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® C' ® ®V Y' THIEF RIVER FALLS, MN-Some of the most fertile farmland in the Red River Valley will be protected through an estimated $10 million flood-reduction project being planned in an area north of Crookston, Minn. Once all structural components of the project are in place, approximately 40 square miles of flood-prone land would be protected in the Polk County Ditch 2 portion of the Grand Marais Creek subwatershed up to a 10-year, 24-hour frequency storm (3.5 inches). In addition, infrastructure - homes, bridges, and roads downstream of the project components in the 100 square mile drainage area -would be protected from a 100-year frequency event. Other benefits include a 20 percent reduction in sediment loading by installing buffer strips and implementing Best Management Practices across the project area. Fish and wildlife habitat would also be enhanced by wetland and prairie restorations, a channel restoration, and riparian buffer strip installations. "Everyone knows that the Red River Valley has been hard hit by frequent flooding in the past 10 years," said Myron Jesme, Red Lake Watershed District administrator. "These projects will help reduce flood damages to our farmland,. roads, and infrastructure." The Red Lake Watershed District is overall project manager. Crops have been hard hit as a result of flooding in the area. For example, the West Polk County Farm Service Agency reported that flash flooding in June 2000 resulted in a 90 percent loss of the potato crop. The FSA estimated that the West Polk County area experienced more than $44 million in crop loss due to flooding in June 2002. Polk County alone reported repair estimates of $392,400 to roads and bridges, $41,000 for recreational sites, and $10,000 needed for protective measures as a result of early June 2002 flood events. Red Lake Watershed reported $147,000 in damages and the Sand Hill Watershed reported $146,000 in damages in the same flood events. "By using a variety of approaches to help reduce flood damage, the project will provide cost-savings to our farmers and taxpayers in an area that has seen its share of disasters," Jesme said. Funding for the projects would come from a variety of sources, including state bonding money, and cost-share between the Red River Watershed Management Board, the e°~ i`~sir~g a Va~i~ty c~~~ ~s~~~~r~aches ~O help redtlcc #1~~~~~~ ~~1p~1~~`~9 the ~n'~~jcc~ ~~-ill ~?~?'(~~T1C~e C~`~-S~~'11~bS ~O Olll' ~ll'1"YI~TS ~~1C~ ~~? `~~~~i`JeI'~ II"1' illy ~ll'C~l t~~~l~ ~~C~S SC~'ll liS ~~lzll'L C~~ ~~ ~ ~aste~s,'' ~esrne sac . Red Lake Watershed District, and other entities. Costs of ditch improvements would be borne by landowners within the benefited area of the two ditches; the benefiting landowners will need to petition the watershed district for the improvements. Legislation. to help fund the project has been introduced in bonding bills in St. Paul; however, Jesme stresses that whether or not the project moves forward is contingent on passage of the bonding legislation. The project has been named one of several demonstration projects within Governor. Pawlenty's Clean Water Initiative. These projects, selected from four regions in Minnesota, represent some of the state's most unique and important water resource challenges. The Governor's Clean Water Cabinet recently approved the project. For this subwatershed, the challenge is flooding, with a related problem of undersized ditches for the area that they are supposed to drain. A typical ditch draining into the -16