News – Great River Greening

Category: News

Historic Pilot Knob to get nearly $1 million in…

By NICK FERRARO | nferraro@pioneerpress.com | Pioneer Press

PUBLISHED: January 28, 2019

Josie Huss, 16 years-old, from Lakeville leads Cotton, left, a palomino and Holly a dun, off a parcel of land at Historic Pilot Knob in Mendota Heights. St Paul based Great River Greening is using horses as a vegetation management tool. Tuesday, July 23, 2013. (Pioneer Press: John Autey)

Pilot Knob/Oheyawayhe is on the National Register of Historic Places, but visitors to the Mendota Heights site wouldn’t know.

With no entrance sign, some have a hard time finding the historic site, which comprises 112 acres of public and private land on the east end of the Mendota Bridge, south of Minnesota 62.

“You have to be looking for it to know it’s there,” said Gail Lewellan, a founder and former board member of the all-volunteer Pilot Knob Preservation Association.

After the site was named to the National Register in March 2017 because of its cultural importance to Native Americans and significance in Minnesota’s statehood, Pilot Knob preservationists saw the need to enrich the experience for visitors.

Improving visibility, signage, access and visitor amenities on the 25 acres open to the public is the impetus behind the “Oheyawahe/Pilot Knob Landscape Plan,” a 73-page document drafted over the past year by a group of representatives from the Pilot Knob Preservation Association, the city of Mendota Heights, Dakota County and Great River Greening, a St. Paul-based nonprofit that manages Pilot Knob on behalf of Mendota Heights, which owns the public portion of the site.

The plan, which is still in draft form and includes $930,000 worth of recommendations, was prepared by SRF Consulting Group for Great River Greening. It is being funded by a $40,000 grant from the American Express Foundation.

Other contributors to the planning process included members of the Mendota Dakota Tribal Community, Jim Bear Jacobs of Healing Minnesota Stories, and Sherry Kempff, coordinator of the Center for Equity and Culture for St. Paul Public Schools.

Public comments will be accepted until Feb. 20 before the final design plan is presented to the Mendota Heights City Council for approval, possibly this spring.

“As soon as people arrive at the parking area they should be able to identify that this is a sacred place, a place to learn about Dakota stories, ecological stories and stories of Minnesota history, and in a way that is meaningful,” Lewellan said.

THE ‘HILL MUCH VISITED’

For centuries, the land was an indigenous gathering place and sacred burial ground, earning its Dakota name “Oheyawahi,” or the “hill much visited.” American Indians signed away land to the U.S. government on this hill in the 1851 Treaty of Mendota, and some may have been buried there, outside the two recognized cemeteries in the area.

But its rich past did not stop developers from targeting the site. In 2002 a developer was given conditional approval by the Mendota Heights City Council to build 150 townhomes on 25 acres, raising the ire of the Dakota and Ojibwe communities, historians, archaeologists, environmental organizations and nearby residents.

In 2003, the Preservation Alliance of Minnesota identified Pilot Knob as one of the 10 most endangered historic places in Minnesota.

Pilot Knob in Mendota Heights was added to the National Register of Historic Places on March 14, 2017. Fort Snelling’s in the foreground and the Minneapolis skyline in the background, photographed in 2010. (Courtesy of Bruce White)

The prospect of development led to the formation of the nonprofit Pilot Knob Preservation Association, which began fighting for protection of the land as a cultural and historic resource.

“It was almost a miraculous time in terms of diverse groups working together for a common goal,” Lewellan recalled last week.

After the developer’s plan faltered amid strong pushback, community groups and residents nudged Mendota Heights to start investing in the property. From 2006 to 2008, the city acquired 25 acres using grants and funding from individuals, organizations and governmental entities.

A 17-year push to keep developers away from historic Pilot Knob and restore the land to its natural habitat was just beginning.

WHAT IS PLANNED?

Over the past decade, the city’s land has been undergoing restoration to oak savanna, an effort led by Great River Greening to bring back the native vegetation that existed before European settlement.

A gravel trail allows visitors to experience the site’s historic vistas, including the confluence of the Minnesota and Mississippi river valleys, the Minneapolis and St. Paul skylines, and Historic Fort Snelling. But it isn’t accessible to all visitors because of slopes and uneven surfaces.

The proposed plan recommends a paved looped trail off the entrance, connecting to existing trails. Along the trail would be interpretive features, as well as areas for seating and enhanced native plantings.

A gateway area would be built off the main entrance at Pilot Knob Road and Acacia Boulevard, with a monument entry sign, a bus drop-off area, and an expanded parking area.

Pilot Knob is adjacent to the county’s Big Rivers Regional Trail that runs along Sibley Memorial Highway, but a ditch and steep bluff prevent most bikers from accessing the site, said Al Singer, the county’s land-conservation manager.

The pull-off has been identified for future funding in the county’s 2019-2024 parks capital improvement program, Singer said.“Greenways are more than getting from A to B,” Singer said. “They’re designed to have these proverbial jewels that people can experience along the way. And Pilot Knob is certainly one of them.”

Deborah Karasov, executive director of Great River Greening, said the overriding principle in improving the site is retaining the sacred and historical characteristics of the landscape.

“It’s really related to accessibility and education,” she said. “This is a never going to be a developed park.”

Besides what Dakota County has set aside, funding has not yet been identified, Karasov said. The plan is to seek grants and private funds to carry out the vision, she added.

To plan can be viewed online at pilotknobpreservation.org/.

What’s better than one tree? An entire forest.

In partnership with the Trust for Public Land and Cannon River Watershed District, Great River Greening has ambitious plans to improve water quality by planting a native forest near Faribault, Minnesota. The new natural area – called “Sunktokeca Wildlife Management Area (WMA)” – is 200-acres of mostly agricultural land with rich pockets of marsh, prairie, and emerging forest. It feeds into the Cannon River, which is a critical tributary to the Mississippi River.

What’s going on with Sunktokeca WMA?

Given its proximity to the Twin Cities, the community surrounding Sunktokeca WMA is a popular area for residential and commercial development. Although a sign of a strong economy, the booming population creates a huge demand on the area’s natural resources. The community’s prairies have slowly been plowed, its hardwood forests harvested, and its wetlands drained, resulting in serious threats to the natural landscape. For example, the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency reports that excessive bacteria, nitrates, mercury, and sediment severely threaten native wildlife. Impairments also make recreation, and in some cases drinking water, unsafe for residents and visitors.

Our Goal

We envision a beautiful natural area where hikers, sportsmen/sportswomen, birdwatchers, and boaters can connect with the outdoors; where wildlife is healthy and abundant; and where the surrounding community thrives alongside nature.

You can make this happen.

Sunktokeca WMA is one of many stories across our state – expansive natural areas at risk of degradation, or disappearing entirely, because they can’t withstand our changing demands and landscape.

Make a donation today and help us Restore Minnesota.

DONATE NOW

This project is made possible in part by support from Trust for Public Land, Cannon River Watershed Partnership, MN DNR

Urban Restoration: Oak Savanna at Lebanon Hills

Turning into Lebanon Hills Regional Park from a busy Cliff Road in Eagan brings visitors into a vast natural area with miles of trails, a dozen small lakes, a swimming beach, campgrounds, and a bustling education center.

Lebanon Hills is Dakota County’s largest park and people throughout the metro area rank it as a favorite for its beauty, accessible location, well-marked trails, and family-centric programs. Its popularity endures year-round, with people currently enjoying the cross country ski paths that wind throughout.

A Dying Oak Savanna

Despite the area’s intrinsic beauty, 75 acres of critical oak savanna habitat is at serious risk of degradation. Invasive buckthorn has overtaken the landscape, choking out hundreds of oak trees that provide habitat and sustenance to important wildlife. Upwards of 100 animal species depend on oak trees for survival, from tunneling ants to white-tailed deer.

Without a major restoration effort hundreds of oak trees – many of which are centuries old – will begin losing their leaves, bark, and extensive root systems. Over time, the area will slowly change from a diverse and healthy ecosystem into a field of invasive buckthorn. The native wildlife will die off, pests will grow abundant, and families will stop visiting the park to connect with nature.Simply put, we need your help.

DONATE NOW

“This work is made possible in part by support from the Outdoor Heritage Fund and Dakota County Natural Resources program.

KARE11: Keep your storm drains clear

The storm drains on your street are meant for collecting water. But this time of year they tend to collect more leaves than anything else.

Author: Laura Betker

Published:November 1, 2018

The storm drains on your street are meant for collecting water. But this time of year they tend to collect more leaves than anything else.

“If you dig down in here you begin to see the beginnings of decay,” says Great River Greening Ecologist Steve Huckett. “And by that I mean it starts to turn black and gets all gooey and ucky. Because these dead leaves are full of nitrogen and phosphorous. All that nutrient then goes into the water system. Both into the rivers and the lakes around here.”

In many cases, there’s no filter between the drain and the lake. That influx of leaf decay means fish kills, algae blooms, and even discolored drinking water for some.

It’s a big problem and one of the main contributors to water quality. The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency says nearly half of our metro lakes in the Mississippi River watershed don’t meet water quality standards.
So what can you do about it?

Whether you’re in the city, the suburbs or a more rural area, there’s one solution.

“The best thing residents can do and people in the city can do is to rake up these leaves and get them off the street,” Huckett says. “Put them in a compost pile in their backyard. You could put all this in your garden and till it in. It would be decomposed and ready for planting next spring.”

Or add it to the bags of leaves headed for the city compost site.

The hidden super power in a prairie

Green growth: new neighborhood grows up around prairie

In 2013, at the same time the City of Cottage Grove was creating Cedarhurst Meadow Park — with a playground and walking paths that connect to a larger trail system — dozens of new homes were beginning to line that public path.

In the center, South Washington Watershed District and Great River Greening began the Cedarhurst Prairie restoration.

It can take three to five years for prairie plants to establish, as their roots extend 5 to 15 feet into the earth. This year, the Cedarhurst Prairie came into its own, and the backyards in this new neighborhood opened to a healthy display of blazing star, big bluestem, and other native wildflowers and grasses.

Great River Greening has been working in the South Washington Conservation Corridor since 2010 to restore former farmland to prairie, with shading oaks, native grasses, and flowers. The benefit is plenty; restored basins deeply enhance the land by providing critical native habitat and improving water quality by controlling storm water runoff in an area where development is booming.

We want everyone to enjoy this space. Here some important ways to keep it healthy:

The Cedarhurst Prairie is public land, owned by the South Washington Watershed District and open for use: walk the paths and explore the habitat.
Please do not deposit compost or lawn trimmings, add or remove plants.
Homeowners with adjacent land should not mow the prairie. If you desire easier access to the paved trail, you can mow a path to it – up to 4ft wide.
If you do create a path, free “pollinator lawn” seed is available for you to plant in this section, consisting of low-growing native wildflowers that can tolerate high and infrequent mowing. (contact information is below)

What’s next?

Connect Cedarhurst to a larger conservation corridor

Great River Greening will continue to manage the Cedarhurst prairie, in partnership with South Washington Watershed District, to control weeds and other unwanted plants. Most future trees will be suppressed, including female cottonwoods (which produce fluffy seeds).

This fall, Great River Greening volunteers began seeding the neighboring Parkway Ravine which will connect Cedarhurst Prairie to the larger conservation corridor.

Why prairie at Cedarhurst?

Prairies in Minnesota once occupied almost one third of the state’s land, including much of Washington County. Today, only about 1% of the original prairie remains, making it one of the most critical habitats to protect and restore in Minnesota.

In a healthy prairie, you can find up to 50 different species of grasses and 200 species of wildflowers that support wildlife, from endangered pollinators to majestic hawks.
By restoring the prairie, we honor our natural heritage and improve the environment.

The tall grasses and colorful wildflowers in a prairie attract and provide shelter for numerous birds and endangered pollinators.
The deep roots of the prairie help stabilize soil and soak up stormwater runoff, filtering nutrients and other pollutants from groundwater before making its way south to the Mississippi River.
Other Benefits of Prairie:
• Groundwater recharge
• Less long-term maintenance
• Greater resistance to weeds
• Increases soil organic matter
• Rebuilds the soil

Why are trees growing in the prairie?

You find almost no trees in a prairies. However, oak trees add value by providing shade and food to wildlife, and structure for birds and other creatures. In the fall of 2017, Great River Greening and volunteers planted groves of oaks at the Cedarhurst. Some cottonwood trees that had previously established were also left to mature. While not a typical prairie tree, cottonwoods are a choice tree for bald eagle nests.

FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT US

Want to know more?

Tallgrass Prairie Facts (compiled by the MN DNR)

Native tallgrass prairie is the MOST ENDANGERED ecosystem in North America. (Kansas State University)
One acre of established prairie can produce 24,000 pounds of roots. (Iowa State University)
One acre of established prairie can ABSORB 9 inches of rainfall per hour before runoff occurs. (University of North Iowa)
One acre of established prairie will INTERCEPT as much as 53 tons of water during a one-inch hour rain event. (University of Nebraska-Lincoln)
Prairie foliage represents a surface area 5 to 20 times larger than the soil area beneath it. (University of Nebraska-Lincoln)
Prairie planted in roadside ditches makes our highways safer by INCREASING the holding capacity for snow in the ditch provided the shoulder is mowed. (Mn/DOT)
Natural competition of prairie plants REDUCES the occurrence of weeds in an area. (Iowa State University)
Greater prairie diversity creates greater biotic barriers to PREVENT weed invasion. (University of Minnesota )
One acre of reconstructed prairie can produce more net bioenergy than land used to grow corn for ethanol. (University of Minnesota)

Planting pollinator-friendly habitat to celebrate 65 years of community giving

Picture: General Mills volunteers planted a pollinator garden plot at Westwood Hills Nature Center as part of the Foundation’s 65th anniversary celebration

Great River Greening is pleased to be among the recipients of a commemorative grant celebrating the General Mills Foundation’s 65th anniversary.

The foundation awarded $100,000 to GRG for a suite of pollinator projects that have conservation impact and touch multiple communities throughout the state.

“General Mills has long been a leader in programs that promote sustainability. Great River Greening is honored to be considered a partner in this tradition. Choosing pollinators as a focus for our work together is timely and exciting. Insect pollinators, such as bees, butterflies, and wasps, are an important part of food production for humans and wildlife, and for plant reproduction in Minnesota and the world.” – Great River Greening Executive Director, Deborah Karasov

The projects supported by the General Mills Foundation grant include three pollinator garden plots, located in a St. Louis Park nature center, a school forest in Clear Lake, and the Chanhassen nature preserve.

Todd Rexine, a GRG ecologist, said that such plots are typically enclosed areas where native plants are allowed to grow without disturbance from deer, rabbits and other browsers. Once plants mature, they can be divided and used to restore the site.

A fourth project lies along highway 52 in Vermillion Township, which bisects 155-acres of small family farms leased through the Hmong American Farm Association, making it a particularly beneficial area for pollinator corridor.

Mary Jane Laird, Executive Director of the General Mills Foundation, said:

“We are so pleased that these Great River Greening pollinator projects will help commemorate General Mills Foundation’s 65th anniversary in a beautiful manner that will leave an ongoing legacy of impact.”

Great River Greening is across the state on vegetation restoration with pollinator management as a key focus. Our partners include conservation organizations, businesses and government agencies across the Twin Cities, as well as in Greater Minnesota. Working with a variety of partners allows us to merge the best science from many fields and combine elements of pollinator habitat, research, and citizen engagement.

KARE11: Restoring prairies with seed plots

October 3, 2018
KARE 11 meteorologist and reporter Laura Betker reports Great River Greening’s effort to alleviate the native seed shortage.

Seven Mile Creek Watershed farmers share experiments in cover…

Dan Coffman used an old cultivator bar and added parts to create a broadcast seeder on one side and a drill seeder on the other. He wanted to see what worked best early in the season.
Dan Coffman used an old cultivator bar and added parts to create a broadcast seeder on one side and a drill seeder on the other. He wanted to see what worked best early in the season.

9-18-2018 By Nancy Madsen

It goes a bit against the grain for farmers to plant seed in the summer or fall.

But for a handful of farmers in the Seven Mile Creek Watershed, planting cover crops in between rows of corn or soybeans is gaining traction. Cover crops, such as rye, turnips and wheat, have been touted as a method to reduce soil erosion and nutrient loss over winter, as well as generally improve soil health and possibly reduce the need for adding fertilizer and herbicides. But it’s been a tough sell in the colder climates of Minnesota.

In testing what works best, local farmers jury-rigged seeders from old equipment.

He tried it in 2016 between rows of corn, then used aerial seeding last year for a soybean field.

There was a bit of trial-and-error with the method. But he did reduce how much nitrogen fertilizer he used.

“We got a few bushels less, but we used less nitrogen with no sideress,” Coffman said. “So when you put pencil to paper, for the cover crop, we got about the same on return.”

If he uses the same method again, he said he would use an annual rye seed and plant a little earlier. The drill seeder worked best, he said, because it pushed seed down into the soil, increasing seed-to-soil contact.

Coffman farms close to the Oshawa Town Hall where a group of about 25 farmers and farming advisers met. He and brother-in-law Marty Mogensen said they do see better soil health already.

“It has better structure and is healthier when we use cover crops,” he said. “We’re liking what we see.”

Three farmers talked about how four different pieces of equipment, mainly made up from old equipment and hand-made additions, showed possibilities for sowing early in the season with short crops or later in the season with tall corn.

“There’s a lot of innovation going on,” Susie Carlin, Seven Mile Creek Watershed Partnership coordinator, said. “They’ve all got this question and they’ve each addressed it in a slightly different way.”

The partnership is a cooperative effort of the Nicollet County Soil and Water Conservation District and Great River Greening.

Buying new equipment just to add cover crops is impractical, Carlin said, as equipment is expensive and, so far, cover crops have little value on the market.

Chuck Peters and his son have strip-tilled for eight years and used cover crops for three.

Peters said, “There’s a lot to learn and it takes a long time to absorb a system that will work well for you. We’ve not been at it long enough to really know if it will work right.”

They’re adding more cover crops and will seed after they harvest corn and soybeans.

“All fall, we’ll be seeding,” Peters said.

Due to the timing, they’ll plant mainly rye, which greens up again in the spring. They have also planted radish, rye and clover and let livestock graze there as a test. That practice is more common with cattle and dairy cows.

Eric Miller, Seven Mile Creek Watershed technician at Nicollet County Soil and Water Conservation District, organized the field day after participating in a conference organized by the Sustainable Farming Association.

He told the group that he wants to expand programming beyond the Seven Mile Creek Watershed, possibly north to Rogers Creek or the St. Peter drinking water protection area or west to Eight Mile Creek.

“We have to have producer willingness,” he said.

Miller said there are several programs to help producers try cover crops: a cost-share program through the conservation district and an innovation grant from Minnesota Corn Growers Association are among them.

He was encouraged by the turnout, which represented a wide swath of Nicollet County.

“We had a lot of good interactions,” he said. “‘And that what it takes for us to get a project going.”

Reach Associate Editor Nancy Madsen at 507-931-8568 or follow her on Twitter.com @SPHnancy.

Seven Mile Creek watershed hosts cover crop discussion

By Trey Mewes tmewes@mankatofreepress.com Sep 13, 2018

Eric Miller with the Seven Mile Creek Watershed Partnership discusses how farmers can help improve soil health and increase water quality in the nearby creek through reduced tillage and cover crops Thursday at Oshawa Township Hall. Photo by Trey Mewes

ST. PETER — It takes a little work to make cover crops work for farmers, but Marty Mogensen believes it’s worth the effort.

Mogensen’s family owns and operates a 2,400-acre corn and soybean farm in rural Oshawa Township just north of Seven Mile Creek. They’ve been concerned about soil erosion for years, trying reduced till or strip till practices — in essence trying to minimize how much they disturb the soil when planting and harvesting — for more than a decade.

The Mogensens turned to cover crops in 2016, where they grew grasses and legumes during and after the harvest season to help restore nutrients to the soil and prevent water runoff from their land. Those crops help prevent natural erosion, where wind and water slowly take off the land’s topsoil.

“Keeping the soil in place is a very important thing,” Mogenson said. “If the soil is exposed, especially when tilled, it’s prone to erosion. As expensive as land is, you don’t want it going into the river.”

Mogenson and his brother-in-law, Dan Coffman, were among several farmers who shared their experiences with other area ag producers in an event sponsored by the Seven Mile Creek Watershed Partnership Thursday in Oshawa.

The event is part of the partnership and Nicollet County Soil and Water Conservation District efforts to work with farmers to keep soil in the field and out of the watershed.

Reduced tilling practices and cover crops are more commonly used in the South where the climate allows for longer growing seasons. Though oats, rye, barley and other grasses are common cover crop options in the state, Minnesota’s colder climate doesn’t allow for cover crops to take hold in time to grow from autumn to spring. That means many cover crops need to be planted sometime between mid-July and mid-September, in the middle of the corn and soybean growing season.

“It’s a commitment to dive into doing cover crops and soil health,” said Eric Miller, a watershed technician with the county conservation district. “It’s a complete change in management systems.”

Reduced tilling practices can be difficult for farmers to manage. The Mogensen farm had several springs in recent years where it was difficult to get crops in the ground and turn a profit before they tried cover crops. Yet those cover crops can help bolster profits for farmers, act as a natural fertilizer and help restore organic matter in the soil, which helps retain water. That helps restore the land’s ability to produce crops.

“The no-till, strip till and cover crops, that’s our gateway to sustaining and regenerating the land,” Coffman said.

Minnesota is routinely among the top states in the nation when it comes to agricultural conservation practices. Yet only about 30 percent of farmers use reduced tilling practices on about 6.2 million acres total, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s 2012 census.

The Minnesota Board of Soil and Water Resources began projects in 2015 to encourage cover crop use throughout the state, while the Minnesota Corn Growers Association has developed several programs to help farmers with reduced tilling.

Miller said he was pleased about 25 farmers and ag group representatives attended Thursday’s crop cover event. Yet he hopes area farmers reach out to learn more about cover crops. Miller noted the conservation district hopes to expand its agricultural programs across the county in the near future.

“If you’re here in Nicollet County, come in and talk to us,” he told farmers. “We want to know where you guys are at and what you guys are interested in doing.

PHOTO: Dan Coffman (second from right) talks with other farmers about cover crops at the Oshawa Township Hall on Thursday. Photo by Jackson Forderer

PHOTO: Deanna Biehn of Nicollet County emerges from a corn field after taking pictures of rows of feed corn near the Oshawa Township Hall in rural St. Peter on Thursday. Photo by Jackson Forderer

Shoreline restoration project near Elko New Market welcomes volunteers

By MISTY SCHWAB mschwab@lonsdalenewsreview.com

Restoring the shoreline of Doyle-Kennefick, a planned regional park near Elko New Market, is a volunteer opportunity for those who enjoy planting. Great River Greening is looking for around 50 volunteers to help Sept. 15. (Photo courtesy of nimerphoto.com)

An volunteer opportunity Saturday near Elko New Market is open to families throughout Rice and Scott counties, asking them to dig in the dirt and make a difference.

The project takes place in Doyle-Kennefick, a 490-acre planned regional park in Scott County northwest of Elko New Market between St. Catherine and Lennon Lakes.

The last time the nonprofit Great River Greening recruited volunteers for this land restoration project was in the fall of 2015. Welch said around 120 people volunteered, and this time she expects around 50 to participate.

“Most people really have a good time; that’s why they come out,” said Mary Anne Welch, outreach and communications manager for Great River Greening. “Planting is something everyone enjoys doing, even little kids. You can enjoy the gorgeous fall day and make an impact along the way.”

Scott County purchased the farm land in Doyle-Kennefick, which dated back to the 1860s, and granted the original owners’ wish to keep it a natural area. The completed regional park will include over 1,000 acres of landscape – trails, prairie, a recreation area, woodland and lakes.

In 2015, the nonprofit Great River Greening came on board with the project to recruit community volunteers in the restoration process. Great River Greening involves the work of ecologists who both develop a management plan and recruit community members to help with part of the work.

Other partners and funders of the restoration project include Three Rivers Park District, Outdoor Heritage Fund, National Turkey Federation, and Scott-Le Sueur-New Prague Minnesota Waterfowl Association.

Doyle-Kennefick’s date of completion is yet to be determined, so the shoreline restoration offers the community a rare glimpse into the work in progress as they lend a helping hand.

“We make it a point of it being family-friendly, and you don’t need any particular skills,” said Welch.

Volunteers who attend the event help restore the shoreline by pulling buckthorn, planting native shrubs and releasing milkweed seeds. According to Welch, releasing the milkweed seeds is especially fun for children because it’s similar to popping a dandelion.

“Milkweed is an essential pollinator attractor for the monarch butterfly,” said Welch. “Right now we’re facing a crisis with pollinator population, so we want to be mindful about providing pollinator habitats for clean water.”

Welch said restoring the shoreline is essential for improving water quality as it prevents erosion. A clean shoreline means clean water filters into the lake.

A healthy habitat also means clean water. Since buckthorn does nothing for water quality, Welch said removing them from the shoreline creates a healthier environment for diverse plants.

Volunteers are needed from 8 a.m. until 12:30 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 15 at 4150 235th St. East, Cedar Lake Township. Snacks and lunch will be provided.

Reporter Misty Schwab can be reached at 507-744-2551. Follow her on Twitter @APGmisty.