On September 28th we threw a celebration for the official ribbon cutting of the St. Louis River Estuary National Water Trail. Thank you to all of our partners, artists, community leaders, community members, SLRA staff, board members and volunteers! Last night is what the work is all about... to see that many people come together to celebrate one of the most beautiful places in the world. Tom Howes told a story about an elder who used to say 'why would I go anywhere else, this is the center of all good things'. How true that rings!

Thank you to the volunteers who came out and helped us clean up Woodstock Bay Landing in Superior, along with removing some of the invasive Purple Loosestrife!

With the help of our volunteers, we removed two large contractor bags of Purple Loosestrife flowers by hand, as well as collected garbage at the landing. Purple Loosestrife is a wetland plant with showy purple flowers and is considered an invasive species.

Thank you Dara with the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources for sharing about Purple Loosestrife and building context around the negative impacts the plant can have on native plants!

On September 14th, 2022 the St. Louis River Alliance (SLRA) in partnership with the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (WDNR), planted approx. 500 pounds of manoomin (Ojibwe name for wild rice) in the St. Louis River Estuary. This was the 7th year SLRA has had the opportunity to participate in these restoration efforts.

During this time volunteers learned about manoomin ecology, cultural significance and restoration in the St. Louis River and reseeded the wetlands in Kingsbury Bay for reestablishment. In the past, seed has been replanted around Clough Island.

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

• 40th Ave. West Habitat Restoration | Biomedium is being added to spur the recovery of bottom-dwelling plants and invertebrates

• Scanlon Reservoir | In-water remedial construction will be completed by 9/17

• Kingsbury Bay Celebration Event | held on September 12th to celebrate the completion of the Kingsbury Bay & Grassy Point habitat restoration projects.

• Redesigned Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) Website | Launched on September 12th, view here

We had fun with the College of St. Scholastica Ecology students a few weeks ago! We walked down the Waabizheshikana trail (previously the Marten Trail) and explored the various ways humans have interacted with and changed the River in our past, present and looking towards the future. The Alliance shared about the St. Louis River Area of Concern process and ways students can get involved with the clean up efforts on the River, as well as events they an attend!

The St. Louis River Alliance has been actively engaged in Piping Plover efforts in the St. Louis River estuary for over a decade. In partnership with the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources we help manage and maintain the Piping Plover Bird Sanctuary on Wisconsin Point to help create nesting and foraging habitat for the endangered shorebird.

Throughout the season (March - October), we have been working on site maintenance including removal of woody debris, controlling unwanted vegetation by picking weeds, cutting shrubs and burning. Thank you to Master Naturalist-Head of the Lakes Chapter volunteers, St. Louis River Alliance staff and other community members who have helped make this site a favorable environment for the Piping Plover!

Here is a Spring Migration Timetable, provided by Hawk Ridge Bird Observatory. These are just a few of the species you can see on the St. Louis River in Duluth, Minnesota and Superior, Wisconsin. For more information go to hawkridge.org

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

• Interstate Island | Prairie Restorations is working this month to control invasive vegetation and plant dune grass and other dune-appropriate species

• Lake Superior Pocket Gallery™ | Explore the new Lake Superior Pocket Gallery™ smartphone app and see if you can find the St. Louis River Area of Concern content.

Thank you to everyone who came out to our July Plant ID Paddle with special guest Gigi Stafne of Green Wisdom School of Natural & Botanical Medicine! We enjoyed a beautiful night on the St. Louis River Estuary National Water Trail as we discovered over a dozen medicinal plants, flowers, trees and ‘weeds’ along the way. This was a special event for all St. Louis River Alliance members and we look forward to many more!

We would like to welcome the newest additions to our St. Louis River Alliance Board of Directors! These leaders are going to help the Alliance continue to grow and help build more connections to the River.

From left to right; Breanna Ellison, Thomas Howes, Sam Lobby, and Don Ness.

You can learn more about our entire board and read their bios HERE.

Interested in learning more about the Munger Landing clean-up project? Click here to learn more about the sediment project with the attached Munger Landing Fact Sheet, St. Louis River Area of Concern Fact Sheet and the SLRAOC WI Sediment Remediation Sites document.

We had a great event with @theskihut and Northland Paddlers Alliance for our monthly Sunset Paddle! Thank you to everyone who came out to learn about some important safety on bracing and deep water rescues.

Safety is incredible important and we hope you can join us for the next Sunset Paddle! Held on the third Friday of each month (June - September). You can register and learn more here: https://tinyurl.com/sunset-paddles

These events are free and open to the public. You must provide your own gear and have a life jacket! Locations to be determined, but we are hoping to have one of the next paddles on the St. Louis River.

Wow, an experience of a lifetime! Our Piping Plover Project Leader Tonia, and Piping Plover monitor Mikayla, had the opportunity to head out at Long Island near the Apostle Islands in Wisconsin to band banding Piping Plover chick's in July. Read more about it!

Many Great Lakes communities have carried the burden of legacy pollution for decades. Now, they have an opportunity for a new lease on life as local waterways are cleaned up.

This video series features five cities along waterways deemed Areas of Concern (AOCs) that are in various stages of the cleanup process and are experiencing revitalization.

This video highlights Duluth, Minnesota, in the St. Louis River AOC. Cleanup efforts have led to growth in the city’s economic, recreational, and tourism industries.

You are invited to a virtual public meeting on Wednesday, July 20, 2022 at 6:00 PM about the Munger Landing sediment cleanup at the Clyde Ave. boat launch in Duluth, Minnesota. The project involves the dredging of 100,000 cubic yards of contaminated sediment and disposal offsite at a certified landfill.

Join us to learn more and ask any questions! Registration for the online event is now open: https://bit.ly/3zFrNhS

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

• Munger Landing Project | Closed for two years starting July 5, 2022.  Public meeting to be held on Wednesday July 20th at 6:00pm.

• Kingsbury Bay Habitat Restoration Project | New fishing pier installed on Indian Point

• Scanlon Reservoir Project | Remedial construction has begun, in-water work expected to begin mid-July

• Ponds Behind Erie Pier Project | Dredging continues throughout the summer, with clean cover placement occurring fall 2022

• 40th Ave. West Habitat Restoration Project | application of biomedia expected to begin mid-July

• Piping Plover Habitat Restoration Project | 17,000 plugs of dune grass planted in June 2022

We have spent the last couple weeks scattering maps throughout the Twin Ports. You can now pick up your FREE St. Louis River Estuary National Water Trail Map at many local businesses!

Maps are always available outside the St. Louis River Alliance office at 394 Lake Ave. S Suite 208 in Canal Park.

If you would like to be a distribution location, email Outreach@StLouisRiver.org

The Alliance hosted a “Water Wednesday” clean up event to celebrate the ‘adoption’ of the Woodstock Bay Public Landing. Thank you to all of our volunteers who came out to help keep the landing beautiful! A big thank you to the City of Superior for providing grabbers, garbage bags and gloves. We had great weather and were pleasantly surprised with the small amount of garbage that was collected (1 large bag). Let’s keep Superior and our water ways clean so everyone can enjoy these landings!

The clean-up event was held at Woodstock Bay Landing on Wednesday, June 22nd from 6-8 p.m. This event was in conjunction with SLRA’s on-going ‘Water Wednesdays’, a series of talks and events revolving around deepening understandings, connections, and stewardship of the land and our beloved St. Louis River. Water Wednesdays are held the 4th Wednesday of each month, March-September 2022.

The Alliance, in partnership with the Wisconsin DNR, Lake Superior Research Institute and FOLSR helped plant 17,000 Dune Grass plugs on the Wisconsin Point Piping Plover Habitat Area. Thanks to all of our Piping Plover monitors and staff who stopped by to put some plants in the ground. We are excited to see what this area looks like in 1, 2, 3 years and beyond!

There are four St. Louis River Alliance Board Member seats up for election, and we are looking for your votes!

If you are a current member, you should have received an email 6/15/22 with the Board of Director Candidate Profiles, ballot, and instructions to vote. If you did not receive an email, you are not current with your membership. If you’d like to cast your vote you must become a member or renew your membership today. You can send in a physical membership or apply/renew online, more information can be found at: https://www.stlouisriver.org/become-a-member

Once we receive your membership, we will send you an email with instructions on how to vote. All ballots must be in by June 28th at 4 p.m. We are very excited for this year’s candidates and look forward to celebrating new board members at our St. Louis River Alliance Virtual Membership Voting Meeting on June 29th, 2022 at 4 p.m.