Agency Pollution Control Agency

Contractor Stearns County SWCD

SWIFT Contract Number B26292

Project Name Pope County Coalition of Lakes Association

Project Number (if applicable) CR2354

Summarize purpose of the contract, including why it was necessary: Within Stearns County the Sauk River Watershed District (SRWD), Clearwater River Watershed District (CRWD) and North Fork Crow River Watershed District (NFCRWD) run active monitoring programs within their boundaries. The outlying territory falls under the sole oversight of the Stearns County Soil and Water Conservation District (SWCD), which does not employ a water-monitoring technician. Since very few of the water bodies have active citizen organizations that can fulfill the data deficient monitoring, a partnership was established through Stearns County SWCD to monitor 63 data deficient lakes and 31 stream sites, with RMB Environmental Laboratories, Inc. (RMBEL) outside of the watershed districts and SRWD within the SRWD. The purpose of the project is to fill the data void in Stearns County, which is not and will not be provided by the SRWD, CRWD, or NFCRWD monitoring programs. This project brings the remainder of the county up to the level of monitoring standards found within the Districts.

While a few Stearns County lakes have participated in lake monitoring, additional lakes are data deficient in lake chemistry such as total phosphorus and chlorophyll-a. In addition, the listed streams are lacking the minimum chemistry data set for proper assessment by the MPCA. The main reason many of these lakes and streams do not have chemical data is that they are sparsely populated or have no or only small associations; therefore, they have not had the funding for monitoring.

In order to complete a comprehensive county water plan and enable state 303(d) and 305(b) assessments, a better understanding of these lakes and streams is necessary. The Stearns County SWCD will oversee the project and utilize both the SRWD and RMBEL to implement the monitoring and data collection. For the lakes and streams that do not have public accesses, the field technician will obtain access to the water through private property. The private property owners will be contacted prior to the start of the monitoring season, completely informed about the project goals, and invited to ride along with field sampling to fully understand the program.

Completion of this project will provide a comprehensive data set, which will enable state assessments and provide valuable information to be included in the county water plan as well as support public awareness of water quality in both the county’s lake and stream networks. In doing this, the Stearns County SWCD will gain a local contact on the lake or stream and foster stewardship and understanding.

Project Duration

Start Date Fri, 04/03/2009 - 00:00

Original end date Thu, 06/30/2011 - 00:00

Actual end date Thu, 06/30/2011 - 00:00

Did project finish on time? Yes

Total billable hours utilized (if applicable) {Empty}

Contract Amounts

Original contract: $201429.25

Amendments $0

Contract total $201429.25

Did project finish within budget? Yes

What was the funding source? 100 E710 WY2

Is this a sole source contract? No

If this was a single source contract, explain why the agency determined there was only a single source for the services (if applicable) {Empty}

Evaluator Name Matthew Lindon

Evaluator Email Address matthew.lindon@state.mn.us

Evaluate the contractor's timeliness Good

Evaluate the contractor's quality Good

Evaluate the contractor's cost Good

Evaluate the contractor's overall performance Good - There were no problems or issues with this grantee. Everything went on schedule. The Grantee Bruce Brown kept in great contact throughout the project. What few mistakes that happen through were quickly fixed. The reporting could be better.

Would you engage the contractor's services again? Yes

Describe any negative action taken during the duration of this contract (i.e., termination, pursuit of suspension, etc.): {Empty}

Please rate the overall experience with the contractor 4 - satisfied