RiversReport

SUMMER 2013 | volume 4 no. 3

The Respect Our Waters Campaign Growing in 2013

JEFF MARTINKA, SWEET WATER

Learning for life

S
Respect Our Waters at Fondy Food Market

Coming in September
9th Annual Great Lakes Restoration Conference to be held in Milwaukee September 10 12. Registration is open. More information can be found at conferencehealthylakes.org

weet Water and Root-Pike Watershed Initiative Network (WIN) are expanding a region-wide, two-year $260K campaign called Respect Our Waters, funded by Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (WI-DNR) grants written by Sweet Water and Root-Pike WIN and with support from more than 30 municipal and private partners. The effort is raising public awareness of the harm caused by nonpoint source pollution and offers tips on ways residents can help. The education work is based on the results of a recent survey which showed that the public lacked an understanding of the pollution from stormwater and their own potential role in reducing pollution carried by stormwater draining from our streets, driveways, and yards. The 2013 Respect Our Waters campaign is expanding on last years efforts. After reviewing competing proposals from area television stations, WISN Channel 12 (an ABC affiliate) was selected as primary media sponsor this year. The station will be providing a substantial boost in advertising coverage from the 2012 television campaign, offering almost a 3 to 1 ratio of

promotion value to cash investment. Respect Our Waters ads will be running on Channel 12 from May 6 through September 29. In addition, Sweet Water and Root-Pike WIN will be promoting the campaign at more than 40 local events, including farmers markets, National Night Out events, local festivals and summer concerts. At our tables, area residents can get free Sparkles pins and pet poop bags, learn simple tips on reducing stormwater pollution impacts on our rivers and Lake Michigan, and register to win free rain barrels or a free rain garden. Details about past and future community appearances are available at respectourwaters.org at the Community Events tab. Also new in 2013, our mascot Sparkles will be appearing on 3 million Milwaukee Journal Sentinel bags this summer and fall. With a simple direct message on the bags, Sparkles highlights the importance of public involvement and directs readers to the Respect Our Waters website. The bags, themselves made from partially

Inside this Issue

Welcome Ghassan Korban........ 2 Sweet Water Update............... 3 Milwaukees Magnificent Waters................. 4 John Gurdas Built on Water..... 5 Sweet Water Mini-Grants and Friends of the Parks................ 6 Conservation on Ag Lands....... 7 Upcoming Events.................... 8

Continued on bottom of page 4

TINA KROENING, SWEET WATER

s Milwaukee Deputy Commissioner of Public Works Preston Cole steps down as a Sweet Water Steering Council member, we are privileged to announce the election of Milwaukee Commissioner of the Department of Public Works Ghassan Korban, trading one valuable Steering Council member for another.
Youth from Neu Life and their arty rain barrels

Ghassan Korban

Preston Cole was a founding member of the Sweet Water board, representing the City of Milwaukee since the organizations incorporation. Mr. Cole is also the elected Chair of the seven-member Wisconsin Natural Resources Board, first appointed by Governor Doyle and recently reappointed by Governor Walker. His advice at Steering Council meetings will be greatly missed, but Preston remains only a phone call away. Ghassan Korban was elected to serve on the board at its June 18th bi-monthly meeting. Mr. Korban was appointed Commissioner of Public Works by Mayor Tom Barrett in 2011 and confirmed by the Milwaukee Common Council. He is responsible for a $500 million capital, operating and maintenance budget and 2,500 employees. Commissioner Korban has been with the Department of Public Works for 25 years. Prior to being appointed as Commissioner, he was the Coordination Manager for the Department of Public Works where he was responsible for administering Public Works contracts. Ghassan also served as the liaison between the Department of Public Works and the Department of City Development on development projects to the Citys Business Improvement Districts. Commissioner Korban earned a BS in Civil Engineering and a MS degree in Construction Management from Marquette University. Mr. Korban is a board member of the Milwaukee Riverwalk District, the Advisory Committee on Transportation Systems Planning and Programming for the Milwaukee Urbanized Area, and the City of Milwaukee Capitol Improvement Committee. With Commissioner Korbans experience and expertise, we look forward to his counsel on our board as our new City of Milwaukee representative, helping to guide Sweet Waters efforts in the region.

n July 22, 2013, the Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District (MMSD) Commission approved a ground-breaking Regional Green Infrastructure Plan for the 411-square-mile MMSD planning area. The Plan recommends adding 740 million gallons of green infrastructurestrategies like rain barrels, green roofs and porous pavementacross the region. By comparison, the MMSDs tunnel system is 521 million gallons. The new Plan is one part of MMSDs strategy to reduce the risk of basement backups and sewer overflows when it rains heavily. MMSDs plan ramps up implementation of green infrastructure, providing widespread benefits. Through its successful pilot projects, MMSD knows that green infrastructure works at the beginning of storms, right where rain falls. By catching and holding rain, it treats water as a resource, saving capacity in municipal and MMSD sewers and filtering polluted stormwater runoff before it reaches area waterways. The Plan was prepared for a number of reasons. It provides guidance for implementing MMSDs 2035 Vision to capture the first 0.5 inch of rain that falls on impervious areas of the District. It complements MMSDs Private Property Inflow and Infiltration (PPI/I) Reduction and Integrated Regional Stormwater Management (IRSWM) programs. It will likely help meet pollutant load reductions required to achieve water quality standards to be outlined in third-party Total Maximum Daily Loads (TMDLs) later this year. And, it will help meet MMSDs new discharge permit requirement for green infrastructure. The 740 million gallons of new green infrastructure capacity recommended in the Plan will be implemented over the course of more than 20 years. It will involve widespread public and private installations of all sizes.

You can read the Plan on MMSDs green infrastructure website here: http://www.h2ocapture.com/en/GI-Plan.aspx. For more information, please contact Karen Sands at (414) 225-2123 or ksands@mmsd.com.
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Photo: MMSD

An Exchange of Talents on the Sweet Waters Steering Council

MMSDs Regional Green Infrastructure Plan

Karen Sands, Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District

Summertime at Sweet Water

JEFF MARTINKA, SWEET WATER

hope you are having a good summer. Heres a sampling of current project work involving Sweet Water partners:

Announcing the 2013 Sweet Water Mini-grant RFPs

Based on initial fundraising success, Sweet Water plans to host a 2013 mini-grant round this fall. Community Jeff Martinka and civic groups should start planning their mini-grant proposals now, with an expected grant submission deadline of November 1, 2013. Well post on Sweet Waters website and Facebook pages and send out more details in our next WatershedWatch e-newsletters. If you are not on that listing already, add yourself by writing info@swwtwater.org. To learn about several recent Sweet Water mini-grants, check out the story by Joan Herriges in this RiversReport.
Milwaukee Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) Project Advances

Some of the Menomonee River partners Menomonee Watershed-Based Permit Partners Active This Summer

Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage Districts TMDL consultants are confident the four Milwaukee area TMDLs will be completed and submitted by December. Sweet Water continues work with MMSD in engaging TMDL stakeholders and four Sweet Water representatives serve on the TMDL Development Team. The next TMDL stakeholder workshop is planned for October at which time the allocated loads will be reviewed with permit holders. Eighty to one hundred have attended the five prior sessions. Notes and slides from all past TMDL stakeholder meetings are available at www.mmsd.com. Updated TMDL Schedule:

Water quality modeling completed: Late summer/fall 2013 Allocated loads presented to stakeholders: October 2013 Final TMDLs delivered to WDNR/US EPA: November/December 2013 TMDL Implementation Plan development: January through September 2014

The Menomonee River Watershed-Based Permit was approved by the WDNR and US EPA in November 2012 and is the first true watershed-based stormwater permit in the entire country. The 11 municipalities joined by the permit are now working hard to forge new partnerships. Two subcommittees are underway, one chaired by Jeff Ezra Meyer, Cheryl Nenn, and Nettesheim of Dennis Grzezinski Menomonee Falls is working on efforts on illicit discharge detection and a second, chaired by Tim Thur of the City of Milwaukee, is working on selection of joint watershed projects. The municipalities are being supported by Sweet Water partners Dennis Grzezinski (Midwest Environmental Advocates), Ezra Meyer (Clean Wisconsin) and Cheryl Nenn (Milwaukee Riverkeeper).
Save the Date the 10th Clean Rivers Clean Lake Conference - May 1st, 2014

Three additional stakeholder workshops are planned for 2014. All information about upcoming stakeholder workshops, as well as TMDL e-updates, will be provided via email. To be added to the e-list, send your email address to mketmdl@yahoo.com.

Based on the strong attendee reviews, our Planning Committee volunteers have chosen to return to the Harley-Davidson Museum next year, setting a date of Thursday, May 1, 2014. If you have great 2014 speaker or topic ideas, please send them to martinka@swwtwater.org.

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Explore and Restore Milwaukees Magnificent Waters

Lesley Sheridan, Urban Ecology Center
Photo: Urban Ecology Center

contaminated sediments, and improve the aesthetics and recreational opportunities on the rivers. Get more involved in the watershed where you work, live, and recreate through these opportunities: Attend Built on Water Lecture Series. Discover the rivers past and future with a visual lecture series by Milwaukee historian John Gurda. Starting in September, these lectures exploring the history of our relationship with our waterways will take place throughout the region. Participate in an Explore and Restore Expedition. Experience Milwaukees Magnificent Waters with field trips to AOC project sites with the Urban Ecology Center. Become a Citizen-Based Aesthetics Monitoring Program (CAMP) Volunteer or River/Beach Ambassador. Collect data that contributes to assessing the appearance and enjoyment of the rivers and inform others of the issues and efforts that affect us and our rivers.
Photo: Urban Ecology Center

Paddling the Milwaukee River

eople have long been attracted to the rivers and lakes that characterize present-day Milwaukee. Throughout history Milwaukees rivers have tremendously affected the people of this area. People have relied on these now-urban waterways for food, travel, trade, industry, and recreation. But just as Milwaukees Magnificent Waters have affected us, our actions and behavior affect the rivers we love and rely on. In 1987, the Milwaukee Estuary was designated an Area of Concern (AOC) by the federal government. The waters of the Milwaukee Estuary are considered impaired as the result of historical modifications like dredging and straightening, and from heavy pollutant loads. The Milwaukee Estuary is one of forty-three AOC-designated Great Lakes watersheds in the U.S. and Canada. Areas of Concern are evaluated on fourteen characteristics called Beneficial Use Impairments. To reach the ultimate goal of becoming delisted, an AOC must reverse degradation of Beneficial Use Impairments. Currently, the Milwaukee Estuary AOC has eleven Beneficial Use Impairments, but state agencies and local partners are working on projects throughout the watershed that improve fish and wildlife habitat, remove Continued from page 1 recycled product, encourage newspaper readers to reuse the bags to pick up after their pets. In addition, Respect Our Waters ads will be promoted on regional social media to supplement the other parts of the campaign. WISN.com will be featuring ads on its home page and news sections and the campaign will also be promoted on a variety of partner websites and Facebook pages. The campaign is supported by funding from a partnership of more than 30 municipalities from Kenosha County to Ozaukee and Washington Counties, matched by funds from the WI-DNR.
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KK River Clean-up Team

Grants have been written, funds secured, and projects are underway the only thing missing is YOU! Get informed, get inspired, and get involved with Explore and Restore: Milwaukees Magnificent Waters. Register for events through Urban Ecology Center at urbanecologycenter.org.

Communities that joined in Sweet Waters portion of the funding this season include Brookfield, Brown Deer, Cudahy, Elm Grove, Fox Point, Germantown, Glendale, Greenfield, Menomonee Falls, Mequon, Milwaukee, Milwaukee County, Ozaukee County, South Milwaukee, St. Francis, West Allis, West Milwaukee, and Whitefish Bay. The support from those communities is backed by voluntary contributions from 17 additional governmental partners of Root-Pike WIN to the south. More information on the campaign is available at respectourwaters.org.

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Sweet Water Mini-Grants and Friends of the Parks Go Together

Joan Herriges, Sweet Water

weet Waters Water Quality Mini-Grant Program has been in existence since 2010 and has awarded 43 mini-grants from a total of 90 submissions over the four separate funding years of the program. Last year, the mini-grant range was between $1,000 and $5,000. During the three years of the mini-grant program, a number of applications have been from groups that are friends of the various Milwaukee County Parks. These Friends groups are composed of dedicated volunteers who are very aware of the needs of their neighborhood park. Since the County Parks have experienced
Photo: Friends of Estabrook Park

washed-out a ravine bridge that lead to the beach on Lake Michigan. When visitors traversed the steep bluff to the beach, plants and ground cover were trampled, causing severe erosion. The bridge was replaced this spring with funding from FEMA. The $5,000 mini-grant awarded by Sweet Water, along with matching funds, was used by the Friends volunteers to replace lost soil and plant native plants that will keep the soil in place, absorb water, and prevent erosion. Local middle school students grew some of the plants from seed, and planted them alongside the adults, as did a local Boy Scout troop. In addition to using native plants, other erosion control measures were used.
Photo: Friends of Grant Park

Friends of Estabrook Park Rain Garden

Friends of Grant Park at work on trail

several decades of budget cut-backs which have affected physical upkeep of the parks, Friends groups have sprouted to fill some of the void. A positive outcome of some Friends groups efforts has been going beyond traditional physical upkeep by using green infrastructure to solve problems caused by storm water runoff. Green infrastructure takes many formsincluding rain gardens, native and prairie plantings, plant buffers next to streams and rivers, and bio-swales for water retention and cleansingto name a few. Two examples of these groups are Friends of Grant Park and Friends of Estabrook Parkboth were 2012 Sweet Water Mini-Grant Program winners. The Friends of Grant Park began their mini-grant project this spring to restore eroded ravine slopes. In 2010, a severe rain storm

The Friends of Estabrook Park have used green infrastructure this spring and summer to install a rain garden with its $1,500 mini-grant award from Sweet Water. The purpose of the rain garden is to catch storm water runoff and prevent erosion of soil and silt to the Milwaukee River from a nearby dog park. Americorps workers excavated the garden and the Friends group planted the area. Some of the spring plantings were eaten by rabbits and will be replaced later this summer with species less attractive to rabbits. Sweet Water will offer another round of mini-grants this fallkeep abreast of application information starting in September on our web site at www.swwtwater.org. Sweet Water invites diverse organizations to apply, and were always delighted to make more Friends along the way.

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Smooth Transition for GIS Staff

Ben Gramling, 16th Street Community Health Center

n July, Sweet Water bid farewell to its most recent GIS (Geographic Information Systems) Intern, William Mobley. Will completed his graduate studies in urban planning and GIS at UW-Milwaukee earlier in the year and is now headed off to tackle a Ph.D. program at Texas A&M University. Will also worked with CH2M Hill on GIS aspects of MMSDs Regional Green Infrastructure Plan. With Wills departure, Sweet Water welcomed Vincent Ferguson to its GIS Intern position. Vincent is currently working on a graduate degree in urban planning at UW-Milwaukee, and is excited to bring his GIS talents to the field of water resource protection. Ongoing GIS projects that Vince is taking over include: Geographic prioritization of Commercial/Industrial Stormwater BMPs in the Menomonee and Kinnickinnic Watersheds with American Rivers Analysis of existing land use policies on stormwater management in the Menomonee Watershed with 1000 Friends of Wisconsin

Development of a web-based map showing the locations of projects funded with past Sweet Water mini-grants, and a similar map showing the locations of Sweet Water Priority Projects as identified in its 2011 Implementation Plan. The work of Sweet Waters GIS Intern is an extension of its GIS Committee, which functions to connect GIS skills and a growing array of GIS data sets with projects that are working to improve Southeastern Wisconsins water resources. Project staff or organizations that have unmet GIS needs are encouraged to contact the Sweet Water Watershed Coordinators identified below to discuss how the GIS Intern could be of help to their project. Menomonee Watershed Coordinators: Sean Foltz (sfoltz@americanrivers.org) and Cheryl Nenn (cheryl_nenn@milwaukeeriverkeeper.org) Kinnickinnic Watershed Coordinator: Ben Gramling (ben.gramling@sschc.org)

Conservation on Agricultural Lands

Chris Clayton, River Alliance of Wisconsin
Photo: River Alliance of Wisconsin

has on water quality in the Milwaukee River Basin, and they understand the importance of taking different approaches to reduce agricultural runoff. Several years ago, the DNR implemented the Priority Watersheds Program, and as a result, many gains were made to improve water quality. In the Milwaukee River Watershed, direct runoff from many barnyards to streams was addressed, and a number of farmers began using conservation tillage.
Photo: River Alliance of Wisconsin

Photo taken on July 17 of a field planted with soybeans in the Ulao Creek Watershed. Many crops, like these soybeans, are growing behind schedule. Frequent early-season rains coupled with an extended period of bare soils foreshadow a relatively poor year for water quality.

onservation on agricultural landsthings such as buffer strips, grassed waterways, and the use of cover cropsis not always practiced in locations or in ways that improve and protect water quality. A project in the Ulao Creek Watershed, located in Ozaukee County, aims to address this issue by using conservation in specific fields that contribute the highest amount of pollutants to the creek, which flows into the Milwaukee River. With help from the Fund for Lake Michigan, the Ozaukee County Land and Water Management Department is leading this project along with the River Alliance of Wisconsin. These partners understand the impact agricultural runoff
Photo taken on June 19 of a newly planted field in the Ulao Creek Watershed. Because of the frequent early-season rains and presence of clay soils in the watershed, planting was delayed.

However, water quality studies have shown that agricultural lands annually contribute about 30 percent of all phosphorus and 68 percent of all total suspended solids to the Milwaukee River watershed. These pollutants play a significant role in the annual algae blooms that occur at different locations in the watershed. Continued on page 8
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Continued from page 7 Wisconsins water quality standards for phosphorus cannot be met in the Milwaukee River without addressing both urban and rural pollution sources. A water quality study due to be completed this fall will document the kinds of phosphorus and sediment reductions that must take place in small watersheds throughout the Basin, like the Ulao Creek Watershed, to achieve water quality standards. The Ulao Creek project takes a straightforward approach to reducing pollutants; do an inventory of the phosphorus levels present in the soils of roughly 4,000 acres of farmland, then use a nutrient management planning tool to estimate the risk of phosphorus runoff from each farm field to Ulao Creek. With those results in-hand, well begin to discuss implementing conservation practices with the farmers who can have the greatest impact on improving the water quality of Ulao Creek. The inventory and data-crunching phases of the project will be finished by the end of the summer, allowing us to work with the agricultural community to reduce phosphorus runoff. In the meantime, Ozaukee County, Milwaukee Riverkeeper volunteer stream monitors, and the River Alliance of Wisconsin are all pitching in to collect data detailing Ulao Creeks current water quality conditions. The Ulao Creek project is just one example of multiple partners working together through Sweet Water, and in new ways, to make progress toward achieving the regions water quality goals.

Upcoming Events
Friday, August 9 Great Lakes Water Levels Community Workshops 1:00 PM - 3:30 PM Port of Milwaukee | Milwaukee, WI 2323 South Lincoln Memorial Drive For more information, contact coastal@wisconsin.gov Saturday, August 20 Hank Aaron State Trail 5K Run/Walk Registration: 7:00 8:15 AM Race start: 8:30 AM Info and registration at hankaaronstatetrail.org September 10 12 9th Annual Great Lakes Restoration Conference Milwaukee Center 400 West Wisconsin Avenue Milwaukee, WI Information and registration at http://conference.healthylakes.org September 9 12 Great Lakes Week: In Conjuction with the Great Lakes Restoration Conference Events in various locations in Milwaukee Information and registration at http://glweek.org Now through September 6 2013 River Alliance of Wisconsin Photography Contest Deadline for submissions September 6 at 11:59 pm http://www.wisconsinrivers.org/ get-involved/photography-contest Fall Courses for Water Technology Certificate UWM School of Continuing Education
September 12 - 13: Design and Maintenance of Stormwater Infiltration Practices September 25:

to Wastewater
October 9:

Introduction

Sustainable Water Management Native Landscape Design for Stormwater

October 17:

Contact Murali Vedula for more information at mvedula@uwm.edu or 414-227-3121 http://www4.uwm.edu/sce/certificate. cfm?id=1341 October 15 - 17 Lake Michigan: State of the Lake Conference Blue Harbor Resort | Sheboygan, WI Information and registration at http://aqua.wisc.edu/solm/Home.aspx

RiversReport
Sweet Water 600 East Greenfield Avenue Milwaukee, WI 53204 382-1766 WEB swwtwater.org EMAIL martinka@swwtwater.org morgan@swwtwater.org
PHONE (414)

PARTNERS
MANAGING EDITOR Kate Morgan, Sweet Water

Learning for life

University of Wisconsin Extension 9501 W. Watertown Plank Road Wauwatosa, WI 53226
PHONE (414)

CONTRIBUTING EDITORS Jeff Martinka, Sweet Water Gail Epping Overholt, UW-Extension This publication made possible in part through the generous support of

256-4632 WEB naturalresources.uwex.edu EMAIL gail.overholt@ ces.uwex.edu

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