Root River Watershed Restoration Planning Group Meets May 16

The next scheduled meeting of the Root River Watershed Restoration Planning Group is

Date: Wednesday, May 16

Time: 10:00 a.m. - Noon

Location:

Auditorium, Room 104

Center for Advanced Technology Innovation (CATI)
2320 Renaissance Blvd, Sturtevant (map)

Agenda:

10:00 AM - Welcome and Introductions
10:15 AM - Root River Corridor Redevelopment
Project: Advancing the "Back to the Root" Initiative
11:15 AM - Watershed Planning Update: Draft Chapter Review

11:30 AM - Project Updates - Root Pike WIN and Southeastern Wisconsin Watershed Trust

Noon - Adjourn

(read full article)

Image by UW-Milwaukee Community Design
Solutions student Anna Grosch

Sweet Water is the proud recipient of the Public Policy Forum "Salute to Local Government" Private-Public Cooperation Award

 and

Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District

Public Policy Forum analysis of our recent public opinion survey:

Public Open House for Feasibility Study
Kinnickinnic River Channel Rehabilitation: S. 27th St. to Jackson Park

Date: Thursday, May 17

Time: 4:00 pm - 7:00 pm

Location:

Jackson Park Boathouse
3500 W Forest Home Ave, Milwaukee (map)

Representatives from the Army Corps of Engineers and the Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District will describe the alternatives being considered for the channel rehabilitation and will answer questions from the public.

Please contact Patrick Elliott, Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District, at

(414) 225-2168 or via email at

pelliott@mmsd.com

with any questions or comments.

Sweet Water Policy Committee Meeting

May 21

The next meeting of the Policy Committee is scheduled for

Monday, May 21

1:30 pm - 3:30 pm

The meeting will be held in

O.J. Noer Conference Room A

MMSD

330 W Seeboth St, Milwaukee (map)

Agenda items will include:

1. Menomonee River watershed-based stormwater  permit

2. Green infrastructure-related efforts in the region

3. Discussion of how to integrate 1 and 2

4. Updates on priority policy issues:

• Water quality trading
• Phosphorus/Watershed Adaptive Management Option
• TMDLs

For more information, contact Ezra at

(608) 251-7020, ext. 20

Kevin Shafer Awarded Gladfelter Award

Kevin Shafer,executive director of MMSD, was awarded the Gladfelter Award for Government Innovation by the UW - Madison La Follette School of Public Affairs. Kevin and two other awardees were honored in a ceremony Monday, May 7, in the Senate Parlor in the State Capitol.

The award recognizes Kevin Shafer "for a career of innovations aimed at implementing 'green infrastructure' to minimize pollution of the Milwaukee regional waterways."

Follow the link for the full story.

Menomonee Falls Stormwater Expo May 10!

Date: May 10

Location: Fire Station 3 (W140N7501 Lilly Rd just south of Appleton Ave)

Time: 9 AM-8 PM

The3rd Annual Stormwater Expo will feature various speakers and exhibitors highlighting green initiatives and stormwater related topics.

Sable the Sewer Sniffing Dog will be there demonstrating his investigative techniques.

At 3:30. At 6:00 PM Melinda Myers will be speaking on: "Growing Green - Environmentally Friendly Landscapes."

More information at this link.

Featured at Menomonee Falls Stormwater Expo:

Fish sculpture created by students from North Middle School

Meet the Sewage Sniffing Dogs May 9

Wednesday, May 9, join staff from Milwaukee Riverkeeper, UWM-Great Lakes Water Institute, MMSD, and City of Wauwatosa in welcoming the sewage sniffing dogs, Sable and Logan, and the staff from Environmental Canine Services to town.

Learn more about their work in Wauwatosa and watch them in action.

Gather at the Harwood Pedestrian Bridge by Cafe Hollander at 7677 W. State St. in Wauwatosa.

For more information, contact Cheryl Nenn at

cheryl_nenn@milwaukeeriverkeeper.org.

Innovative Cities Lecture May 3:

A Long View Towards Water Resources on Milwaukee's Latino South Side

Date: Thursday, May 3

Time: 12:00 pm - 1:20 pm
Location: UWM School of Architecture and Urban Planning Room 345

2131 E Hartford Ave, Milwaukee (map)

Ben Gramling, Director of Environmental Health Programs for the Sixteenth Street Community Health Center, will deliver a lecture titled: A Long View Towards Water Resources on Milwaukee’s Latino South Side.

The lecture will describe the role of community involvement in the Kinnickinnic (KK) River Neighborhood Plan and explore the future of the KK River community and its relationship with water.

An RSVP to

peter559@uwm.edu

is requested, but not required.

Clean Rivers, Clean Lake Conference Weighs Anchor Monday

A Full Day on Water Quality Innovation

Join us for the 8th Annual Clean Rivers, Clean Lake Conference April 30th at Discovery World on Milwaukee's lakefront. (program)

The conference is

Monday, April 30
7:30 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.
Discovery World
500 N Harbor Dr, Milwaukee (map)

Registration day-of-conference is $75. Fee includes: conference materials, midmorning and afternoon refreshments, and a luncheon.

Plenary sessions include briefings by EPA Region 5 Administrator Susan Hedman and Wisconsin DNR Secretary Cathy Stepp. A Great Lakes challenges panel will be led by Dean David Garman of the UWM School of Freshwater Sciences. Three workshop tracks feature 17 speakers on 15 topics, including

. regional water project updates
. rural nonpoint pollution tactics
. innovations in salt/chloride use
. the City of Milwaukee's infiltration and inflow project
. rainwater harvesting
. water quality trading

The luncheon includes the 2011-12 Sweet Water mini-grant awards, and the day concludes with a networking reception/poster session.

For conference questions, contact Tina Kroening at

(414) 382-1766

or by email at

kroening@swwtwater.org

Visit Sweet Water at www.swwtwater.org.

Earth Day Celebration!

Live music, Eco stories, Local foods!

Friday, April 20 from 11:00 am - 1:00 pm at the Market St. Corridor next to City Hall. 

The event will feature remarks by Mayor Barrett as well as Alderman Bauman; Matt Howard, Director of the Office of Sustainability; and Lindsay Stevens Gardner, Executive Director of Rock the Green. 

The event will also include music by Evan Christian.

For more info, follow the link.

photo courtesy cbc.ca

Photo courtesy Milwaukee Riverkeeper

Love your rivers!

Join the annual spring river clean-up events happening around town Saturday, April 21!  Milwaukee Riverkeeper organizes this yearly event. It's a great way to celebrate Earth Day!

The river clean-ups will take place Saturday,April 21, from 9:00 am to noon at a river near you.

Visit Milwaukee Riverkeeper's website for more information, locations, and to register.

You are invited to an Open House, April 24, for the Milwaukee AOC

Hear about the year in review and learn about major projects and initiatives in the Milwaukee Estuary AOC. 

Date: April 24

Time: 6:30 - 8:30 pm

Location: UWM School of Continuing Education

               Grand Ave. Mall, 7th Floor, Rm. 7970

               161 W. Wisconsin Ave., Milwaukee

RSVP appreciated.  Contact Gail Overholt at 41-256-4632 or at gail.overholt@uwex.edu.

Spring Cleaning? Safely Dispose of Household Hazardous Waste

You still have time to truck your household hazardous waste to State Fair Park where your waste trash will be accepted and properly disposed of by MMSD.  Go to Gate 8 off S. 76th St.  You can drop off your hazardous household waste between the hours of 8:00 am and 2:00 pm.

For more information about the hazardous waste collection program as well as what items will be accepted, follow this link.

Menomonee WAT Meeting This Week!

April 12, from 4:00 to 6:00 pm

Location:

Dretzka Park Clubhouse

12020 W. Bradley Rd.

Milwaukee, WI 53224-2535

Agenda

The main agenda item will be an update and discussion of restoration work at the Granville County Park project. The meeting will also serve as a stakeholder input session for the project.

R.A.Smith National, hired by River Revitalization Foundaiton to assist with the site plan for the Granville project, will help lead the discussion.

Representatives from Milwaukee County Parks and the Friends group for Granville Dog Park (R.O.M.P.) will also speak about the project. A site visit,a brief 5 minute drive Dretzka to Granville Park, is planned.

Chinkapin Oak

What a beauty!

Fire up your creative energy...

...to win a luxurious night in Milwaukee and three months of Time Warner Cable, Road Runner and digital phone simply by coming up with the name of a new vessel that helps clean area rivers and Lake Michigan. 

A naming contest will run on OnMilwaukee.com from April 2 through April 14 to raise awareness of the Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District’s (MMSD) new river skimmer. 

Here's the link to more information about the contest.  To enter the contest, follow this link.

World Water Day!  What are you doing to celebrate?

Let's lift a glass of clear, clean water and toast our good fortune of living at the shore of Lake Michigan with access to plentiful water!

It is our good fortune as millions of people throughout the world lack access to good water.  World Water Day, sponsored by the United Nations, brings the focus once a year to global issues connected to the lack of water. 

Follow this link to learn about the relation of water to food security. There are many ways you can help address the global water crisis.

United Nations World Water Day 2012 at UWM

We wanted to make you are aware of an event coming this Saturday, March 24, for UN World Water Day.

The day's events will include:

• a presentation by local teenagers on the world water crisis
• screening of their documentary, The Balanced Equation, shown at 10:00 am at the UWM Union

• a 3-mile walk along the lakefront at noon

 For more information, read full article.

GLRI Stakeholder Input Webinar – Non-Governmental Organizations

EPA is inviting interested parties to participate in a webinar on March 29 to provide stakeholder input on the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI).

Agenda:

1:00 Opening Remarks

- GLRI 2010-11 Accomplishments - Real Restoration, Real Results
- Current FY12-13 Priorities
- Role of Input to Inform Those Priorities
- Process

1:15 Stakeholder Input

1:55 Closing Remarks

Space is limited. Reserve your Webinar seat now at:

https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/122773137
(read full article)

Highlight Your Milwaukee AOC Project – April 24 Open House

On April 24, the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources and UW-Extension will host a Milwaukee Estuary Area of Concern (AOC) Open House at

UWM School of Continuing Education

161 W Wisconsin Ave

Room 6950

(Phone: 414-227-3121)

6:30 PM to 8:30 PM

We hope you will join in hosting this event with a table/display about your AOC project.

(read full article)

Image courtesy WI DNR

Sweet Water Seeks Poster Abstracts for Clean Rivers, Clean Lake Conference

Sweet Water is seeking abstracts for poster presentation as part of the 8th Annual Clean Rivers, Clean Lake Conference to be held April 30th at Discovery World.

The deadline for the submission of abstracts is March 15. More information at this link.

View from the gondola lift at Summerfest

Photo courtesy River Alliance of Wisconsin

For more information about volunteer phosphorus monitoring, please contact Chris Clayton at

cclayton@wisconsinrivers.org.

Phosphorus Monitoring News and Fact Sheet

Urban and rural stormwater runoff are two primary sources of phosphorus causing algae blooms in many local rivers. In addition to its smelly, ugly presence, algae can sicken humans and pets, cause fish kills, and forces beach closings.

Last year, Wisconsin passed water quality standards to keep phosphorus from causing too much algae to grow in our rivers and lakes. Soon afterward, volunteers answered the call to assess phosphorus levels in Milwaukee area rivers.

These 30 volunteers in the Milwaukee area monitored phosphorus in 20 streams that would go unchecked without their effort. Their work helps Sweet Water and its partners determine which rivers have problematic phosphorus levels and track improvements from restoration efforts.

Check out the fact sheet based on the phosphorus monitoring done by volunteers in 2011. While the project has just began, the numbers do give you a sense of locations where phosphorus is more problematic.

Sampling will continue in May. Stay tuned for future results.

Winter 2012 Rivers Report Now On-line!

Follow the link for the Winter 2012 issue.  Articles in this issue include:

• Clean Rivers, Clean Lake Conference
• UWM School of Freshwater Sciences
• AOC Inaugural Meeting
• 1st Round of Mini-Grant Awards
• Senior Water Advocates Network
• Trash in Lake Michigan
• Stormwater Tips for Winter
• Watershed Action Team Updates
• Upcoming Events

Greener Yards, Cleaner Waters Workshops

The Root-Pike Watershed Initiative Network, in partnership with UW-Extension, is offering five "Greener Yards, Cleaner Waters" workshops in 2012.

Each workshop will feature a classroom presentation on the causes of polluted stormwater runoff, and on rain gardens, rain barrels, composting, tree and shrub landscaping, and other yard care practices to reduce polluted runoff to our streams, river, and Lake Michigan.

Some of the workshops also include a tour of one or more rain garden. A rain barrel will be given away at each workshop in a free drawing. Free oak saplings will be available to workshop attendees.

(read full article)

Concerned about Groundwater?

Come to the WI Soil and Water Conservation Society's annual conference February 9th at the Holiday Inn Hotel and Conference Center in Stevens Point.  Strong roster of presentations.

The focus of this year’s conference is understanding and protecting Wisconsin’s groundwater.  For registration materials, follow this link.  For information about the conference agenda, follow this link.

Photo courtesy University Communications

UW-Madison

Pet Waste Pick-up - Menomonee Falls

River Trail Restoration - Menomonee Valley Partners

Rain Barrel Street Art - Whitefish Bay

Water Quality Mini-Grant Update

2011 was a good year for the Water Quality Mini-Grant Program. Over $52,000 will be awarded to local, grassroots efforts through the generous support of the Fund for Lake Michigan, MMSD, WI Energy Foundation, and CH2M HILL. 

The 1st round of grant recipients includes:

• 16th Street Community Health Center – Peoples Park with Stormwater BMPs
• Groundwork Milwaukee – Kinnickinnic Neighborhood BMP Project
• Holler Park Neighborhood Association – Rain Gardens and Trail Improvement Project
• Milwaukee Riverkeeper – Human Bacteria Sample Testing
• Milwaukee Riverkeeper – Lilly Creek Stabilization Project
• Milwaukee Riverkeeper – Illicit Discharge Detection Using Sewer Sniffing Dogs
• Holler Park Neighborhood Association – Garden District Neighborhood Rain Garden Match Program
• Friends of Hart Park – Stream Bank Restoration

The 2nd round of awards will be announced at the Clean Rivers, Clean Lake Conference on April 30.

Is the 8th Annual Clean Rivers, Clean Lake Conference on your calendars?

The 8th Annual Clean Rivers, Clean Lake Conference will be held April 30 at Discovery World located at 500 N. Harbor Drive in Milwaukee.

The conference is a full day event with registration beginning at 7:30 a.m. and program at 8:00 a.m.  The conference ends at 7:00 p.m.

Registration for the conference is $60 in advance or $75 at the door.  The program is being finalized and will be posted available.

For information about registration and exhibit opportunities, contact Tina Kroening at

kroening@swwtwater.org

or at

(414) 382-1766.

Discovery World, site of 8th Annual Conference

At the shore of Lake Michigan, Bradford Beach

New Year Wishes to Friends and Colleagues!

We have many successes to celebrate at the end of 2011. The year began with the publishing of the results of 1000 Friends of Wisconsin public survey regarding the public's understanding of our water resources that guides our outreach efforts.

Through the support of programs such as the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, Sustain Our Great Lakes, the Wisconsin Coastal Management Program, and the Fund for Lake Michigan, new water quality projects are being implemented throughout the Greater Milwaukee Watersheds.

(read full article)

EPA Announces Award to MMSD, Sweet Water, and Menomonee River Municipalities

Over 35 people attended a formal announcement August 31 at Hart Park of a $100,000 grant from the EPA to the Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District (MMSD) and its partners. The effort’s goal is to develop, through a cooperative partnership of up to twenty governmental units in the Menomonee River watershed, a single, collaborative stormwater permit framework. The approach offers tremendous potential to cost-effectively improve water quality. This pilot is one of three in the country.

The event featured remarks by Susan Hedman, Administrator for EPA Region 5, Cathy Stepp, Secretary of the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (WDNR), Anthony S. Earl, Joyce Foundation Board Member and former Wisconsin Governor and WDNR Secretary, and Kevin Shafer, Executive Director of the MMSD. 

A number of elected officials from Menomonee Watershed communities also attended, including City of Wauwatosa Mayor Jill Didier who welcomed the attendess.  For more information, see the press release linked here.

Tom Grisa presenting opening remarks to attendees

Speaking at the event: (from left) Anthony Earl, former governor and Joyce Foundation Board Member; Cathy Stepp, WDNR Secretary; Jill Didier, Mayor of Wauwatosa; Susan Hedman, EPA Administrator for Region 5; Kevin Shafer, Executive Director MMSD; Tom Grisa, Public Works Director and Sweet Water Board Member

Sweet Water Stormwater Education Campaign – The Real Water Park

Sweet Water has developed a public information and outreach campaign, The Real Water Park, to encourage residents to do their part to reduce pollutants in stormwater runoff. The campaign will:

• educate residents on the actions they can take to reduce pollutants and stormwater runoff
• communicate the benefits of clean waterways for our families, neighborhoods, and the whole watershed district
• ask residents to "take the pledge" to save The Real Water Park at www.RealWaterPark.com
• encourage those already taking steps to do even more, such as install rain barrels or rain gardens
• encourage those who do not currently take these simple steps to begin doing so

Visit the campaign website, www.realwaterpark.com. Friend us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/realwaterpark. Follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/realwaterpark.

(read full article)

Survey Shows Area Residents Concerned About the Future of River and Lakes

See, Hear, Read Related Sweet Water News in Press Room

Sweet Water announced the results of 1000 Friends of Wisconsin’s survey of public opinion and knowledge concerning water resources. The survey found that while the public considers the water quality of our rivers and Lake Michigan to be satisfactory or better at this time, they also believe water quality in surface waters and groundwater will become a bigger problem in the coming decade.

According to the survey, the public believes the major sources of water pollution are sewer overflows and industrial wastes, even though the vast majority of water pollution today comes from nonpoint sources such as urban and rural runoff. Both sewer overflows and point sources of pollution have been dramatically reduced in recent decades, with overflows dropping to a fraction of pre-1994 levels.

(read full article )

Private-Public Cooperation Award From Public Policy Forum

Sweet Water accepted an award given by the Public Policy Forum at its Salute to Local Government event on June 17, recognizing the development of Watershed Restoration Plans in the Private-Public Cooperation category.

The Public Policy Forum believes that local governments deserve recognition for their achievements. Constituents can be frustrated, the media critical, and the public at large bewildered or indifferent. Yet there are many examples of strong government performance throughout our region, and of local government workers who excel. The awards event was held to highlight these examples.

(read full article)

Couldn’t join us at the award event? Jeff’s ‘thank you’ remarks.