechanical harvester. The next year, they seeded the lake with wild rice and protected several plots with fencing to keep swans from eating the rice shoots. The protected areas grew successfully. A stream (Twin Lakes Creek) that provided outflow from the lake was restored and a harvest was able to occur in 2023.

Tony Havranek, an engineer with WSB, which is a design and consulting firm from Minneapolis, described the Clam Lake and Spring Lake projects. Clam Lake features two parts, an Upper and Lower Clam Lake. The lower part traditionally had wild rice, which declined from 2001-2009. In 2007 and 2008 the lake failed to grow any rice, which concerned the St. Croix Tribe. The tribe undertook studies with partners, who discovered that a steep rise in the population of common carp in the lake was the likely culprit. The age of the carp corresponded to the beginning of the rice crop failure. Havranek said the lake was home to 79,000 individuals, which equaled 670,000 pounds of fish.

“This is four times the tipping point for the lake environment,” Havranek said.

An integrated pest management plan was developed. Actions included installing barriers (nets) around the wild rice beds to keep out the carp, removing the carp from the lake and seeding the beds with local wild rice. Havranek said that over several years, 76,000 carp were removed.

By 2017, rice abundance had increased. Originally, 288 acres of rice beds were in the lake. By 2017, 177 acres had regrown, and harvest was able to begin again.

A successful wild rice harvest. Image credit: Thomas Howes, Fond du Lac Resource Management

Wild rice recovery at Spring Lake is still a work in progress. Problems began in 2000 when the outlet of the lake was changed. Floating leaf vegetation began taking over the lake. Herbicide was applied and unwanted plants were physically removed. After these actions, in 2005, rice was harvested.

However, rice production has declined recently (2016) due to cattail encroachment on the rice habitat. The cattails were mechanically removed and used for compost. Havernak said the rice harvest returned in 2017-2020 but that the lake is still struggling with rice production.

“We hope to remove more cattails and then put the lake on a monitoring schedule,” Havernak said.

Peroff and I staffed a table of publications at the symposium, which included our “ASC Chronicle” newsletter and a wild rice poster that features Ojibwe names for the different life stages of wild rice. The poster was very popular. It’s available online for free download here, or if you want a professionally printed version, you can contact Peroff at dmperoff@aqua.wisc.edu.

I left the event with a new appreciation for the complexities of wild rice management and harvesting. For a foraged food that’s strong enough to cause “warrior tears” or even choking, it remains incredibly fragile and needs our attention and care.

The post Lessons in wild ricing and wild rice lake restoration first appeared on Wisconsin Sea Grant.

Original Article

Blog | Wisconsin Sea Grant

Blog | Wisconsin Sea Grant

https://www.seagrant.wisc.edu/blog/lessons-in-wild-ricing-and-wild-rice-lake-restoration/

Marie Zhuikov

On:
In: 1854 Treaty Authority, David Grandmaison, Manoomin Camp, Marne Kaeske, Martha Minchak, St. Louis River, The Nature Conservancy, wild ricing, Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources

David Grandmaison, Wisconsin Dept. of Natural Resources, poles through a wild rice bed in the St. Louis River. Image credit: Marie Zhuikov, Wisconsin Sea Grant

A co-worker and I were invited to attend a day of Manoomin (Wild Rice) Camp on the St. Louis River in Duluth, Minnesota. The camp flier said, “Join us in a guided paddle to the wild rice restoration sites and welcome manoomin back to Gichi Gami Ziibi (the St. Louis River). Try your hand at harvesting and experience each step in the finishing process (drying, parching, jigging and winnowing).”

That sounded good to us, so with wild rice harvesting permits in hand, we met in the Fond du Lac neighborhood of Duluth near the Wisconsin border. The event was hosted by the 1854 Treaty Authority, the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (WDNR), the Lake Superior National Estuarine Research Reserve and The Nature Conservancy in an area that had been seeded with wild rice three or four years previously.

We were met by Marne Kaeske, cultural preservation specialist with the 1854 Treaty Authority, Martha Minchak and David Grandmaison, St. Louis River wild rice and habitat restoration coordinator with the WDNR. After a sage smudging ceremony and a chance to offer tobacco to the river as the Ojibwe do, they gave us a brief orientation to where the rice bed was located and how to harvest it.

“The rice needs us and we need the rice,” said Minchak, a retired Minnesota Department of Natural Resources wildlife manager. “In places where it’s not harvested anymore, it’s disappeared. Kind of like sweet grass, it needs to be pulled up and picked. Rice needs to be harvested to reseed itself. We’re here to celebrate that today.”

The St. Louis River. Image credit: Marie Zhuikov, Wisconsin Sea Grant

Under a blue sky and calm winds, my co-worker (who shall remain nameless for reasons that will become clear soon) and I clambered into our canoe with our life jackets, a pair of rice knocking sticks and long pole. We paddled toward the wild rice bed where Grandmaison was stationed in a motorboat and kayak to aid us ricers. We spotted a gleaming white pair of trumpeter swans and we watched as a small kettle of hawks circled overhead.

We must have not done our opening ceremonies correctly, because things did not go as planned. I was in the bow of the canoe and my job was to use the rice knockers to coax the rice seeds off the plants. My co-worker was in the stern to pole us through the rice bed. That all went fine, for a while.

Marie uses rice knockers to harvest wild rice in the St. Louis River. Image credit: Sharon Moen, Wisconsin Sea Grant

The soft swishing sounds of the aluminum canoe pushing through the thick rice stand combined with the gentle patter of rice seeds falling into it as I gently bent the rice with one knocker and used the other to tap the plants was soothing. The rice stand had already been visited by other groups earlier in the week. That, combined with a heavy rain the day before, made for a sparse harvest. Still, oblong seeds with long grassy tails slowly filled the bottom of our canoe. Some of the seeds were purple, others were tan. A small sora rail flushed several times as we passed. This secretive water bird needs marshes and rice beds as nesting habitat.

My co-worker began poling us through the shallow rice bed sitting down at first. Then she stood for the task, which is how it is traditionally done. As the manoomin continued accumulating in our canoe, the push pole got stuck in the soft muck and she lost her balance.

Into the chilly river we went, rice and all!

Our shouts of surprise and splashes as we struggled to stand in the deep muck alerted Grandmaison to our plight. He paddled over in his kayak and tied a rope onto our swamped canoe. My co-worker and I waded through the waist-deep water, holding onto the canoe through the wild rice beds until we reached shore, which was about 100 yards away.

The swamped ricing canoe. Image credit: David Grandmaison, Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources

There, we were able to tip the canoe over and empty most of the water (and any wild rice that remained). We took it all in good stride, however, laughing at our plight and commenting about what a good story this would make. I thought up the title of this blog post on the spot. There’s nothing like a real-life experience to provide creative inspiration!

Our misadventure was also probably good for the rice bed. Wild rice is an annual plant and as Minchak mentioned, it needs to be seeded every year to prosper. We just dumped a whole lot of seeds back into the river for next year. Maybe that’s what the wild rice gods wanted us to do?

We were worried about our cell phones and other electronic devices that spent a short time in the water. But our phones, at least, seemed functional.

Cold and wet, my co-worker and I decided we’d had enough ricing for the day. We paddled back to the landing and emptied the remaining water from the canoe, pulling it on land and turning it over.

From the time we overturned in the rice bed to the time we reached the landing we’d been wet for two hours. We headed home for warm, dry clothes. We would miss the rice processing demonstration and a wild rice-themed meal. We were disappointed to cut the experience short.

However, I happened to have a special lunch awaiting me at home: wild rice soup. I swear, I did not plan that. I just worked out that way.

My co-worker and I certainly got “immersed” in the process of harvesting wild rice. The experience was memorable and was not one we could have had only a few years ago, before efforts to restore rice took off in the estuary.

But if we ever do it again, I’m going to volunteer to be the poler.

Marie’s clothes drying out at home. Image credit: Marie Zhuikov, Wisconsin Sea Grant

The post Wild ricing in the St. Louis River Estuary: An immersive experience first appeared on Wisconsin Sea Grant.

Original Article

Blog | Wisconsin Sea Grant

Blog | Wisconsin Sea Grant

https://www.seagrant.wisc.edu/blog/wild-ricing-in-the-st-louis-river-estuary-an-immersive-experience/

Marie Zhuikov

On:
In: 175th anniversary, Cofrin Center for Biodiversity, Erin Giese, Green Bay, Jim Hurley, Lower Green Bay, Mayor Eric Genrich, Nicole Van Helden, The Nature Conservancy, University of Wisconsin-Green Bay

Current outreach efforts focused on flood resilience, water quality enhancement and conservation

Wisconsin Sea Grant has provided Great Lakes research, education and outreach in the state since 1968 and in that time funded 91 Green Bay-focused research projects, investing more than $8.8 million. Some of the research was conducted by University of Wisconsin-Green Bay-based scientists. Other projects were undertaken by researchers from Lawrence University, St. Norbert College and University of Wisconsin schools based in Milwaukee, Madison and Stevens Point who came to the Lower Fox River-Green Bay.

In 1978, Sea Grant sited a field office in the culturally, recreationally and economically important Green Bay watershed. During a news event today, Sea Grant explored past research on topics such as contaminants, the Lake Michigan food web and water quality. It also reflected on its alignment with the Cofrin Center for Biodiversity at the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay, using that as a base from which to respond to local needs, which currently are centered on assisting communities in building flood resilience, enhancing water quality and fostering conservation of natural resources.

Speakers came from Sea Grant, and others who made comments were Green Bay Mayor Eric Genrich; Erin Giese, interim director of the Cofrin Center; and Nicole Van Helden, director of land conservation with The Nature Conservancy. Each speaker highlighted the value of collaborating to fulfill a commitment to what has been termed the world’s largest freshwater estuary, with the city of Green Bay sitting at its head.

At the Jack Day Environmental Educational Center at the mouth of the Fox River with the shining waters of Lake Michigan behind him, Sea Grant Director Jim Hurley said, “For more than 50 years, Sea Grant has embraced and activated a model of strong science to underpin decisions that serve the people of Green Bay and surrounding areas.” He continued, “We also look to the future when that kind of research investment will continue, along with the important science outreach our specialist based at UW-Green Bay, Julia Noordyk, provides on water quality and coastal community issues.”

Close-up of a person wearing glasses, suit, tie and smiling.

Green Bay Eric Genrich is working with Sea Grant staff on addressing flooding issues in the East River watershed. Photo credit: city of Green Bay

 “The city of Green Bay has benefitted tremendously from the close partnership that exists between city staff and UW Sea Grant,” said Mayor Genrich. “We’ve collaborated deeply on efforts to prevent flooding and develop neighborhood resiliency within the East River watershed, which is vitally important work to improve the quality of our natural resources and strengthen our community.”

Giese said, “We are excited to celebrate Sea Grant’s huge conservation successes over the years and are grateful to partner with them at Wequiock Creek Natural Area as we bring Indigenous voices back to the land. We are privileged to coordinate an annual tobacco blessing with Sea Grant and UW-Green Bay’s First Nations Studies.”

“We are so fortunate to have Wisconsin Sea Grant working in northeast Wisconsin,” said Van Helden. “They are an essential partner with local presence, expertise in both social and environmental science and an ability to make lasting, positive change. Our work together in the East River watershed is increasing local flood resiliency. Sea Grant staff member Julia Noordyk helped design the ongoing project and two key ingredients were, first, listening to the needs of the flood-impacted communities, then, creating knowledge-sharing opportunities to find flood solutions together.”

The event was also a part of the celebration of the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s 175th anniversary. Sea Grant is a program of the University of Wisconsin System, with its headquarters on the flagship campus. Sea Grant also has field offices at the UW-Green Bay, Manitowoc Campus, UW-Milwaukee and UW-Superior.

 

The post Sea Grant impact in Green Bay: More than $8.8 million invested in research first appeared on Wisconsin Sea Grant.

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News Releases | Wisconsin Sea Grant

News Releases | Wisconsin Sea Grant

https://www.seagrant.wisc.edu/news/sea-grant-impact-in-green-bay-more-than-8-8-million-invested-in-research/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=sea-grant-impact-in-green-bay-more-than-8-8-million-invested-in-research

Moira Harrington