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Item A 15 and 20-Year Summary of Breeding Bird Trends in National Forests of Northern Minnesota and Wisconsin(University of Minnesota Duluth, 2010) Niemi, Gerald J; Howe, Robert; Danz, Nicholas P; Etterson, MatthewThe breeding bird communities of the western Great Lakes region have among the richest diversity of breeding bird species in North America (Robbins et al. 1987; Green 1995, Rich et al. 2004). The importance of this diversity and concerns with potential declines of some species has led to a strong interest in monitoring forest bird populations in the region. The relatively heavily forested landscapes of northern Minnesota and Wisconsin are considered to be population 'sources' for many forest bird species and may be supplementing population 'sinks' in the agricultural landscapes of the lower Midwest (Robinson et al. 1995, Temple and Flaspohler 1998). Analysis of population trends is used as an 'early-warning system' of potential problems in a species population and serves as a measure of the ecological condition of the environment (Niemi and McDonald 2004). Large-scale population monitoring programs such as the U.S. Geological Survey’s Breeding Bird Survey (BBS) provide important information on trends at a continental scale. However, limited coverage in some areas can make it difficult to use BBS data to characterize population trends at smaller geographic scales (Peterjohn et al. 1995). Continental trends also have the potential to mask regional population trends (Holmes and Sherry 1988), thus there is a need for regional monitoring programs that can provide more localized information (Howe et al. 1997). In response to the need for regional population data, a long-term forest breeding bird monitoring program was established in 1991 in the Chippewa and Superior NFs, and in 1992 in the Chequamegon NF. The Forest Service is mandated to monitor certain management indicator species (Manley 1993), and our monitoring program expands beyond indicator species to include all forest songbird species that we can adequately sample. Currently, approximately 420 stands (1,271 points) within the three national forests are surveyed during the breeding season (June 1 to July 10). The primary objective of this report is to update U.S. Forest Service personnel on results of the forest bird monitoring program. Here we focus on relative abundance trends of individual species. Because we slightly changed our point count methodology in 1995 by including unlimited point counts, here we focus on a comparison of the results from three different distance radii x time categories: 1) 100 m radius distance for 1991-2009, 2) 100 m radius distance for 1995-2009, and 3) unlimited distance for 1995-2009. Our intent here is to summarize the most important results and to provide detailed information in appendix form for those who need more specific results.Item 21st Avenue West Remediation to Restoration Project: Biological Survey and Hydrodynamic Modeling Results(University of Minnesota Duluth, 2012) Host, George E; Reschke, Carol; Brady, Valerie; Breneman, Dan; Dumke, Josh; Niemi, Gerald J; Austin, Jay; James, Matthew; Johnson, Lucinda BThe lower 21 miles of the St. Louis River, the largest U.S. tributary to Lake Superior, form the 4856 ha St. Louis River estuary. Despite the effects of more than 100 years of industrialized and urban development as a major Great Lakes port, the estuary remains the most significant source of biological productivity for western Lake Superior, and provides important wetland, sand beach, forested, and aquatic habitat types for a wide variety of fish and wildlife communities. The lower St. Louis River and surrounding watershed were designated an “Area of Concern” (AOC) under the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement in 1989 because of the presence of chemical contaminants, poor water quality, reduced fish and wildlife populations, and habitat loss. Nine Beneficial Use Impairments (BUIs) have been identified in the AOC, including: Loss of Fish and Wildlife Habitat, Degraded Fish and Wildlife Populations, Degradation of Benthos, and Fish Tumors and Deformities. The St. Louis River Citizens Action Committee, now the St. Louis River Alliance (SLRA), was formed in 1996 to facilitate meeting the needs of the AOC. Following the recommendations of the St. Louis River AOC Stage II Remedial Action Plan, the SLRA completed the Lower St. Louis River Habitat Plan (Habitat Plan) in 2002 as “an estuary-wide guide for resource management and conservation that would lead to adequate representation, function, and protection of ecological systems in the St. Louis River, so as to sustain biological productivity, native biodiversity, and ecological integrity.” The SLRA also facilitated development of “Delisting Targets” for each BUI in the St. Louis River AOC in December 2008. The Habitat Plan identified several sites within the AOC with significant habitat limitations. One of these sites, the “21st Avenue West Habitat Complex” (approximately 215 ha; Map 1), was identified by a focus group within the SLRA Habitat Workgroup as a priority for a “remediation-to-restoration” project. The focus group subsequently developed a general description of desired future ecological conditions at the 21st Avenue West Habitat Complex, hereafter referred to as the ‘Project Area’, including known present conditions and limiting factors of the area. In addition, the focus group recommended a process to develop specific plans and actions to achieve the desired outcomes at the site. As the next step toward the creation of an “Ecological Design” for the Project Area, Natural Resource Research Institute researchers, in cooperation with USFWS, USEPA, MPCA, MnDNR, and other partners, sampled the 21st Avenue West site in late summer of 2011 to establish baseline information on vegetation, sediment types, benthic macroinvertebrates, toxins and bird usage of the area. This work will inform development of an ecological design that will allow assessment of restoration scenarios in the Project Area. The project will build on the 40th Ave West Remediation to Restoration effort, which developed an aquatic vegetation model based on depth, energy environment (predicted from a fetch model), water clarity, and other environmental factors. The model allows the evaluation of restoration scenarios involving changes in bathymetry, remediation or enhancement of substrate, reduction in wave energy, and other strategies. In this report we also incorporate a hydrodynamic model of the estuary to inform the ecological design process. Relationships between vegetation and the macroinvertebrate and avian communities will provide information on the efficacy of these strategies in remediating and restoring overall habitat and biological productivity in the 21st Avenue West Habitat Complex. This project was funded under USFWS Cooperative Agreement Number F11AC00517; full details of the project can be found in Attachment 1 of that Agreement.Item 40th Avenue West Remediation to Restoration Project: Biological Survey Results(University of Minnesota Duluth, 2010-11) Brady, Valerie; Reschke, Carol; Breneman, Dan; Host, George E; Johnson, Lucinda BThe lower 21 miles of the St. Louis River, the largest U.S. tributary to Lake Superior, form the 4856 ha St. Louis River estuary. Despite the effects of more than 100 years of industrialized and urban development as a major Great Lakes port, the estuary remains the most significant source of biological productivity for western Lake Superior, and provides important wetland, sand beach, forested, and aquatic habitat types for a wide variety of fish and wildlife communities. The lower St. Louis River and surrounding watershed were designated an “Area of Concern” (AOC) under the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement in 1989 because of the presence of chemical contaminants, poor water quality, reduced fish and wildlife populations, and habitat loss. Nine Beneficial Use Impairments (BUIs) have been identified in the AOC, including: Loss of Fish and Wildlife Habitat, Degraded Fish and Wildlife Populations, Degradation of Benthos, and Fish Tumors and Deformities. The St. Louis River Citizens Action Committee, now the St. Louis River Alliance (SLRA), was formed in 1996 to facilitate meeting the needs of the AOC. Following the recommendations of the St. Louis River AOC Stage II Remedial Action Plan, the SLRA completed the Lower St. Louis River Habitat Plan (Habitat Plan) in 2002 as “an estuarywide guide for resource management and conservation that would lead to adequate representation, function, and protection of ecological systems in the St. Louis River, so as to sustain biological productivity, native biodiversity, and ecological integrity.” The SLRA also facilitated development of “Delisting Targets” for each BUI in the St. Louis River AOC in December 2008. The Habitat Plan identified several sites within the AOC with significant habitat limitations. One of these sites, the “40th Avenue West Habitat Complex”（approximately 130 ha; Figure 1), was identified by a focus group within the SLRA Habitat Workgroup as a priority for a “remediation- to-restoration” project. The focus group subsequently developed a general description of desired future ecological conditions at the 40th Avenue West Habitat Complex, hereafter referred to as the ‘Project Area’，including known present conditions and limiting factors of the area. In addition, the focus group recommended a process to develop specific plans and actions to achieve the desired outcomes at the site. As the next step toward the creation of an “Ecological Design” for the Project Area, Natural Resource Research Institute researchers, in cooperation with USFWS, USEPA, MPCA, MnDNR, and other partners, sampled the 40th Avenue West site during the late summer and fall of 2010 to establish baseline information on vegetation, sediment types, benthic macroinvertebrates, and bird usage of the area. Vegetation, macroinvertebrates, and sediment characterization were also completed for five Reference Areas selected by project cooperators. These Reference Areas represent less disturbed locations having high or low wind and wave exposure that can serve to demonstrate restoration potential for the Project Area. This project was funded under USFWS Cooperative Agreement Number 30181AJ68; full details of the project can be found in Attachment 1 of that Agreement.Item Accuracy and location success of an ultralite GPS unit(University of Minnesota Duluth, 2014) Elfelt, Morgan; Moen, RonaldTechnological advances in GPS tracking units for wildlife have led to smaller and lighter devices. Increased battery life allows for collection of more locations. Before a new device is used in the field, it is important to evaluate its performance in order to more accurately interpret the raw data collected. Our objective was to determine the accuracy and location success of the G10 Ultralite GPS logger for potential use in a study of wood turtles (Glyptemys insculpta). We conducted stationary and moving tests under a variety of device settings and field conditions. For stationary tests, accuracy was measured by calculating the 50% and 95% circular error probable (CEP) at each test location. The CEP is the radius of a circle centered at the true location which contains either 50% or 90% of locations. We also calculated angular dispersion of each dataset, a measure of the direction and concentration of locations. Moving tests were conducted at two sites where wood turtles occur in order to evaluate the GPS unit performance under expected field conditions. Location success was ≥ 95% for all tests, including moving tests, indicating strong potential for consistent performance in the field. Location accuracy was not affected by snapshot size, location interval, or canopy cover. The angular dispersion values calculated indicated little bias in any compass direction, although smaller datasets had greater bias. The 95% CEP for most tests was < 40 m, demonstrating feasibility for assessment of wood turtle movements and habitat use. Integrating use of a temperature sensor would allow for better determination of aquatic vs. terrestrial behavior. To increase accuracy of GPS datasets, data should be screened to identify and remove outliers, using prior knowledge of animal movement characteristics. The high accuracy and location success documented in our tests combined with low power consumption and high storage capacity demonstrates the potential of the G10 Ultralite as an effective animal tracking device.Item Accuracy of a Modular GPS/GLONASS Receiver(University of Minnesota Duluth, 2018) Joyce, Michael; Moen, RonaldOne of the main factors that affect GPS location accuracy is the type of GPS receiver being used. In general, more expensive receivers (e.g., mapping-grade or survey-grade receivers) provide better accuracy, and GPS users must balance GPS receiver cost with location accuracy when determining which receiver to use. Applications of GPS often require use of GPS receivers in less than ideal conditions while GPS manufacturers often report accuracy specifications that can be expected under ideal conditions. Forest canopies reduce GPS accuracy by interfering with signal transmission between GPS satellites and the GPS receiver and causing multipath errors. When GPS receivers are to be used in forest conditions and accuracy thresholds must be met, it is important to conduct accuracy testing in forest conditions rather than relying on accuracy specifications provided by the manufacturer. We tested the accuracy of the SXBlue II + GNSS, a modular, mapping-grade GPS receiver, under forest canopies in northeastern Minnesota. We estimated cumulative accuracy to evaluate the relationship between collection period and accuracy. GPS test sites covered a range of canopy conditions. We compared accuracy among sites to determine how canopy closure influenced location accuracy. Finally, we compared post-hoc methods to evaluate accuracy based on characteristics of the sites and acquired GPS fixes. The SXBlue II + GNSS receiver typically provided meter or sub-meter accuracy, even under forest canopy. Maximum accuracy was achieved after 10-30 minutes. Accuracy was lower at sites with higher canopy closure values. In sites with canopy closure >65%, maximum accuracy was reduced to 1.5 m. Post-hoc filtering to remove outliers did not improve accuracy. There was a strong, positive relationship between 50% CEP, a measure of location precision, and accuracy, suggesting that 50% CEP can be used for post-hoc accuracy assessment. Our results suggest that the SXBlue II + GNSS provides sufficient accuracy for a wide range of applications, including those that require GPS location measurement in forest conditions.Item Accuracy of a Modular GPS/GLONASS Receiver(University of Minnesota Duluth, 2018) Joyce, Michael; Moen, RonaldOne of the main factors that affect GPS location accuracy is the type of GPS receiver being used. In general, more expensive receivers (e.g., mapping-grade or survey-grade receivers) provide better accuracy, and GPS users must balance GPS receiver cost with location accuracy when determining which receiver to use. Applications of GPS often require use of GPS receivers in less than ideal conditions while GPS manufacturers often report accuracy specifications that can be expected under ideal conditions. Forest canopies reduce GPS accuracy by interfering with signal transmission between GPS satellites and the GPS receiver and causing multipath errors. When GPS receivers are to be used in forest conditions and accuracy thresholds must be met, it is important to conduct accuracy testing in forest conditions rather than relying on accuracy specifications provided by the manufacturer. We tested the accuracy of the SXBlue II + GNSS, a modular, mapping-grade GPS receiver, under forest canopies in northeastern Minnesota. We estimated cumulative accuracy to evaluate the relationship between collection period and accuracy. GPS test sites covered a range of canopy conditions. We compared accuracy among sites to determine how canopy closure influenced location accuracy. Finally, we compared post-hoc methods to evaluate accuracy based on characteristics of the sites and acquired GPS fixes. The SXBlue II + GNSS receiver typically provided meter or sub-meter accuracy, even under forest canopy. Maximum accuracy was achieved after 10-30 minutes. Accuracy was lower at sites with higher canopy closure values. In sites with canopy closure >65%, maximum accuracy was reduced to 1.5 m. Post-hoc filtering to remove outliers did not improve accuracy. There was a strong, positive relationship between 50% CEP, a measure of location precision, and accuracy, suggesting that 50% CEP can be used for post-hoc accuracy assessment. Our results suggest that the SXBlue II + GNSS provides sufficient accuracy for a wide range of applications, including those that require GPS location measurement in forest conditions.Item Acoustic Bat Research at Lake Vermilion – Soudan Underground Mine State Park in 2018(University of Minnesota Duluth, 2018-12) Moen, Ronald; Swingen, MorganThe Soudan Mine at Lake Vermilion – Soudan Underground Mine State Park (LVSUMSP) is the largest known bat hibernacula in Minnesota. In 2012, the fungus that causes white-nose syndrome (WNS) was detected in Soudan Underground Mine, and the first bats at this hibernaculum with WNS symptoms were observed during the winter of 2015–2016. The appearance of WNS, observations of dead and dying bats by park staff, and no northern long-eared bats being observed in 2017 winter surveys was cause for concern. In this report we summarize bat call data collected at the Alaska shaft and the No. 8 mine shaft at the Soudan Mine in the spring and fall of 2018. We also include a subset of the bat call data collected in 2017 in this report, as well as data from the 2004 acoustic detector work (Nordquist et al. 2006). A consistent pattern over the past two years of acoustic detection at the LVSUMSP is that the little brown bat is by far the most common species present at the mine shafts. The second most common species is the northern long-eared bat. Little brown bats had begun emerging from the mine shafts in mid-April when we first deployed detectors. There was a linear trend in increasing numbers of bat call files recorded / night until the end of May when detectors were removed. There were more little brown bats recorded / night at the No. 8 shaft in 2004, while currently there are more bat call files recorded / night at the Alaska shaft. In the fall the number of little brown bats recorded remained constant at about 5,000 calls / night at the Alaska shaft until mid-October. As in the spring, there were fewer bat calls / night, in contrast, at the No. 8 shaft. Calls of other bat species are identified in relatively low numbers, less than 1% of the total number of calls except for the hoary bat. The timing of spring emergence and fall swarming was similar in 2004, 2017, and 2018, but there seemed to be more bat call files recorded in 2004. The biological reason is that WNS is causing mortality of some bats. There could also be some differences caused by changes in acoustic detectors and call analysis programs. We required consensus agreement of two different programs, which was a conservative method and resulted in only 20% of the bat calls being identified to species. However, species composition was consistent with expectations and was also consistent with results of other acoustic detection and mist-netting projects in northern Minnesota.Item An Addendum to: Geology and Sulfide Content of Archean Rocks Along Two Proposed Highway 169 Relocations to the North of Sixmile Lake, St. Louis County, Northeastern Minnesota and Geologic Investigations in the Armstrong Lake Area(University of Minnesota Duluth, 2012) Severson, Mark J; Heine, John JThis report summarizes the geochemical results pertaining to the sulfur contents of rock samples collected in the Sixmile Lake area, and thusly, serves as an addendum to a previous report by Severson and Heine (2010). Geologic mapping in the Sixmile Lake area was initiated at the request of the Minnesota Department of Transportation (Mn/DOT) and concentrated on areas where Highway 169 could potentially be re-routed. The second purpose of this addendum is to provide the appropriate GIS-related shape files that were omitted from the initial report by Severson and Heine (2010). These shape files have been finalized and are provided in this report. In addition, reconnaissance geologic mapping took place along other Highway 169 relocations in the Armstrong Lake/McComber Mine area. The results of that endeavor are provided in this report. The results of sulfur analyses for samples collected from the Sixmile Lake area show that most of the samples with ≥ 0.15% analyzed sulfur contents were correctly mapped as “anomalous sulfide zones” by Severson and Heine (2010). However, there were several instances where the visually-estimated pyrite contents did not compare well with the actual sulfur contents due to a “nugget effect” variation in the third dimension. This “nugget effect” variability is troublesome and suggests that some form of drilling should take place in the areas of future road cuts in order to obtain more representative S% values. Examination of rock exposures and recent drilling of the iron-formation in the vicinity of Shaft #2 in the McComber Mine area indicates that pyrite is present in much higher amounts when compared to Sixmile Lake. Thus, additional drilling will be needed in the McComber Mine/Shaft #2 subarea, and possibly in the Clear Lake subarea, in order to obtain a better understanding of the amount of pyrite present.Item Adding Value During the Processing of Panel Products: Final Report(University of Minnesota, Duluth, 1989-12) Edwardson, Christian FMinnesota is the leading producer of oriented strand board (OSB) panels. These panels are typically commodity products such as wall and roof sheathing. This project endeavored to add value to these panels by applying a medium density overlay (MDO) paper and an aspen fiber mat to the surface of the panel. Typical uses of MDO panel products are concrete forms, siding, soffits, signs, and other industrial applications. MDO was applied to OSB panels primarily in a two-step operation so that the results could be used by a primary producer or by a secondary manufacturer. The research effort was aimed at optimizing the methods and operating parameters related to MDO application and to evaluate the panels for various end uses. Additionally, the application of an aspen fiber mat as an overlay or in combination with an MDO was investigated. The report describes in detail the development of recommended process parameters for twostep overlaying of industrial use MDO panels made with an OSB substrate. Full size panels were manufactured successfully using these optimized parameters in a pilot plant press. Also included in the report is a draft preliminary business plan for a fictitious company, MDO Panel Products Inc. This exercise was started to enable an entrepreneur or a primary manufacturer to take the information developed at NRRI and apply it. While the numbers used are preliminary, the economics of such an endeavour appear to be excellent. Finally, aspen fiber mat has been successfully applied in a two-step manufacturing process. This aspect of the study was much more difficult than originally conceived because of the apparent moisture content intolerance of the fiber mat. This work has indicated good potential for economic development and will be continued and expanded with funding of the current GMC proposals. Specifically the new work will look at stress skin panels as building components and further developments of layered composite panels.Item Adhesive Evaluation for Heat Resistance Testing Results(University of Minnesota Duluth, 1999-06) Krause, Victor; Brashaw, Brian KThe objective of this project was to evaluate the heat resistance of membrane pressed thermoformed vinyl panels manufactured by the Natural Resources Research Institute (NRRI) using polyurethane dispersion adhesives supplied by HB Fuller Company.Item Adhesive Evaluation for Heat Resistance Testing Results(University of Minnesota, Duluth, 1995-12) Brashaw, Brian K; Krause, VictorThe objective of this project is to evaluate the heat resistance of membrane pressed thermoformed vinyl panels manufactured by Northern Contours using an adhesive supplied by Kleiberit Inc.Item Advanced Timber Bridge Inspection Techniques: Short Course Outreach(2003) Brashaw, Brian KItem Advancing Technology to Manufacture Trusses From Hardwood Lumber(University of Minnesota Duluth, 2001-09) Brashaw, Brian K; Vatalaro, Robert J; Lackore, Michael; Ross, Robert J; Wang, Xiping; Forsman, JohnLow-grade hardwood lumber is abundant across the Lake States and the Northeast United States. This product has historically been used as pallet lumber, crating material, and firewood with values of $200-$300 per thousand board feet. Further, several low-valued hardwood species have become prevalent in these areas through past forestry practices. In order to actively manage the forests for historical species, new and higher value markets must be established. The purpose of this project was to evaluate the use of sugar maple (Acer saccharum) and red maple (Acer rubrum) as structural lumber in metal plate pitched and parallel chord trusses. Groups of trusses were manufactured with both chords and webs from hardwood lumber, from softwood chords and hardwood webs and from chords and webs from softwood lumber. Testing was completed according to ANSl/fPI 2-1995, Standard for Testing Metal Plate Connected Wood Trusses. Results showed that both pitched and parallel chord trusses manufactured from hardwood lumber had strength and stiffness that was equivalent to or better than softwood trusses manufactured from spruce-pine-fir (SPF) and southern yellow pine (SYP) lumber. Trusses manufactured with SPF chords and hardwood webs had properties that were equivalent to or better than complete SPF trusses. The findings indicate that the potential use of low-grade hardwood lumber as truss lumber would result in large volumes of this material being utilized in a higher value application.Item AgriSorb Product and Market Development (1995-02): Semi-Annual Progress Report(University of Minnesota, Duluth, 1995-02) Brashaw, Brian KObjective: To determine the manufacturing parameters of a corn-based absorbent panel product, manufacture prototypes for market development, specify a manufacturing process, and develop a business plan which would lead to the startup of a manufacturing facility.Item Airborne Imaging Scanner Survey of Northeastern Minnesota(University of Minnesota Duluth, 1990-04) Hauck, Steven A; Ager, Cathy; Pastor, John; Zanko, Lawrence M; Aaseng, NAn airborne imaging scanner survey was flown over two areas in the Duluth Complex and one area along the Vermilion fault zone on September 12, 1988 to detect heavy metal induced stress in plants due to the presence of buried mineral deposits. The Duluth Complex flight lines covered copper-nickel and iron-titanium mineral deposits while the Vermilion fault flight line covered Archean gold mineralization sites. The 63 channel imaging scanner had a spatial resolution of about 9-10 meters and a flight path width of approximately 6.4-7.2 kilometers along three flight lines. Supervised, unsupervised, principal components and inverted principal components analysis and Chebyshev polynomial expansions were used on data collected over two test sites, i.e., the east end of the Archean flight line and the Dunka Pit area, to learn whether or not vegetative stress could be identified in areas with known metallic mineralization. Interpretation of the Dunka Pit test site was abandoned because: 1) the test site was too small; 2) much of the canopy was dead; and 3) the test site was overwhelmed by an adjacent, highly reflective mine dump. At the Archean site, ground spectroradiometer data was collected to assist with the interpretation of the imaging scanner data. The ground data indicated spectral shifts to both longer and shorter wavelengths in vegetation over mineralized compared with unmineralized sites. However, the imaging scanner data did not indicate any evidence of vegetative stress in mineralized areas. At this point, the imaging scanner survey data are useful mainly for discriminating different types of vegetation.Item Alternative Technology for Sediment Remediation(University of Minnesota Duluth, 2000-11-02) Wu, ChuyingDuluth-Superior is a major port of the Great Lakes located at the extreme southwest end of Lake Superior in the cities of Duluth, Minnesota and Superior, Wisconsin. The harbor area occupies roughly 32 square miles and has 100 miles of waterfront. The harbor and lower St. Louis River have a history of water quality problems resulting primarily from municipal and industrial discharges in and upstream of the harbor. As a result, the harbor has been listed by the International Joint Commission as an Area of Concern (AOC) within the Great Lakes ecosystem. The 1995 progress report on the Remedial Action Plan (RAP) for the area identified sediment contamination as the major cause of many impaired uses in the St. Louis Estuary. Contaminants of concern include ammonia nitrogen, phosphorus, metals, oil and grease, PCBs, and PAHs. Contaminated sediments are thought to have detrimental effects on water quality, the diversity and abundance of aquatic and benthic organisms, human health, and disposal options for material dredged during harbor maintenance. The dredged material is stored in the Confined Disposal Facility (CDF) at the Erie Pier in Duluth. The CDF is nearing its capacity, and additional space is required for storage of dredged materials either by construction of a new facility or by extending the life for the one currently used. The Coleraine Minerals Research Laboratory (CMRL) of the Natural Resources Research Institute (NRRI) has, in the past, conducted several research programs to evaluate the construction of a sediment treatment plant at the Erie Pier CDF as an effective way of extending its life. CMRL is currently contracted by the US Army Corps of Engineers (ACE) to develop and engineer a plant to treat the sediment contained in the CDF. This study is being conducted in response to Section 541 of the Water Resource Development Act of 1996, initiated by Congressman Jim Oberstar, which states: "The Secretary shall develop and implement methods for decontamination and disposal of contaminated dredged material at the Port of Duluth, Minnesota". Various agencies including USEPA, Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MNPCA), and NRRI conducted numerous research and survey projects. The sediments in the federal channels were analyzed as part of Dredged Material Management Plant (DMMP), and analyses revealed that metal concentrations in the sediments of all management units were comparable to those found in the regional soils, and that PCBs, pesticides, and PAHs were generally non-detectable. No PCBs and only low levels of PAHs were found in a survey study in Erie Pier CDF conducted by NRRI in 1997. Due to its relatively low contamination level, it is safe to study a number of variables before implementation of the technology to the other highly contaminated areas. The treatment plant should generate data on the effectiveness of using mineral processing technology for separation and decontamination of the sediments. In some cases, the separation products could be cleaned and used for other purposes such as brick manufacturing, landfill cover, beach nourishment, construction fill, and/or habitat enhancement.Item Alternative Technology for Sediment Remediation Demonstration Plant(University of Minnesota Duluth, 2000-11) Benner, Blair R; Wu, Chuying; Zanko, Lawrence MDuluth-Superior Harbor is a major port on Lake Superior located between the cities of Duluth, Minnesota, and Superior, Wisconsin. The harbor and the lower Saint Louis River that discharges into the harbor area have a history of water quality problems resulting primarily from municipal and industrial discharges in and upstream of the harbor. The port is a major debarking point for grain shipments overseas and for taconite pellets for the lower Great Lakes ports. To allow navigation, the shipping channels must be dredged annually. The dredged material has been stored in a confined disposal area developed at the Erie Pier location in Duluth. This facility is nearing its capacity and other methods for handling the dredged material must be found. The Coleraine Minerals Research Laboratory, a division of the Natural Resources Research Institute of the University of Minnesota - Duluth, has been studying the application of mineral processing techniques for treating contaminated soils. The laboratory sampled the Erie Pier site and designed a demonstration plant to treat about 50 tph of material from the site. Based on the previous work and the plant design, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers awarded the laboratory a contract to construct and operate the demonstration plant. The plant consisted of a feeder followed by a grizzly screen to remove large rocks and miscellaneous junk. The grizzly undersize was conveyed to a double deck screen equipped with water sprays. The screen undersize flowed to a sump and pump. The slurry was then pumped to an agitated tank. Material from the tank was pumped to two cyclones to make a size separation. Cyclone overflows were collected and channeled to settling ponds to allow the solids to settle and to provide water for the plant. Cyclone underflow was stockpiled as a sand product. In addition to sending the cyclone overflow to the settling ponds, a belt filter press was tested for about two weeks to treat a portion of the overflow to produce a cake that could be easily handled and a clear filtrate that could be recycled. The objective of the program was to treat different types of materials found at the Erie Pier site to produce a coarse product (cyclone underflow) that contained less than 12 percent by weight particles finer than 200 mesh (75 microns). The underflow should be free draining so that it could be moved by loaders. The distribution of solids, water, inorganic compounds and organic compounds would be monitored. The settling characteristics of the cyclone overflow would be determined. A total of four separate samples were processed in the plant. Sample 1 was a sandy feed containing between 13 and 32 percent in the passing 200 mesh fraction. Sample 2 was a finer material that was removed from the site during construction of the settling ponds. Sample 2 contained between 30 and 52 percent in the passing 200 mesh fraction. Sample 3 was a fine sample dug from the north end of the site where the finest material should have been. Sample 3 was only run for one day due to a break down of the front-end loader used to transport the feed to the plant. The fourth sample was the drained cyclone underflow from the processing of samples 2 and 3. Maintaining a consistent feed to the plant was a continual problem. Clay material in the feed was difficult to disagglomerate and the material tended to form balls, which rolled down the screen decks. Additional water sprays and belting on the top screen deck improved the break up of the clay material but did not eliminate the problem. Another feed problem was the amount of vegetation in the feed. This material tended to bridge in the feeder and to plug the two screen decks, reducing screening capacity, at times significantly. Compounding the feed problem was the loss of the variable frequency drives on the two pumps. Loss of the drives effectively eliminated the ability to make any significant changes in the flowrate to the cyclones and, hence, the ability to affect the cyclone split. Attempts were made to control the cyclone feed by installing a by-pass line to return some of the cyclone feed back to the cyclone feed sump. These attempts were unsuccessful and on numerous occasions resulted in overloading the cyclone feed pump motor causing the motor to stop. Samples of the cyclone feed, overflow and underflow, as well as belt filter press cake and filtrate, when operating, were taken hourly. These samples were saved for future analysis. In addition to the saved hourly samples, a grab sample of each stream was taken hourly and made into a daily composite. The daily composites were filtered with a portion of the filtercake being used for size analysis and the remainder being air dried for chemical analysis. Sample 1 was processed at feed rates up to about 63 tph with no loss in performance. In all tests with Sample 1, the cyclone underflow contained less than 10 percent in the passing 200 mesh fraction. Weight recovery to the underflow ranged between 73.3 and 92.6 percent. In general, the heavy metals and organic material were concentrated in the cyclone overflow, but since the total weight recovery in the cyclone underflow was high, the majority of the heavy metals and organics in the feed remained with the cyclone underflow. The processing of Samples 2 and 3 were more difficult due to the large amount of vegetation contained in the feed. Plant feed rates were generally between 7 and 14 tph. The low feed rates were caused by the vegetation problem and by the need to feed the cyclone a low percent solids to try to make the desired size split. But even at the low percent solids in the feed, the cyclone underflow contained between 18 and 29 percent in the passing 200 mesh fraction. Weight recovery to the underflow ranged from 55 to 72 percent. Despite the high minus 200 content, the cyclone underflow was easy to dewater and formed into a steep sided conical pile. As with Sample 1, the heavy metals and organics were concentrated in overflow sample, which, due to the higher weight recovery, contained the majority of the heavy metals and organics from the feed. Since the cyclone underflows from Samples 2 and 3 still contained too many fines, the cyclone underflow pile was reprocessed through the plant. Resultant cyclone underflow contained between 10.9 and 14.7 percent in the minus 200 mesh fractions and recovered over 90 percent of the feed weight. Again the heavy metals and organics concentrated in the cyclone overflow. Performance of the belt filter press was very impressive. The resultant filtercake was very easy to handle by conveyor belts and would be very easy to haul by truck. The filtercake was almost dry to the touch. Filtrate from the belt filter press was very clean, with turbidity measurements less than 5 ntu. To produce these results required about 1.5 pounds of polymer flocculant for every 3900 gallons of cyclone overflow treated. Analysis of the filtrate indicated no residual polymer in the water.Item Amity Restoration Assessment: Water quality, fish, bugs, people(University of Minnesota Duluth, 2013) Axler, Richard P; Brady, Valerie; Ruzycki, Elaine; Henneck, Jerald; Will, Norman; Crouse, A; Dumke, Josh; Hell, Robert VThis project is also a new contribution from the Weber Stream Restoration Initiative (WSRI) that began in 2005 via private endowments to create a Partnership of university scientists and extension educators, and local, state and federal agency staff to restore and protect Lake Superior Basin trout streams (www.lakesuperiorstreams.org/weber/index.html). The WSRI features a demonstration project targeting the turbidity and sediment impaired Amity Creek watershed for multiple restoration activities. It was awarded an Environmental Stewardship Award from the Lake Superior Binational Forum in 2010 and was honored state-wide by the [Minnesota] Environmental Initiative in May 2013 by being awarded the “Partnership of the Year” for its activities, key elements being: (1) its website for local community education about watershed and water resource issues; (2) creation of interactive, on-line animations of real-time water quality with interpretive information from a site near Amity’s discharge into the Lester River just above its discharge into Lake Superior (within the St. Louis River AOC); (3) development of a multi-agency/organization partnership to pursue trout stream restoration and conservation activities throughout the western Lake Superior basin; (4) designing and carrying out two major Amity restoration projects in 2009 with the City of Duluth and South St. Louis SWCD; (5) mapping landscape stressors for highlighting areas of higher risk for environmental impacts as well as conducting a detailed reconnaissance of riparian zone sediment sources for priority remediation (SSL SWCD, 2009); and (6) developing a successful EPA Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI) project to fund additional restoration related activities from 2010-2014 (MPCA, NRRI-UMD, SSL SWCD partnership, 2010, $843,616).Item Analysis of Oxygen Injection in the Keewatin Taconite Kiln Transfer Chute Using Medusa Heat and Mass Balance Simulation and Mini-Pot Firing Tests(University of Minnesota Duluth, 2004-07-15) Englund, David JPerformance of the Medusa modeling and simulation of the Keewatin Taconite Line 2 furnace, simulating oxygen injection in the first few feet of the kiln to determine oxygen required to achieve magnetite oxidation levels equivalent to ported kiln performance, greater than 95% complete at the kiln discharge point.Item Analytical Chemistry and Quality Assurance Procedures for Natural Water Samples 1994-1995(University of Minnesota Duluth, 1991) Axler, Richard P; Owen, Christopher JOne of the fundamental responsibilities of water management is the establishment of continuing programs to insure the reliability and validity of data. Effective research in water pollution and management depends on a valid laboratory data base, which in turn may contribute to sound evaluations of both the progress of the research itself and the viability of available water pollution and management alternatives.