Prior Lake Spring Lake Watershed District
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Posts tagged "Fish Point Park"

Busting Buckthorn & Raking Leaves – Successful Clean-Up at Fish Point Park

Posted by PLSLWD Staff - April 30, 2019 - News

The weather was practically perfect last Sunday as roughly 50 volunteers gathered for the 2019 Spring Clean Water Clean-Up held at Fish Point Park in Prior Lake. The annual Spring Clean Water Clean-Up was co-hosted by the Prior Lake-Spring Lake Watershed District and the City of Prior Lake. 

Volunteers pitched in to remove buckthorn, rake leaves, pick up trash and clean out the park’s iron-enhanced sand filter which catches phosphorus from the 80 acres that funnels through the park before entering Prior Lake. Excessive phosphorus levels can cause algae blooms in lakes and wetlands. 

This hard-working group removed 1.8 tons (3600 lbs.) of buckthorn and nearly 1.6 tons (3200 lbs.) of leaves from the park. Volunteers included many neighbors and local community members who helped clean-up the park and protect the water quality in Prior Lake. 

Why remove buckthorn and rake leaves? Buckthorn is an invasive, non-native shrub which takes over wooded areas, shading out native woodland plants. Leaves and other organic matter are carried by stormwater into storm drains and end up in lakes and streams. Once in the waterbodies, they release phosphorus, which feeds algae. Algae growth is a serious threat to water quality, aquatic life, property values and water recreation. 

Many local businesses generously provided door prizes and volunteers were treated to a variety of refreshments, including hotdogs provided by the Prior Lake Association.

Photos from the event can be found on the Watershed District’s Facebook page. Special thanks to Jen Reinders for sharing her photos from the event with us!


Missed out on the fun? The District and the City will be hosting another clean-up this fall. Stay tuned by checking the Watershed District or City websites or email kkeller-miller@plslwd.org to be added to the email notification list.

Photo credit: Jen Reinders

View Full Article CWCU, Fish Point Park, buckthorn, clean up, clean water clean up, leaves, volunteer

Celebrate Spring! Join us April 28 for Spring Clean-Up

Posted by PLSLWD Staff - April 4, 2019 - News

It’s been a long winter, so come celebrate spring and join us for our Spring 2019 Clean Water Clean-Up Sunday, April 28th at Fish Point Park in Prior Lake from 9:00 – 11:30 am! 

Bring the whole family to this fun event and help us remove buckthorn and rake leaves at the park. Registration is now open and takes just a minute or two. Please register here for this free, family-friendly event!

Don’t forget to bring your own rake! Volunteers will receive a bandanna & snacks and be entered to win some great door prizes donated by local businesses. 

In case of inclement weather, the clean-up will be rescheduled for the following Sunday on May 5th. If the event needs to be rescheduled we will send out an email and post it on our website.

Don’t forget to invite your friends & neighbors!

View Full Article Fish Point Park, clean water clean up, event, spring, volunteer event

Successful Community Clean Water Clean-Up!

Posted by PLSLWD Staff - November 9, 2017 - News, Prior Lake

Nearly 45 volunteers braved near freezing temperatures to “Rake for the Lake” on Sunday, Nov. 5 at Fish Point Park in Prior Lake. The clean-up was located at the park where the City of Prior Lake and the District just completed a water quality improvements project, which included native prairie plantings, wetland enhancements and installation of an iron-enhanced sand filter to treat incoming stormwater before it reaches Prior Lake. 

Volunteers represented the Cub Scouts, Savage Area Women of Tomorrow, Prior Lake Association, the Prior Lake-Spring Lake Watershed District’s Citizen Advisory Committee, the District’s Board of Managers, the Mayor of Prior Lake and the City of Prior Lake and were joined by dedicated neighbors and friends.

The volunteers raked, blew and piled 1200 pounds of leaves that city staff removed and will use as a soil enhancement for their tree nursery. They also cut and pulled 880 pounds of buckthorn (one dump truck load) that was hauled to the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community’s Organic Recycling Facility (ORF). 

After the hard work was done, volunteers enjoyed hot beverages and snacks and had an opportunity to win a variety of great prizes donated by area merchants. 

To check out pictures from the clean-up visit our Facebook page!

Fall and Spring Clean Water Clean-Ups are a Prior Lake tradition and this Fall’s clean-up was the seventh!  Clean-ups began in the fall of 2014 and organizers are looking forward to the Spring of 2018! If you missed out, email info@plslwd.org to be added to the email list for next spring’s event!

View Full Article Fish Point Park, Prior Lake, clean up, clean water clean up, events, volunteer

Bring a Rake, Save the Lake. Join us Oct 29th!

Posted by PLSLWD Staff - October 9, 2017 - News, Prior Lake

Join us for this fall’s Clean Water Clean-Up event at Fish Point Park in Prior Lake! Bring your rake on Sunday, October 29th at 12:30 pm. Help us rake up this fall’s leaves and remove buckthorn at the park.

Volunteers will receive a free t-shirt and snacks will be provided. All volunteers will also be entered into drawings for prizes at the end of the afternoon.

Sign-up and bring a friend! This event is family friendly.

The event is free, but participants are asked to pre-register here by Friday, October 27th at noon to help with planning. Participants can, however, still sign-up at the event.

This event is co-hosted by the Prior Lake-Spring Lake Watershed District and the City of Prior Lake.

View Full Article Fish Point Park, Prior Lake, Water quality, clean water clean up, events, volunteer

Award Finalist: Fish Point Park Water Quality Project recognized

Posted by PLSLWD Staff - December 19, 2016 - News, Fish Point Park Retrofits, Prior Lake

Each year, the Minnesota Association of Watershed Districts (MAWD) recognizes exceptional projects and acknowledges the outstanding work of Watershed Districts throughout the state of Minnesota with the MAWD Project of the Year Award. This year, the Prior Lake-Spring Lake Watershed District’s Fish Point Park Water Quality Project was one of three finalists for the award, announced at MAWD’s Annual Meeting in Alexandria on December 1.

The project was completed through a partnership between the Prior Lake-Spring Lake Watershed District (PLSLWD) and the City of Prior Lake and partially funded by a grant from the Board of Water and Soil Resources (BWSR)’s Clean Water Fund program.

Stormwater runoff from over 89 acres of land is funneled through Fish Point Park before it enters Lower Prior Lake, making it an ideal location for a stormwater treatment train. This project includes four elements: a wetland enhancement, a water control structure, a prairie restoration, and an iron-sand filter. Together, these four BMPs work to reduce the amount of phosphorus entering the lake by 34 pounds per year.

Iron sand filter at Fish Point Park.

The last lake in the Spring and Prior chain of lakes, Lower Prior Lake is a regionally important recreational and ecological resource. Unlike the other two lakes in the chain, it remains off the Impaired Waters list and PLSLWD and the City of Prior Lake want to keep it that way. Given the urban watershed that surrounds this lake, significant actions to reduce untreated stormwater needed to be taken.

If you’d like to see the project for yourself, Fish Point Park is located west of Highway 13 at 15111 Fish Point Road in Prior Lake.

To learn more about the project visit the Fish Point Park project page on the District’s website or call the District at 952-447-4166.

View Full Article Fish Point Park, Water quality
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Prior Lake – Spring Lake Watershed District

The District covers about 42 square miles in Scott County, MN. Water in the PLSLWD flows mainly from the southwest to the northeast through Spring, Upper Prior and Lower Prior Lakes, and then north through the Prior Lake Outlet Channel to the Minnesota River near Valley Fair amusement park.
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Prior Lake - Spring Lake Watershed District
4646 Dakota Street SE
Prior Lake, MN 55372

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