UMC to Host Water Planners Conference

UMC will serve as the host site for the 1998 Local Water Planners Conference July 21-23.  Nearly 200 water resource and conservation professionals from across the region will come together for the three-day conference.  The conference theme is "When a River Runs North..."  Conference attendees will discuss and learn about issues related to water planning relevant to the region. Many of the sessions will deal with the local water basin, which includes the Red River of the North.

Schedule of Events: Tuesday, July 21 | Wednesday, July 22 | Thursday, July 23

Tuesday, July 21

10:00 a.m. Registration, Display Area Opens, Housing Opens

11:30 a.m.-12:45 p.m. Luncheon and Opening Speaker

1:00 p.m.-1:45 p.m. Concurrent Sessions

• Water Planning Issues for Natural Disasters--What did we learn from the flood of 1997?
  Dowell Hall 114
• Rural Water Systems
  Dowell Hall 204
• Fluvial Geomorphology 101
  Youngquist Auditorium, Ag Research Center
• Managing River Fisheries: Restoration of the Whitewater River
  Dowell Hall 212
• How to Conduct a Freshwater Festival
  Dowell Hall 201
• Panel Discussion: Standardsfor the Construction of ISTS
  Dowell Hall 207
  (Note: This panel discussion continues through the 2:00-2:45 p.m. session)

2:00 p.m.-2:45 p.m. Concurrent Sessions

• Geology of the Red River Valley
  Dowell hall 115
• Wild Rice/Marsh Creek Basin Assessment
  Dowell Hall 202
• Fluvial Geomorphology 102
  Youngquist Auditorium, Ag Research Center
• Red River Fishery: Movements of Channel Catfish in the Red River
  Dowell Hall 207

2:45 p.m.-3:15 p.m. Break--Refreshments Served in Display Area

3:15 p.m.-4:00 p.m. Concurrent Sessions

• Geology of the Red River Valley
  Dowell Hall 115
• Roles & Goals--Flood Damage/Reduction for the Red River Basin
  Dowell Hall 103
• Wild Rice/Marsh Creek Basin Assessment
  Dowell Hall 202
• Fluvial Geomorphology 101
  Youngquist Auditorium, Ag Research Center
• River Watch Program: How can citizens monitor the health of their stream?
  Dowell Hall 207
• Simplified Lake Eutrophication Modeling: Using MINLEAP (intro and background)
  Dowell Hall 109

4:15 p.m.-5:00 p.m. Concurrent Sessions

• Water Planning Issues for Natural Disasters--What did we learn from the flood of 1997?
  Dowell Hall 114
• Roles & Goals--Flood Damage/Reduction for the Red River Basin
  Dowell Hall 103
• Fluvial Geomorphology 102
  Youngquist Auditorium, Ag Research Center
• River Watch Program: How can citizens monitor the health of their stream?
  Dowell Hall 207
• If You Feed Them They Will Come!
  Dowell Hall 205
• Simplified Lake Eutrophication Modeling: Using MINLEAP (implentation of model, case studies)
  Dowell Hall 109

6:00 p.m.-7:00 p.m. Banquet and Speaker
Brown Dining Room

8:30 p.m.-Midnight Agassiz Beach Party (Music and Socializing)
Northland Inn, Crookston

Wednesday, July 22

7:00 a.m.-7:45 a.m. Breakfast
Brown Dining Room

8:00 a.m.-5:30 p.m. Concurrent Tours (Lunch Break taken at sites determined by tour guides)

• Tour 1: Rivers and Their Functions in the Red River Basin:
  A look at water and how the area has been affected by it
  Includes visits to bioengineering projects in Climax, MN, and an established site on the Turtle River in ND
• Tour 2:What is in a River? and Calcareous Fens--Unique and Rare Ecosystems
  Habitat assessment and streamside survey methods for the River Watch monitor program
  and a visit to a calcareous fen ecosystem
• Tour 3: An Agricultural Overview of the Valley
  A tour of current projects at the Northwest Experiment Station and the University of Minnesota, Crookston
  Projects include GIS and GPS, variety trials, disease problems, and conservation practices
• Tour 4: The Geology of the Red River Valley
  Participants can expect to see outcroppings, ancient deltas, lake plain, beaches, glacial upland and lake channels and their relationship to former Lake Agassiz
• Tour 5: The Red River of the North, the Product of it's Watershed
  Participants will view flooded areas, ring diked farmsteads, and the Red River Dike System

6:30 p.m. Awards Banquet
Brown Dining Room

Thursday, July 23

7:00 a.m.-7:45 a.m. Breakfast

8:00 a.m.-8:45 a.m. Concurrent Sessions

• Panel Discussion: To Drain or not to Drain, is That Really the Quesiton?
  Youngquist Auditorium, Ag Research Center
  (Note: This panel discussion continues through the 9:00a.m.-9:45 a.m. session)
• Progress on Implementing the 1991 Minnesot Water Plan and the Next Steps
  Dowell Hall 201
• Rebuilding Your Land with Native Grasses
  Dowell Hall 207

9:00 a.m.-9:45 a.m. Concurrent Sessions

• "So Now You Need Funding for Your Watershed Project?"
  Dowell Hall 212
• Progress and Change in the Minnesota Geologic Survey--Regional Hydrogeologic Assessment
  Dowell Hall 204
• A Thousand Friends of Frogs
  Dowell Hall 205

9:45 a.m.-10:15 a.m. Break--Refreshments Served in Display Area

10:15 a.m.-11:00 a.m. Concurrent Sessions

• "So Now You Need Funding for Your Watershed Project?"
  Dowell Hall 212
• Rebuilding Your Land with Native Grasses
  Dowell Hall 207
• Rivers of Life Project (Education Program)
  Dowell Hall 205

11:15 a.m.-12:00 noon Wrap-Up Session: The Future of Water Planning
Brown Dining Room

Posted: 07-20-98

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