Browsing by Subject "Remediation"
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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 A 250-year assessment of human impacts on Lake Superior: an updated paleolimnological perspective(2013-05) Chraibi, Victoria Lindsay ShawTo understand environmental conditions in Lake Superior over the last two centuries, we conducted a paleolimnological study on two sediment cores collected in the eastern and western regions of the lake. We examined the diatom community assemblages, trace metals, sediment characteristics, and GIS-reconstructed human land use to evaluate the historical impacts of human activities. During European settlement and agricultural development, there is clear indication the diatom community reorganized due to nutrient enrichment. Trace metal profiles tracked a period of mining and ore processing which temporarily increased metal loads to the lake in the mid- to late-20th century. In recent decades, more oligotrophic diatom species were favored, suggesting nutrient decreases associated with remedial activities. The diatom community has reorganized to be dominated by Cyclotella species, providing evidence that water quality changes are being influenced by atmospheric nitrogen deposition and changes in the lake's physical and chemical processes associated with climate change.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 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 Climate and Land Use Change Impacts on N-Loads in Iowa Rivers and Remediation of Tile Water with an Anion-Exchange Resin(2017-12) Wolf, KariThis research was conducted to (1) better understand the underlying reasons for a continuous increase in nitrate loads in the Gulf of Mexico, and (2) if an industrial anion resin can be used at a field scale to reduce N losses from tile-drained watersheds to the rivers. The first objective was accomplished through statistical analyses of climate and land use change impacts on streamflow, baseflow, flow weighted nitrate-N concentrations (FWNC) and nitrate-N-loads in three major rivers of Iowa. The rivers included the Des Moines River, the Iowa River, and the Raccoon River. The results from this analysis showed that natural log of annual streamflow, baseflow, and N-loads were primarily controlled by the precipitation in the corresponding watersheds. For streamflow and baseflow, this precipitation corresponded to the current years as well as previous year precipitation. Previous year precipitation reflected the lack or excess presence of stored water in the soil and its consequences in terms of increased or decreased overland flow, infiltration, and percolation processes. For N loads, the precipitation effect was limited to one-year precipitation for the Des Moines and the Iowa Rivers and two-year precipitation for the Raccoon River. There were individual years when streamflow, baseflow, and N loads were impacted by up to three previous years’ precipitation. Effect of land use change, in terms of increased soybean area, had no effect on annual streamflow, annual baseflow, annual flow-weighted N concentrations or annual N-loads in all three rivers. Additional regression analysis of FWNC and N-loads from 1987-2001 showed no effect of N fertilizer use as an explanatory variable for any of the three watersheds. Statistical analysis of the combined annual data from all three rivers showed that there was a unique relationship between the natural log of streamflow, the baseflow, and the N-yield (N-loads/watershed area) versus the precipitation. The precipitation effects were both in terms of current year precipitation and the previous year precipitation. The coefficient of determination (R2) of Ln(streamflow), Ln(baseflow) and Ln(N load) with precipitation for the combined data were 0.74, 0.70 and 0.54, respectively. Limited scatter in the N-yield data at a given annual precipitation level over three rivers suggested that variation in annual precipitation has much bigger impact on N losses than the differences in cultural or cropping practices between the three river watersheds over the study period. Considering that there has been a 10-15% increase in precipitation in the Upper Midwestern United States in recent years, the combined N Yield relationship with precipitation would suggest that the recent increases in N-loads or increased hypoxic area in the Gulf of Mexico are likely due to increased precipitation. Statistical analysis of N-loads over a shorter period of time (1987-2001) also showed that changes in fertilizer use had no effect on river N-loads. Regression analysis of monthly streamflow, baseflow, N-loads and FWNC concentration showed that natural log of streamflow, baseflow, and N-loads were generally linearly related to precipitation in a given month and a few prior months. In some cases earlier in the season, these variables were also related to previous year’s precipitation, an indication that some of the past water stored in the soil both above and below the drain tile is interacting with current months precipitation and affecting the streamflow and baseflow. In most cases, there was no effect of soybean area on natural log of monthly streamflow, baseflow, or N-loads. A field test on the use of anion exchange resin to remediate tile water for nitrate showed that nitrate adsorption by the resin is instantaneous. The efficiency of the resin to retain nitrate varied 7-46%. This efficiency generally decreased with time due to the presence of sulfate, bicarbonates, and organic anions in tile water, which competed with nitrate ions for adsorption to the resin. In some instances, nitrate concentration in the percolating water was higher than the tile water most likely due to the expulsion of adsorbed nitrate ions on the resin by sulfate ion in the tile water. The results also showed that potassium chloride (KCl) is an effective resin-regenerating agent and provides a means to recycle wastewater as KNO3 fertilizer back on land. Although the use of anion exchange resin is an attractive alternative to passive technologies like bioreactors, saturated buffers, control drainage, etc. for remediating nitrate in tile water, it also presents some challenges in its use under field conditions. These challenges include the fouling up of the resin by sediment, sulfate, bicarbonate, and organic anions in tile water; costs associated with buying of resin and regenerating salt (KCl versus NaCl); need for a large volume of clean water for cleaning of resin; and the difficulty of treating large volume of tile water in-situ. However, the feasibility study shows that small-scale units similar to home water softener can be developed for individual homes in rural area where groundwater may be high in NO3-N concentration and NO3-N remediation is needed.Item An Ecological Design for the 21st Avenue West Remediation-to-Restoration Project(University of Minnesota Duluth, 2013) Host, George E; Meysembourg, Paul; Reschke, Carol; Brady, Valerie; Niemi, Gerald J; Bracey, Annie; Johnson, Lucinda B; James, Matthew; Austin, Jay; Buttermore, ElissaThe 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, listing nine beneficial use impairments (BUIs), such as loss of fish and wildlife habitat, degraded fish and wildlife populations, degradation of benthos, and fish deformities. To address these BUIs, the St. Louis River Alliance (SLRA) completed the Lower St. Louis River Habitat Plan, which identified ecosystems and sites with significant habitat limitations due to contaminated sediments and other unknown factors. The 21st Avenue West Habitat Complex is one of several priority sites for a 'Remediation-to-Restoration' (R-to-R) project. The intent of the R-to-R process is to implement remediation activities to address limiting factors such as sediment contamination while also implementing restoration projects that best complement the desired ecological vision. This report documents the initial steps in the R-to-R process underway at 21st Avenue West, the development of an “Ecological Design” for the project area, and a preliminary evaluation of factors potentially limiting the realization of habitat and other land use goals. To establish the basis for this ecological design, researchers at the University of Minnesota Duluth’s Natural Resources Research Institute (NRRI), in cooperation with U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources and other partners, sampled the project area from late summer 2011 through fall 2012. The intent of field sampling was to establish baseline information on vegetation, benthos, birds, sediment contamination and types, and ecotoxicology. The subsequent ecological design effort will explore options to increase the overall footprint of quality aquatic vegetation beds and spawning habitat available, soften and extend shorelines, and remove or reduce the effect of industrially-influenced substrates. These options will be presented to adjacent landowners, as well as local and regional stakeholders, to contribute to the discussion on R-to-R options. The desired outcome of the project is to significantly increase the biological productivity of this complex of river flats and sheltered bays, in fulfillment of the SLRA Habitat Plan (SLRA 2002), while minimizing the risk of exposure of contaminants to fish and wildlife resources. This project was funded under USFWS Cooperative Agreement Number F11AC00517, and is part of the USFWS Environmental Contaminants Program’s goal to address contaminant-related needs of the St. Louis River Area of Concern as part of the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative.Item An Ecological Design for the 40th Avenue West Remediation-to-Restoration Project(University of Minnesota Duluth, 2012) Host, George E; Meysembourg, Paul; Brady, Valerie; Niemi, Gerald J; Bracey, Annie; Reschke, Carol; 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 '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 purpose of the 'remediation to restoration' process is to implement remediation activities to address limiting factors such as sediment contamination, followed by restoration projects that best complement the desired ecological vision. The focus group 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 potential 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. This report documents the first step in the 'remediation-to-restoration process being implemented at the '40th Avenue West Habitat Complex,' the development of an 'Ecological Design' for the project area, and a preliminary evaluation of those factors potentially limiting the realization of those habitat and other land use goals. This report is intended to serve as a basis for a subsequent feasibility study in which remediation alternatives will be evaluated along with restoration alternatives, which may achieve the habitat goals noted here. This project was funded under USFWS Cooperative Agreement Number 30181AJ68, and is part of the USFWS Environmental Contaminants Program's goal to address contaminant-related needs of the St. Louis River Area of Concern as part of the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative. To establish the basis of an 'ecological design' for the project area, researchers at the University of Minnesota Duluth's Natural Resource Research Institute (NRRI), in cooperation with USFWS, USEPA, MPCA, MNDNR, and other partners, sampled the project area from the late summer 2010 through spring 2011 to establish baseline information on sediment contamination, ecotoxicology, vegetation, sediment types, benthic macroinvertebrates, fish assemblage, 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.Item From traditional to digital: understanding remediation of the postcard through the case of PostSecret.com(2013-08) Armfield, Dawn MauriePostSecret has been credited with blurring the lines between private and public information and traditional media formats and digital media formats. In 2004, what began as one man's art project became a worldwide phenomenon that has continued past the publishing of this dissertation, a lifetime in online lifespans. This dissertation examines a rhetoric of remediation, the dynamics and rhetorical aims of ethos, habitus, and materiality that construct, support, and complicate a traditional to digital remediation of postcards that furthers our understanding of what it means to meet audience expectations and needs in multiple spaces.Item Paleolimnological Reconstructions for the White Iron Chain of Lakes(University of Minnesota Duluth, 2013) Reavie, Euan DTo quantify the environmental history of the White Iron Chain of Lakes (Lake and St. Louis Counties, Minnesota), five lakes were selected for retrospective analyses. Primary goals were to determine pre- European settlement conditions and track the timing and extent of anthropogenic impacts and remediation. Sediment cores were collected from each lake and sediment intervals were dated using isotopic analyses. Fossil remains, in concord with other stratigraphic indicators (organic and inorganic materials, sedimentation rates, other biological entities), were used to reconstruct the ~200-year history of each lake. Pollen analyses allowed for reconstruction of local and regional terrestrial conditions. Geochemical analyses provided data on historical flux of elemental trace metals to the sediments. Diatom assemblages were assessed from sediment intervals and inferred trophic conditions in the profiles were derived using a regional diatom-based model for Minnesota lakes. Eutrophication apparently occurred following settlement, particularly in White Iron Lake, but reconstructed phosphorus trends indicate more recent nutrient reductions. Pollen data track the decrease in pine abundance in the region and the rise of birch. Sedimentary metals largely reflect physical changes in the system, such as a change in sediment deposition regimes resulting from damming. Recent increases in metals are probably a result of increasing accumulation of soil and bedrock materials, a trend that is supported by increasing accumulation rates of overall organic and inorganic material. These recent increases in the last 30-40 years, which include increased algal deposition in Birch, Farm and Fall lakes, are not well explained at this time, but may be due to shifting water quality unrelated to phosphorus and possibly hydrological changes.