Moist Soil

[Bailey]

I still cannot believe they denied these. They are just poudind the ducks in Missouri right now and moist soil units are the reason why.

They claimed it was just a Band - Aide but really what else have they done that has worked? At lest the state would of held some ducks and maybe presented some more opportunities.

Lessard-Sams council rejects moist-soil funding request
By Chris Niskanen
cniskanen@pioneerpress.com
POSTED: 08/22/2010 12:01:00 AM CDT


A new strategy to create waterfowl habitat in Minnesota was dealt a blow last week when the Lessard-Sams Outdoor Heritage Council rejected funding for the project.
The Department of Natural Resources was seeking $443,500 to design and implement moist-soil management units. The new strategy to improve the state's sagging waterfowl populations was announced in January by DNR Commissioner Mark Holsten.
The project involves intensively managing shallow impoundments. The impoundments are drained in the summer to allow the growth of plants and then flooded in the fall so ducks can forage on the plants' seeds and insects.
The impoundments mimic Minnesota's most commonly drained natural wetlands, known as seasonal or "temporal" wetlands. Moist-soil units have been used widely and successfully in other states to attract and provide food for waterfowl.
The DNR was counting on the grant to start several small moist-soil projects totaling 484 acres. The DNR planned to build three units and contract for design work and feasibility studies on seven others.
The projects, however, didn't impress the Lessard-Sams council, which is considering projects for $86 million in conservation work through the Clean Water, Land and Legacy Amendment. The moist-soil project ranked 32nd out of 42 proposals.
"It looks like an expensive Band-Aid; that's how most (council members) looked at it," said Jim Cox, a council member and former president of the Minnesota Waterfowl Association.
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"The council is well aware that grassland and wetland complexes are among the most threatened landscapes in Minnesota, and that's where you can produce ducks and a whole array of grassland birds," Cox said. "I think we're looking at trying to solve Minnesota's habitat issues, not trying to artificially draw birds into the state."
Dennis Simon, the DNR's wildlife section chief, said the funding rejection sets the project back.
"I'm a little disappointed. We see this as just another facet of our waterfowl management strategy," he said.
Simon said the agency might be able to find other, smaller sources of funding, such as from the sale of state duck stamps, but the projects would progress more slowly than with the Legacy money.
He said other moist-soil management projects are under way. The North Ottawa large flood-reduction project in Grant County, in west-central Minnesota, would incorporate moist-soil units, he said. A local water and soil conservation district is funding that project, with input from the DNR.
Simon cautioned that moist-soil units won't be as easy to replicate in Minnesota as in Missouri, where they are widely used, because Minnesota has a shorter growing season and fewer large tracts of public land situated near flood plains.
"This is an entirely new line of work for us," he said of the projects. "We certainly won't move forward at the same pace or scope (without the Lessard funding). The reality is we don't have the funding for it."

[Perch_44]

I've said all along, this whole Lessard fund was a scam to build bird watching areas and bike paths.

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[Perch_44]

I can proudly say, I voted NO for it.

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[get-n-birdy]

Once again Minnesota's ignorance shines through.

I voted yes and think there's been some good to come from it. The bs of this board is just another example of Minnesotan's highly educated, yet retarded thought process and mindset towards anything and everything.

Granted there's issues with doing things differently and going to be bumps in the road and learning curves. Minnesota is a state full of people, even waterfowl hunters, who look at shooting stuff as being a bad thing.

[Waterfowlist]

Ya MN sucks. But just like retirement savings don't rely on the gov. Manage moist soils on private land if you want to see results

[prairie hunter]

Keep pumping a million here and a million there into Christina and other waterfowl LAKES - usually works for say 2-3 years falls of off and then needs another million.

If Moist Soil Management idea failed - blame those that went in and made the pitch too.

[prairie hunter]

Ya MN sucks. But just like retirement savings don't rely on the gov. Manage moist soils on private land if you want to see results

Does MN allow diversion of water from rivers onto fields ?

Seems like the DNR would not allow this.

[Waterfowlist]

You can pump it

[Bullet21XD]

The ducks in MO would still be there at this time regardless if MN had more msm.

Plus, the DNR is not properly tending to/ caring for the units they currently "manage". The shyte just turned into deer and pheasant refuges.

The best part of it all...is how waterfowlers of MN got totally screwed by "dedicated funding". This state and it's natural resources management continues to be an embarassmemt, and it seems there's no end in sight.

[get-n-birdy]

Sad part is as hunter numbers fall off, we have less pull. And the pull we have is lead by idiots.

I don't pretend to know much other than surface knowledge of msm, but I'd bet to be done right, it needs regular tending to at pivotal times annually. Something our dnr is not even terrible at.