Many projects are happening to help clean-up and delist the St. Louis River Area of Concern. Here are some current project updates for May 2022, continue reading for further details:

• Spirit Lake, Scanlon Reservoir and Munger Landing | EPA Announce $113 Million to fund the Great Lake Restoration Projects near Duluth, Mn

• U.S. Steel/Spirit Lake Project Public Meeting | Thursday, May 19th from 5-7:30 p.m.

• Kingsbury Bay | Goose exclusion fencing has been installed

• Perch Lake Habitat Restoration Project | Contract awarded to J.F. Brennan

• **Reminder: Munger Landing | Closed for 2022-2023

The St. Louis River Area of Concern (SLRAOC) is one of 31 AOCs in the U.S. portion of the Great Lakes basin. It was designated as an AOC under the U.S. – Canada Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement in 1987 because of significant impacts that occurred before modern environmental laws were in place.

After decades of work and partnerships, you can now see the progress throughout the SLRAOC: contractors are busy each construction season, plant and animal populations are rebounding, water is cleaner, and lost habitat is being restored.

As of March 31, 2022, 62.5% of the management actions are completed.

Public Invited To Comment On Proposal To Remove Impairment In St. Louis River Area of Concern | The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa and Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources are seeking public comments on their recommendation to remove the Degraded Fish and Wildlife Populations Beneficial Use Impairment from the St. Louis River Area of Concern.

The public comment period is open until April 26 and there will be a public open house on Thursday, April 14, from 5:00 to 6:30 p.m. at the Lake Superior Reserve Estuarium located at 3 Marina Drive, Superior, Wisconsin. A presentation about the impairment proposed for removal will begin at 5:30 p.m.

A lot of field work is planned for the St. Louis River Area of Concern (SLRAOC) project sites and is explained in the attached 2022 Field Work. 

PADDLERS: It is important to know what projects are happening as you explore the St. Louis River Estuary National Water Trail! Check out the attached Paddlers Awareness handout to know where current project efforts could impede your paddling plans. Be sure to reference it before you launch so you can be sure to avoid active construction sites.

****Due to the start of the Munger Landing remediation project, the Clyde Avenue boat launch will be closed for two years, starting in June of 2022.

ST. LOUIS RIVER AREA OF CONCERN UPDATES:

The 2021 Remedial Action Plan (RAP) has been posted!

The RAP describes the remaining impairments, targets to remove them, actions to achieve the removal targets, and the anticipated timelines for each action. Multiple local, state, federal, and tribal partners coordinate the implementation activities.

You can find the full document here: https://www.pca.state.mn.us/sit…/default/files/wq-ws1-37.pdf

You are invited to a virtual public meeting about the Munger Landing sediment cleanup at the Clyde Ave. boat launch in Duluth, Minnesota. The meeting will be held on Tuesday, February 1, 2022 at 6 p.m. online. This is a great opportunity for the public to learn more about the cleanup and to ask questions about the project.

Free, but registration is necessary: https://bit.ly/3q1YHUv

Pickle Pond is getting cleaned up and we need your help deciding the future of the project! Please take the 15-minute survey to let us know how you use Pickle Pond, how the restoration efforts would affect you and what improvements should be considered at the pond. All results will be considered to improve this and future projects.

Learn more and take the survey at: https://arcg.is/1aaiqv

84,660 cubic yards of contaminated sediments were removed from Howards Bay and the three slips within it: Hughitt Slip; Cummings Slip; and Fraser Slip. Maintenance dredging in the Federal Navigational Channel removed approximately 34,000 cubic yards of material.

The project leaves behind a healthier aquatic habitat that will improve the overall health of the St. Louis River. It also clears the way for future maintenance dredging, which had previously been restricted due to contamination in Howards Bay.

A draft of the St. Louis River Area of Concern (AOC) Remedial Action Plan is available for public review and comments until noon on Monday, Dec. 20, 2021, on the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) website. 

Questions and comments can be sent to Matt Steiger, Wisconsin DNR St. Louis River AOC Coordinator, at matthew.steiger@wisconsin.gov or 715-559-9523.

After stakeholder comments are reviewed, a final Remedial Action Plan will be shared and posted on the St. Louis River AOC website.

The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) today released its environmental assessment of a project to remove decades-old legacy pollution from the Munger Landing area. The public is invited to review the environmental assessment worksheet (EAW) and provide comments. The EAW describes the project’s potential effects on the environment, including its impact on nearby land uses, geography, habitat, and historic sites. The EAW also details air and vehicle emissions, dust, traffic, and odors that the project might produce and describes the potential for temporary indirect impacts to sensitive ecological areas from operational noise and increased turbidity.

Throughout 2021, the St. Louis River Alliance (SLRA) hosted a photo contest to celebrate the seasons and beauty of the largest U.S. river that flows into Lake Superior. The SLRA went on a mission to find striking digital images that highlight the diverse flora, wildlife and recreational activities that connect people to their natural habitat. Here are the winning photographs….

RECORDED ON 11/10/21

Learn about the progress made this past year toward delisting the St. Louis River Area of Concern at this year's virtual, annual Celebration of Progress. Recorded on: Wednesday, November 10 from 6-8 p.m.

This year's focus was on how habitat was created for Piping Plover and the Common Tern. Our special speakers were Matt Steiger (St. Louis River Area of Concern Coordinator for the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources), Gini Breidenbach (Restoration Program Manager for the Minnesota Land Trust) and Natalie White (Senior Biologist/Botanist Project Manager for SEH).

ST. LOUIS RIVER AREA OF CONCERN UPDATES: Munger Landing Closer 2022-2023

A contaminated sediment cleanup project is planned for the Munger Landing area, to remove approximately 100,000 cubic yards of contaminated sediments in 2022-2023.

Researchers at the University of Minnesota Duluth’s Natural Resources Research Institute have been monitoring bird activity on Interstate Island. With a combination of in-person surveys and a network of 16 trail cameras placed along the edge of the shoreline, they are able to document bird use of the island from spring through fall each year.

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Minnesota Pollution Control Agency have signed a $6 million agreement to address and clean up contaminated sediment in the Scanlon Reservoir in Scanlon, Minnesota. Slated to begin this fall, the project will employ new remediation technologies to improve the habitat for fish and wildlife.

ST. LOUIS RIVER AREA OF CONCERN UPDATE: Researchers at Duluth’s EPA lab completed a study that sheds light on what is (or isn’t) behind the slow recovery of Lake Sturgeon in the St. Louis River.

Click here to read more..

Scanlon Reservoir Sediment Remediation: The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) is distributing this Environmental Assessment Worksheet (EAW) for a 30-day review and comment period pursuant to the Environmental Quality Board (EQB) rules.

Here is a “birds eye” view of the completed habitat restoration at Interstate Island. The project was completed in late April.

52,624 cubic yards of dredged materials were beneficially reused to restore or enhance the colonial water bird nesting habitat!

Beginning at the end of June 2021, a portion of the Cross City Trail and adjacent city-owned land will be closed to accommodate work being done in the ponds behind Erie Pier.

Calling all amateur and professional photographers! We are looking for your portraits of wildlife, animal behavior, the relationship between people and nature, plant life, weather, seasons, recreation and harbor activities for our 2021 photo contest.