Best Management Practices, Implement
Partnering with property owners, the applicant is sponsoring a grant to implement water quality and habitat best practices from Wisconsin's Healthy Lakes Implementation Plan. Best practices, including fish sticks, 350 sq. ft. native plantings, diversions, rock infiltration, and/or rain gardens, will be designed and installed according to the Healthy Lakes fact sheets, technical guidance and grant application.
Habitat Restoration - Shoreland
350 ft2 of native plantings on 4 properties.
Best Management Practices, Implement
Apple River P & R District will implement best practices described in Wisconsin's 2014-2017 Healthy Lakes Implementation Plan. Best practices will be designed and installed according to the Healthy Lakes fact sheets and technical guidance. Practices include: 350 ft2 native plantings on 4 properties. The best practices require a contract to remain in effect for 10 years and must include minimum operation and maintenance requirements and data collection as described in grant condition #16.
Best Management Practices, Implement
Apple River P & R District will implement best practices described in Wisconsin's 2014-2017 Healthy Lakes Implementation Plan. Practices include: 350 ft2 native plantings on 5 properties. The best practices require a contract to remain in effect for 10 years and must include minimum operation and maintenance requirements and data collection as described in grant condition #17.
Habitat Restoration - Shoreland
Practices include: 350 ft2 native plantings on 5 properties.
Educate and engage residents
The St. Croix River Association proposes to build its volunteer base and the organization's capacity to enhance protection of the Lower Apple River Watershed in Polk and St. Croix Counties. Major project elements to include: a) review and enhancement of outreach strategies, b) identity outreach and volunteer objectives and priorities, c) workshops and other activities to enhance volunteer base and public involvement.
Watershed Mapping or Assessment
The Star Prairie Land Preservation Trust proposes to pursue and encourage establishment of conservation easements to protect habitat, water quality the ecological integrity of the Lower Apple River in St. Croix County. Major project elements to include: 1) property owner survey, 2) GIS mapping, 3) outreach planning, 4) literature and brochure development, 5) public presenatations, 6) web site updates and newsletters.
Restore Riparian Habitat
The Star Prairie Land Preservation Trust, in St. Croix County, proposes to implement the Lower Apple River Action Plan through activities outlined in the Trust's strategic plan including: 1) Lecture series on river protection, 2) development of ongoing education strategy, 3) habitat inventory on Lower Apple River, 4) development of habitat restoration strategy.
Partnership Project
The St. Croix River Association proposes to establish a multi-stakeholder partnership to secure long-term protection and improvement of the Lower Apple River in St. Croix County. Major project elements to include: 1) stateholder meetings, 2) review of existing data, 3) community meeting, 4) plan development and final report.
Educate and engage residents
The Star Prairie Land Preservation Trust proposes to initiate an effort to enhance its organizational capacity; also to inform riparians along the Apple River and Horse Creek in St. Croix and Polk Counties as to the importance of river ecosystems and benefits associated with land conservation. Major project elements to include: 1) Strategic planning, 2) Development and distribution of handouts and brochures, 3) Development of a web site, 4) Creation of GIS-based inventory of riparian parcels.
County Land and Water Management Plan
The Polk County Land & Water Resources Department will conduct an organizational development and informational & educational project in the Apple River watershed in Polk County. Activities involved with this project include; organization of a Citizen Forum to collect local input on river threats, etc., assist in the creation of an Apple River Association, development of outreach materials and assist in the development of an Apple River Association newsletter, conduct a sociological land owner survey, conduct public meetings and generate news releases on project status and results, and conduct a shoreline video survey. Reports of ongoing project activities will be disseminated via brochures(s), meeting(s) and workshop(s), and the preparation of a final report. Specific deliverables for this grant project include: A final report that summarizes the grant project activities and includes examples of outreach materials that were developed.
Water Quality Planning
This watershed is located in east-central Polk County and contains the Apple River drainage upstream from below the Apple River Flowage dam in Amery. The watershed is approximately 125,074 acres in size and consists of 139 miles of streams and rivers, 7,663 acres of lakes and 16,247 acres of wetlands. The watershed is dominated by forest (43%), grassland (23%) and agriculture (14%). It is ranked high for nonpoint source issues affecting lakes and medium for nonpoint source issues affecting streams. The Upper Apple River is a fertile warmwater stream which flows into what is known as the Apple River Flowage in the community of Amery. The Apple River flowage has problems typical of man-made flowages including excessive siltation and nutrients which combine to create favorable conditions for nuisance aquatic plant growth.