(Spirit Lake)– Funding for the Francis Sites wetland project was a topic of discussion at today’s (Tues.) Dickinson County Board of Supervisors meeting. The supervisors voted to approve the application for a loan through the state revolving fund that would be used for interim financing if needed. John Wills of the Cleanwater Alliance told the supervisors the $1.34 million project has been awarded $970,000 in grants so far.
The supervisors today (Tues.) also voted to authorize Wills to apply for a $370,000 grant through USDA’s Regional Conservation Partnership Program…
“And basically it requires a lot of partnerships and that sort of thing and it’s a grant that would help us to kind of finish our fundraising for the Francis Sites Wetland, putting in a grant for $370,000 and hoping that we get that grant, but if not we’ll have to find another way through.”
Wills says of all the projects he’s been involved in over his years as Coordinator of the Dickinson County Cleanwater Alliance, the Francis Sites Wetland project is probably the most important one…
Wills says they’re hoping construction on the project can be done this coming summer…
“It will remove about 390 tons of sediment from reaching East Okoboji each year. Now that 390 tons plays a huge part in actually filling in the lake but also in bringing in pollutants such as phosphorous into the lake. That phosphorous grows algae which can make dogs sick, or you know, people can get skin irritations and that sort of thing, so what we’re trying to do is actually clean up East Okoboji which then in turn cleans up Upper Gar, Lower Gar, Minnewashta, and maybe even in some cases West Okoboji.”
The Francis Sites Wetland project has been in the planning stages since 2012.
