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'The ~~~ il3~a P~ l~~a~ie ~ea~1t~ icture a place where grass can be seen as far as the eye can see. Overhead, oak trees unfurl their branches. This is the dramatic beauty of the oak savanna. 't'ransition The oak sava:-ina of yesterday provided an important transition from the forests to the prairies. Oak savannas are full of diversity because they share b~~th forest communities and grassland communities. They are a site to behold with the grasses and wildflowers swaying in the breeze under a light canopy of majestic oak trees. Imagine the peace of hearing nothing but the sounds of Mother Nature herself,• birds singing, rustling of leaves and grass, and further back in time the sounds of bison herds grazing. Disappearance The oak savann i l t di 6=. 'f a s a mos a stant memory. ~! ,9 It grew strong because of the adversities of grazing, drought, and fire. Without these ~ _q adversities, especially fire, the oak savanna . turns quickly into forests. Once settlers -' "~` reached oak savannas fires were not allowed r '`` ` to burn freely. Soon much of the oak F~ ~ savanna had disappeared. The oak savannas were attractive places to build homes. When h omes were built the oak savanna was removed. In some areas pieces of the oak savanna still remain. Attention now needs to turn from remembering to restoration and protection of the existing oak savanna. For more information about oak savannas visit the DNR website: www.dnr.state.mn.us '6~ebsil<e Kelps S~®;~el d f you have to make decisions about the shoreland of lakes or rivers there is a website that you may want to check out. The web address is: www.shorelandmanagement ore The website contains information such as fact sheets and scientific articles. This site has information that is important for shoreland management. The site also provides links to state and federal sites pertaining to water. The site is maintained by the University of Minnesota Sea Grant Program. "You cannot escape the responsibility of tomorrow by evading it today!" ~~braham Lincoln _~ _~~..: IJ~de>l~st~d~~ Sa~s~ ~b~ll~ or many people the word sustainability does little to raise controversy or even thought. Many people are not ever. sure what sustainability is or why it is important to them. mat Ts sustainability? sustainability is meeting our needs while ensuring that future generations will be able to meet their own needs. Of course this is simply stated, but for most people it is enough of a definition. If we can affair, B1ERBi Staff: Executive Director: Linda Meschke ~le~eal ~up~~to Darlene Kukuca~lca Jean Murphy Surn~~e~ Intern: Kristin Mato ~EI~I 1Vlegnber S~'CI)s: Blue Earth, ~'Vaseca, Cottonwood, Jackson, lvlartin, Steele, and Watonwari ' sustainability than we will ensure that our grandchildren will live in a world where the Earth can support them. Even though this sounds simple enough there are complications. Three Coen~nents of sustainability sustainability is really not just one issue. it pulls three issues together the environment, econamics, and society. This demonstrates their importance and relation to each other. The first camponent is the environment. The overall goal of sustainability is to protect the environment. If we continue to degrade the environment there will be nothing left for our decedents. Even simple things that we do can leave a lasting effect on the environment. For instance, the cleaners that almost everyone uses in their homes can pollute drinking water. Our parking lots contribute to run-off by preventing water from soaking into the ground. The list goes on and on. Actions such as these are addressed when dealing with sustainability. pf course fixing the environment is usually easier said than done. That is where the other components of sustainability come into play. The second component is economics. In the world we live in today not too many things get done without some sort of economical incentive. This does not mean that everyone should be paid to do the right things for the environment. It more or less means that we need to find ways to make the right way the cheapest way. If we can do this more people -Page 2-