Local agencies involved in the Spring/Upper Prior Nutrient TMDL will be attending another meeting on December 19, at 1:30 PM at the Spring Lake Town Hall.
Phosphorus loading in the watersheds to Spring and Upper Prior lakes.
In addition to talking about the final draft of the Implementation Plan, the agencies will discuss how to measure the amount of phosphorus that migrates from the land to the lakes, and how to measure the effectiveness of steps taken to reduce that amount (BMPs).
Since the Spring/Upper Prior Nutrient TMDL was approved by the MPCA, the focus of the cities, townships, watershed district, counties, and state agencies within the TMDL area has been on creating a plan to reduce phosphorus entering the lakes. Phosphorus is the element most associated with causing nuisance algae blooms, killing fish, and causing other negative effects on midwestern lakes. By agreeing to a map that shows where phosphorus is likely to be coming from off the land (as opposed to coming up from the bottom of the lake), the TMDL partners can accurately target their work, and agree on how much progress has been made toward the goal.