2005-10-27_AgendaPacket - Laserfiche WebLink

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I" ~' (Y ~'®S 5 An®ther busy fall season at the RC `~ - WAT E R ` '~~-% RESOURCES UPDATES ~~° 6` ~ ~ Ho~v can you help improve the quali~~ of Milmesota's l~lkes and livers? It`s sim- ple. Show up. Speak up. Write a check. In other words, get in the g~une. Get involved. Join yolu lord lake association or neighborhood association. Local development issues; which often impact nahlral resources, are often guided alxl inspu~ed by grassroots groups with shbng opinions about what kinds of devel- opment are appropriate for lmaintailling the enviromneut~d integl~ty as well as a sense of place ill their particltlar neighbor- hood. Make phone calls, write letters and send emails to your elected and appointed officials. Your city council, yolu phuluing COllmmSSlOll, and yOLlr COllnty COll11mS- sioners need to luiow how you feel about preserving Nlimlesota`s nahu-al heritage. Uote in decision-makers who under- stand the need to balance development la%ith conservation ~d who will work to make that happen. Campaign for candi- dates who will stand up for healthy lakes ~md lovers. And once they're successfidly elected, help them accomplish these envi- ronmental goals. Attend and pauticipate in civic meet- ings to discuss filhue growth and develop- ment in your connmtnity. The Miles are made by those v~%ho show up. They are not made by those who stay at home and watch renuls. Pauticipate in the betterment Of }%Onr COlllllAllmt)%. If you cam't be as active as you want, write atax-deductible check to support a 110llplOflt OrgaluZatlOn that 1S wOrh- ing to preserve the natural envirolmlent for public benefit A couple of esaumples are 1000 Friends of Mimlesota and the Mirmesota La~l~es Association. Run for an It seems with evel-~- one of these letters Iwrite. Irefer to some type of admirlistratlve or stnlchual chance on campus that may impact our relationships with conlmutli- ~'_ -~ ties in Mimlesota and elsewhere. This letter is no e~cep- ~~;`-~ ~ ~ - lion. This fall we ~ti~ill embark as a campus comm~lulity on ,_ ~ `, the integration of the Colle~~e of Nahlral Resources Auld the ~ ~;~. ~. ! ~ ~ Colle~~c of A~~riculhu-al. Food. and Lnviroluncntal Scieuc- - t:_ ~._ es. To have a plan in place for this tntcgration by the end ol~ _ --~ the fall semester gill require much thoughtful effort on the part of faculn~. staff. and students. As wc; morph into the '`new expanded eolle~~e.'~ the Water Resources Center will be an inlporlault part of the discussions. with the clear expectation that ~~~e will grow anci hcive an increased campus presence. All of this will happen while our ~~~ork ou water resources issues continues. Here is a sample of «~hat is hapl~~erung ibis fall: In Septeulber, we are sponsoring and facilitating three «~orkshops for watershed managers on determining social indicators to evaluate project progress. ~1'his is clone as part of our regional U.S. Department of Agriculttue-Cooperati~~e State Research. l;ducatiou. and Tstellsion Sea%ice project. The workshops are part of our six-state. U.S. hm~ironnleutai ProtectionAgency-Region five effort to use social indica- tors along with administrative and enviromnental indicators to document program success. In conjunction ~~~ith the Mimlesota Pollution Control Agencv. we are i;oncentratin~ the «~orlcshops ou e~~aluatine Section X19 uonpoint source pollution projects. but we hope they will be a part of evahtatiug other water programs across our region. Stxv tuned for periodic updates on this effort "I11is is truly covering new ten-itot-~~! ~Ue will launch the first of tlu~ee campus fonuns about carbon sequestration in Ntinnlesota landscapes as a part of a program funded by the hutiati~~c for Rene~~~- atile Energy and l~nviromneut to evahtata the potential for obtaitung tradable carbon credits. T11is effort ~~~i11 result in a major conference in fall ?006. and the establish- nlent of pilot projects to demonstrate the viability of scquestcrin~ carbon in Mi~- nesota. As a part of our continuing Memo of tltldcrstandiugwith the Mcl:ong River Colmmissiou. we ~~~ill sponsor a campus thrum to discuss how em~ironmeutal resto- rationefforts in the Upper Mississippi River Basin can provide guidance in adch~ess- ing Mekong River T3asin em~iromnental problems. while using what ~~ ~ learn from the Mekong to help us with our own trans-boundar~~ issues between states in the Upper and Lower Mississippi River Basin. A11 of this in the midst of our campus change! On one hand, when I ilurllc of these efforts I am daunted b~ the t~n51:s at Mind. but ou the other haunt. I am as excited as a Scandinavi<ul can get by all of the great opportunities to increase the Liniversity of Milulesota's presence in addressing water resource issues. Jim Anderson, WRC Co-Director elected public office. Become a member of your city council, or become a comity commissioner, or get appointed to your local plamiing conmussion or Board of Adjushnent. Show up, speak up, write a check; and remember the words of aultlu~opologist Margauet Mead, who said. `Never doubt that a small group of thoughtfitL connnit- led citizens cm change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has." For more information, send am e-mail message to die North Central Mimiesota Lakes Project (NCNIL) at lalcewaves a,dnr. state.nm.us. NCML is part of Governor Pawlenty's Clean Water hlitiative. Contents taken from a Minnesota Department of Na"rural Resources press release, August 29, 2005 ~6nr~~~rarr~ ~