A collaboration of academic, NGO, and state agency scientists and water managers assessed needs and made recommendations for achieving ecologically
sustainable instream flow and water level protections statewide and for Minnesota's Lake Superior Basin specifically. They assessed data, models, scientific understanding, laws and policy, and management tools to identify feasible approaches for statewide environmental flow protection. The ultimate goal was to ensure a biological basis and adequate criteria for making sustainable water withdrawal and land use management decisions. The Phase I report and appendices were released in January 2012. Currently, the group is working toward developing decision tools to inform water and land use planning in the Lake Superior Basin, and to help local decision-makers maintain resilience of streams and aquatic resources in the face of climate and land use change.
For more information on ELOHA in Minnesota, contact:
Kristen Blann, Ph.D.
Freshwater Ecologist
The Nature Conservancy
40234 US 10
Cushing, MN 56443
(218) 330-9612
kblann@tnc.org