Field Trips

All field trips will take place from 4pm-6pm on Friday, September 11 th. Transportation will be provided. Participants will be dropped off at the Vista Fleet Excursion Dock for the Friday evening dinner cruise on the Vista Star. For folks not attending field trips, the Vista Fleet Excursion Dock is located next door to the DECC and is within walking distance of the Holiday Inn.

http://maps.google.com/maps?q=200+West+First+Street,+Duluth+mn&spn=0.029200,0.067514&hl=en

Thank you to Clean Water Action and Minnesota Environmental Partnership for organizing this year’s field trips.

1. Hawk Ridge Bird Observatory ( East Duluth)
   • Innovative Stormwater Management Tour
2. Tour the Environmental Protection Agency Lab in Duluth
3. Tour the Western Lake Superior Sanitary District in Duluth
4. The Hog Island and Newton Creek Project– Superior Wisconsin
   • Great Ships Initiative – Superior Wisconsin

1. Hawk Ridge Bird Observatory (East Duluth)

Hawk Ridge has a fascinating history, from gunner’s lair to birdwatcher’s paradise. Each fall, over 1,000 raptors per day fly past Hawk Ridge for many reasons, one of which is Lake Superior. Migrating raptors take advantage of the geology of the North Shore to migrate more efficiently. As the birds migrate past Hawk Ridge, they provide an opportunity for bird research, education, and recreation.

For more information: www.hawkridge.org

Innovative Stormwater Management Tour
If you were a raindrop, where would you go? Find out how rain gardens, pervious pavement, biofiltration, swales, and new developments are reducing stormwater runoff and pollution to Lake Superior.

For more information: www.d.umn.edu/fm/environment/raingarden.htm

2. Tour the Environmental Protection Agency Lab in Duluth

Did you know that this World-class laboratory helped develop water quality criteria used as part of the Clean Water Act? The lab helps protect the nation's water resources by studying the effects of pollutants and other stressors on freshwater ecosystems. Meet highly trained scientists conducting world-class research on methods to protect and restore our water resources.

For more information: www.epa.gov/med

3. Tour the Western Lake Superior Sanitary District in Duluth

WLSSD is a national leader in many pollution prevention and environmental educational initiatives. All of the region’s municipal and industrial sewage is treated at the WLSSD facilities. Join this very popular tour of the wastewater treatment facility, organics composting area, and household hazardous waste collection site.

For more information: www.wlssd.com

4. The Hog Island and Newton Creek Project – Superior Wisconsin

Hog Island and Newton Creek Project was the first ecological restoration master plan developed via a stakeholder engagement process in the Great Lakes Basin. The Great Lakes National Program Office helped local and regional stakeholders to further address the site's habitat loss from sedimentation and industrial contamination of sediments, and degraded aesthetics from oil slicks and foul odors. The goal of the ecological restoration plan was to develop the blueprint and create a process for restoring a formerly degraded site to a self-sustaining, resilient ecosystem. The tour will show key restoration locations of Hog Island, the Hog Island Inlet and the Newton Creek Watershed, identify proposed techniques, and briefly discuss the master planning process.

For more information: www.biohabitats.com\hogisland

Great Ships Initiative – Superior Wisconsin
This technology evaluation facility in Superior Wisconsin provides intense testing services to vendors of ballast treatment prospects suitable to Seaway-sized vessels. The facility is able to simulate a ship’s ballast water tanks and system under real world conditions to assess treatment effectiveness of killing potential aquatic invasive species.

For more information: www.nemw.org/GSI/news.htm