Working Together to Manage Resources

Water retention projects were highlighted throughout the Red River Watershed Management Board/Flood Damage Reduction Work Group joint conference in Moorhead. One project is in extreme northwest Minnesota. “We’re working on a big retention area on old Roseau Lake bottoms, we’re going to try to hold up 22,000 acre feet of stored water gated,” said Jason Braaten, a member of the Roseau River Watershed District. “We’re really going to help the farmers who are adjacent and downstream from that project.” Roseau Lake and the surrounding area flood on a frequency of every one-to-two years, resulting in crop loss and lost habitat. The local watershed district and Minnesota DNR are working together on this project. “Historically, there has been a narrative the regulatory agency isn’t always there to help, but I’ve heard throughout this conference that there really has been a change, recognizing that we’re here to be a resource and help people navigate some of the permitting or other things related to resource management that people are faced with on these projects,” said Regional DNR Director Ben Burgey.