Projects

Area 3 in the City of Eden Prairie is located at a sharp bend in the Minnesota River, in an area of very steep slopes. Sections of the slope are estimated to experience a rate of erosion at 3 feet per year, contributing to the excessive erosion and sediment concerns of the Minnesota River. In 2021, after 10 years of collecting monitoring data, the LMRWD, and partners, moved forward with a design to stabilize the riverbank and prevent future erosion of the bluff toe and further sediment and nutrient loading to the river. During project development, the team discovered the City stormwater pond had direct impacts to the stability of Area 3. The current work plan will bring the design to 90% at which point the LMRWD and City will use funding to remove the pond, stabilize the riverbank, and construct a new and stable outfall from the City’s stormwater system.

The Lower Minnesota River Watershed District (LMRWD) has been investigating erosion along Spring Creek in the City of Carver after residents reached out to the District because of impacts to private property. The LMRWD was contacted by property owners that were concerned with the amount of erosion that they were experiencing as a result of storm flows in Spring Creek. The LMRWD is also concerned with Spring Creek as a source of sediment entering the Minnesota River as a result of this erosion.

This report is the second volume of the Lower Minnesota River Watershed District’s (LMRWD or District) Gully Inventory and Condition Assessment. The first volume was published in 2020 (the 2020 Gully Inventory and Condition Assessment or 2020 Project). The data presented here builds on the 2020 Project and identifies new gullies within Dakota and Scott Counties within the LMRWD.