Souris River – TheMinotVoice.com

‘Livers of the river’: Feds propose designating rivers as critical habitat for freshwater mussels

by: MinotVoice | December 26, 2024

Let’s dive beneath the surface of Minnesota and Wisconsin’s rivers, where an understated hero quietly works wonders: the freshwater mussel. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is proposing a plan to protect these vital mollusks, designating nearly 4,000 miles of river as critical habitat. Known as the “livers of the river,” mussels like the sheepnose

Read & Share sourced from: MPR

Great Miami Riverway network in Ohio Drives $1.2 billion economic impact

by: MinotVoice | December 13, 2024

The Great Miami Riverway connects more than 99 miles of river, paved trails, and vibrant communities a short drive from Cincinnati and Columbus. As a premier destination, it offers outdoor recreation, cultural attractions, and economic opportunities for all. And the impact of the attraction for the region is worth noting. In 2023, tourism hit record

Read & Share sourced from: Miami Valley Today

Cedar Rapids seeks $12 million grant for trails along Cedar River, Is Minot Keeping Up?

by: Josh Wolsky | July 11, 2024

Cedar Rapids, Iowa is a bellwether community for Minot. They flooded in 2008 and have been remaking themselves through flood protection and community improvement initiatives ever since. In short, they are a comparison point. And one of the investments they’re consistently making — improving recreational opportunities around the Cedar River. Most recently, they’re seeking federal

Read & Share sourced from: Cedar Rapids Gazette

Bismarck Making Plans For Riverfront Amphitheater

by: Josh Wolsky | May 8, 2024

It’s more than a decade since Minot went through the River Front & Center planning process. You can read about that with a quick search on Google or the City of Minot’s website. Since then, the community has routinely spoken out positively toward taking advantage of recreational and quality of life opportunities around the Souris

Read & Share sourced from: KX News

‘Canoe safari,’ riverfront walk and more among proposed features in Cedar Rapids’ Greenway Plan

by: MinotVoice | February 28, 2024

As Minot continues to rebuild and add protection following the 2011 flood, we need to be on the look out for other communities on the same path. Cedar Rapids is one of those places. They are currently seeking community input for their riverfront Greenway Plan, which aims to enhance the area with new parks, sports

Read & Share sourced from: Cedar Rapids Gazette

How a Country Embraced the River It Feared

by: Josh Wolsky | January 26, 2023

Few places fight floods as well as the Netherlands, but when it comes to their flood defenses, it’s the ocean-side efforts that get the attention. Lesser known is the degree to which they are innovatively managing their inland flooding risk from the River Waal. While no two rivers and no two floods are exactly alike,

Read & Share sourced from: Reasons To Be Cheerful

Road salts washing into the river, damaging ecosystems and pipes

by: Josh Wolsky | January 20, 2023

“There’s pretty good evidence that if we continue to use salt at the rate we do now, it’s going to be detrimental to the rivers and lakes eventually.” That’s the comment of Ryan Westphal, the Facilities Director for La Crosse County, Wisconsin, on the long-standing practice of dumping salt on almost any amount of snow.

Read & Share sourced from: Wisconsin Watch

Minot City Council Agenda, January 3, 2023

by: Josh Wolsky | December 31, 2022

Minot City Council will meet Tuesday, January 3, at 5:30 pm to consider the agenda attached below. There are several impactful items on the agenda, but the one that will generate the most conversation is the recommended approval of a first-phase $2.9 million TIF project for Epic Companies Tracks project in SW Minot. This is

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State asks Minnesota Residents to weigh safety & environment when salting slick surfaces

by: Josh Wolsky | December 29, 2022

Slippery roads and sidewalks are a big risk in wintertime, and there’s no better way to deal with them than adding a little salt. But for every action, there is a consequence, and when all that salt is added up, it’s having an impact on lakes and rivers. That’s what our Eastern neighbors in Minnesota

Read & Share sourced from: InForum

A Floodable Bridge? Recreational uses with flood protection benefits

by: Josh Wolsky | December 12, 2022

What does it take to get people across a river without creating an obstruction to waterflow that becomes a hazard during flooding? How about a bridge designed to go underwater that does a good job of letting water pass? If you’re curious, check out the article linked below from UrbanNext. It’s an idea we in

Read & Share sourced from: Urban Next

Another riverwalk master plan promises to breathe life into a city center

by: Josh Wolsky | December 9, 2022

These stories are becoming pretty common. Communities across the continent are recognizing their past mistakes and current opportunities and revitalizing their riverfronts. The question in Minot is will we follow this sound thinking, or will we be left behind? Check out the full Riverwalk concept from Brampton, Ontario below. Get the full story from local

Read & Share sourced from: The Pointer

U.S. scientist urges action to save Lake Winnipeg

by: Josh Wolsky | April 29, 2019

Did you know it’s possible to kill a lake? It is; it happened to Lake Erie. And a scientist who studied that catastrophe sees a similar pattern repeating with Lake Winnipeg. Why does it matter in Minot? The culprit is nutrient loading — particularly phosphorous. If you’ve noticed algae blooms in Minot’s river, you know

Read & Share sourced from: Winnipeg Free Press

Teams searching for cheap way to stop algae blooms, with $10 million prize on the line

by: Josh Wolsky | July 17, 2018

You have an efficient, cost-effective way to remove phosphorous from freshwater bodies? If so, you may want to enter it into an innovation competition sponsored The Everglades Foundation in Florida. The prize: $10,000,000. Whether North or South, algae blooms are an increasing problem and one of the primary contributors is phosphorus-rich runoff that feeds the

Read & Share sourced from: NPR

Stretch of Mississippi River in and around St. Cloud sheds its sullied history

by: Josh Wolsky | July 21, 2017

For one city in Minnesota, the Mississippi River was just a water pathway that flowed through town. It was the place they dumped their sewage; it was the home of meat-packing plants that sent their environmental impacts downstream. They stopped the environmental damage they were doing a generation ago; now their eyes are opening to

Read & Share sourced from: Star Tribune

Popular central Minnesota lakes near ‘tipping points’ for water quality

by: Josh Wolsky | July 11, 2017

Minnesota is the land of 10,000 lakes; many of them offer weekend respite and retirement hideaways. But an environmental threat is putting a few of them at risk. High nutrient loads in the water are the problem, and the solutions are a lot less expensive if they’re enacted before the tipping point is passed. Read

Read & Share sourced from: Grand Forks Herald

River Management Changes Still Years Away – Story | North Dakota

by: Josh Wolsky | June 28, 2017

If you’re up to speed on Minot’s flood protection efforts, you’ve probably heard the term ‘parallel tracks’. That language describes the project’s sponsors attempt to improve flood protection through multiple efforts. One is the infrastructure project in Minot, another is the river management aspect that requires reworking an international agreement between Canada and the U.S. Jim

Read & Share sourced from: KX News