Best Western Marshall Inn on Wednesday, March 21, 2001

The title and focus of Wednesday's portion of the conference was Southwest Minnesota Ground Water Conference. The following information is taken directly from the conference pamphlet:

Is your community going to have enough clean water at affordable prices in the 21st century? Southwest Minnesota has a geological history which has left fabulous farmland, but left behind limited and in many cases vulnerable sources of groundwater. Small and large communities are straining the capacity of known water supplies, and contamination of those critical supplies is an increasingly costly problem. The Southwest Minnesota Water Plan Coordinators and Department of Natural Resources invite you to discuss groundwater supplies and protection in southwest Minnesota.

Agenda

8:30-9:00 a.m. Registration, Coffee and Rolls

9:00 a.m. Conference begins

Land and Water Interdependence: Our Cultural History - Joe and Tony Amato

Groundwater: What we know about- *Where it is *How much there is *How good it is

What communities are experiencing if they have shallow wells or deep wells - Case Studies

Wellhead Protection: Taking care of what we have - State, county, and city roles

Water and Economics - Steve Taff

Afternoon sessions to include audience and panel discussions.

With Presentations From: Southwest State University, Minnesota Rural Water Association, Lewis and Clark Rural Water, Lincoln-Pipestone RWS, Red Rock RWS, Minnesota Corn Processors, Southwest Regional Development Commission, Marshall Municipal Utilities and Worthington Public Utilites

Co-sponsored by SW Minnesota Water Plan Coordinators and Department of Natural Resources. In cooperation with Southwest State University and MN Office of Environmental Assistance For more information contact: Marilyn Bernhardson, Redwood County Water Plan Coordinator, 1241 E. Bridge Street Redwood Falls, MN 56283 (507)637-2427 or any Southwest Minnesota Water Plan Coordinators

Southwest Minnesota State University - Bellows Academic 202 on Thursday, March 22, 2001

The title and focus of Thursday's portion of the conference was Southwest Minnesota Surface Water Confernce. The following information is taken directly from the conference pamphlet:

Conference Description

This conference is devoted to surface water concerns of Southwest Minnesota: *our legacy of drainage *the effort to restore prairie wetlands *surface water legal issues *river conservation. Join us for an analysis of one of our greatest resources: the water on the land.

Sponsors

*The Center for Rural and Regional Studies *The Environmental Science Program *Bush Foundation *Minnesota State Colleges and Universities Center for Teaching and Learning Conference conducted in cooperation with the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. Organized and moderated by: *Dr. Doug Spieles, Environmental Science Program *Dr. Geoff Cunfer, Center for Rural and Regional Studies

Conference Agenda

8:00 a.m. Registration, coffee, and rolls. Sign-up for noon field trip and lunch at Black Rush Lake; box lunch available for $5.00 (50 spaces available, no advance registration)

8:30 a.m. An Overview of Wetland Restoration in Southwest Minnesota - Rich Papasso, Refuge Operations Specialist, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

9:00 a.m. Southwest Minnesota State University Student Research on Wetlands in Southwest Minnesota.

A History of Agricultural Drainage in Murray County, Minnesota - Dennis Guse

Ecology of the Black Rush Lake Wetland Restoration - Amanda Goebel and Amanda Smith

Potential Wetland Restoration Sites in the Redwood River Water Shed - Kory Werk

10:15 a.m. Break

10:30 a.m. Morning Keynote Address: "Discovering the Unknown Landscape: A History of America's Wetlands" - Ann Vileisis, independant scholar

11:45 a.m. Field trip to Black Rush Lake wetland restoration. Transportation provided.

2:15 p.m. Lake Cochran and Interstate Water Disputes - Doug Simon, Assistant Professor, Public Administration and Political Science

3:00 p.m. Afternoon Keynote Address: "Lifelines: The Case for River Conservation" - Tim Palmer, independant scholar

4:00 p.m. Wrap-up: Geoff Cunfer and Doug Spieles

4:30 p.m. Gathering at the Chalet

About the Keynote Speakers

Tim Palmer has written 12 books on rivers, the environment, and the American land. His 1999 book entitled "The Heart of America: Our Landscape, Our Future" won the National Independant Publishers Book Award. With both text and seventy color photos provided by Palmer, "The Columbia" won the National Outdoor Book Award in 1997. Other titles include "Lifelines: The Case for River Conservation"; "America by Rivers"; and "The Sierra Nevada: A Mountain Journey." After receiving a bachelor of science degree in landscape architecture, Palmer worked for eight years as a land-use planner before starting to write full-time in 1980. He has been involved in river conservation for thirty years and has received the Lifetime Achievement Award from American Rivers and the River Conservation of the Year Award.

Ann Vileisis studied environmental history at Yale University and at Utah State University. Her first book, "Discovering the Unknown Landscape: A History of America's Wetlands," has received two prestigious national awards, one from the American Historical Association and one from the American Society for Environmental History for the best environmental history of the year. By canoe, kayak, and on foot, she has visited many of America's swamps and marshes and has delved into their past at libraries across the county. After leading educational river trips for Outward Bound for six years, Ann began writing full-time in 1994.

For more information on Thursday's events contact: Geoff Cunfer Center For Rural and Regional Studies Southwest Minnesota State University (507)537-6284 or cunfer@southwestmsu.edu