15 Patty, Nic, Nora Check-in 20MAR2024

Date: Wednesday, March 20, 2024

15.1 Attendees

Nic presented the draft AOI boundary, which was modified from the previous version:
- Excluded non-contiguous areas
- Included the Minnesota River valley within the urban area (southwest corner)
- Excluded the northwest corner
Patty had shared the draft with Dan and Joe, who suggested excluding the Minnesota River valley as it may not be urbanized enough.
Discussions were held regarding the level of urbanization and potential impacts within the floodplain areas.
Patty agreed to investigate the level of existing data coverage within the Minnesota River valley to inform the decision.
Arguments were made for including the floodplain areas, as they represent an urban river system with potential soil disturbances and impacts from urban activities.
The group leaned towards including the Minnesota River valley within the AOI, as it would capture an interesting aspect of the project and involve more potential partners (e.g., State Parks, National Wildlife Refuge).
Patty will share the group’s rationale with Dan and Joe for further discussion.

Nora will be giving a talk at the Fargo meeting, providing an overview of the project.
Nic and Nora discussed developing a draft presentation for Nora to share with Patty next week, to get feedback from an NRCS perspective.
The presentation will cover important aspects of the project, calibrated for the NRCS audience at the Fargo meeting.

Nora is working on obtaining permits from various entities, including DNR, Fish and Wildlife Service, Three Rivers Parks, and several cities (Maplewood, Roseville, Saint Paul).
Nora plans to create maps showing potential sampling points for each entity, to facilitate the permitting process.
The maps will be shared with Patty, as they will help in logistically planning and coordinating NRCS staff involvement.

The primary goal for the current year is to collect as much data as possible, rather than focusing extensively on residential areas, which can be more challenging.
Residential sampling will be opportunistic and conducted in parallel with public land sampling.
A dedicated team will conduct rapid response sampling at construction sites or upcoming construction sites, as opportunities arise.
Nic emphasized the importance of assessing and stratifying the sampling based on the data collected this season and the legacy data from previous years.

Patty suggested an initial field review before the full-scale sampling begins, to calibrate data collection, sampling protocols, and rules.
The tentative timeline for the field review is June or early July, aligning with the NRCS field season.
Nora will be presenting at the Fargo meeting on Wednesday, and there was a discussion about potentially coordinating a smaller group meeting with key NRCS personnel (e.g., Dan, Joe, Albert Lea group) either before or after the Fargo meeting.
Patty will coordinate with Dan, Joe, and others to determine the feasibility of a small group meeting during the Fargo meeting or scheduling a separate meeting before the kickoff meeting on May 28.
The goal is to gather input, concerns, and feedback from the NRCS partners before the kickoff meeting.

Patty to investigate the level of existing data coverage within the Minnesota River valley and share the group’s rationale for including it with Dan and Joe.
Nora to create a short presentation outlining the group’s rationale.
Nora to develop a draft presentation for the Fargo meeting and share it with Patty next week.
Nora to create maps showing potential sampling points for each entity, to facilitate the permitting process and share with Patty.
Patty to coordinate with Dan, Joe, and others regarding a potential small group meeting during or around the Fargo meeting, or scheduling a separate meeting before the kickoff meeting on May 28.
Nic to email Joe about the confirmed date for the kickoff meeting (May 28, 10AM) and share a draft agenda within a couple of weeks.

The next meeting is scheduled for the last week of March.