Anoka Sand Plain Rare Plant Rescue Program is a collaborative partnership focused on protecting rare plants in the Anoka Sand Plain (ASP) region. The ASP spans across several metro counties and supports 59 of MN's state-listed species (or nearly 20%) while representing only 2.2% of MN's land area.Our team collaborates with the MN Department of Natural Resources, landowners and developers to rescue rare plants from permitted development project areas before construction begins. We accomplish this with a team of ecologists and dedicated volunteers who help us to quickly mobilize and implement rescues. Rescued plants are transplanted into permanently protected natural areas with ecologically appropriate habitat and are monitored. Since the start of the ASP Rescue Program in 2019, state-protected species were rescued from eleven permitted donor sites and were translocated into 230 monitoring plots located within 13 permanently protected recipient sites. The work involved the rescue of ten species of state endangered, threatened, special concern and watch list vascular plant species. An additional project is underway with Xyris torta. MN Landscape Arboretum conducted germination trials with Xyris torta seed, which resulted in an opportunity to conduct an outplanting with plants that successfully propagated. Xyris torta was planted at the University of MN Cedar Creek Ecosystem Science Reserve for the purpose of conducting research and establishing a new population.

ACD's tree sale is right around the corner! Trees and shrubs are sold in bareroot seedlings or transplants, ranging from 8" to 18" in height. They may be purchased in bundles of ten for $24.00, or twenty-five for $47 not including tax. Native prairie seed and tree aides are also available. You do not need to be an Anoka County Resident to order. The order form is organized to group native trees and shrubs according to their ecosystem and non-native trees and shrubs based upon their primary use. Call 763-434-2030 x 100 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. to get added to the notification list. 

In Anoka County, 330,000 residents (94%) depend on groundwater for drinking water, using about 12 billion gallons annually. Wells (residential, commercial, agricultural, and industrial) that are unused and unsealed pose a significant health and safety hazard by creating a direct conduit to introduce contaminants (e.g. pesticides, nutrients, pathogens) into groundwater supplies. The highly permeable sands of the Anoka Sand Plain are likely a significant source of groundwater recharge for several of the major aquifers that supply water needs throughout the Twin Cities Metropolitan Area. Visit the Minnesota Department of Health webpage for more information on well sealing in MN. 

Anoka County was one of the few counties in Minnesota that lacked a program to assist landowners with paying to seal unused wells. In response, ACD established a well sealing cost-share program, using a FY20 Clean Water Fund (CWF) grant. As awareness of the program grew, demand increased, highlighting the need for such financial assistance. Since 2020, ACD's well sealing program has made significant progress. ACD staff has worked with hundreds of landowners, promoting and educating on well sealing, resulting in the sealing of 67 high-priority unused wells.

Apex Pond in the City of Fridley was enhanced in 2023 to improve water quality in both Springbrook Creek (County Ditch #17) and the Mississippi River. Originally constructed in 1999 with a ponding depth of 1-foot to slow the rate of runoff entering Springbrook Creek, the enhanced pond is ~6-feet deep and provides water quality treatment for nearly 90 acres of residential neighborhoods. The increased ponding depth enables sediment and nutrients to settle and accumulate in the pond. Runoff enters the pond via three inlets and a single outlet serves as the connection to Springbrook Creek. 

Total annual reductions to Springbrook and the Mississippi River include 16.80 lbs-TP/yr and 6,617 lbs-TSS/yr. The City of Fridley funded pond maintenance, and a combination of Watershed Based Implementation Funds from the Board of Water and Soil Resources, a Coon Creek Watershed District Water Quality Cost-Share Program grant, and the City of Fridley funded the pond enhancement. For more information contact Mitch Haustein, Stormwater & Shoreland Specialist, at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

ACD is collaborating with Anoka County Parks to enhance wetland basins in the Cedar Creek Conservation Area. Efforts are underway to increase plant diversity and to shift the wetland plant communities to sedge meadow and wet meadow. Both basins were initially dominated by reed canary grass. In 2021, two sheet pile plugs were installed in the ditch system and reed canary grass scrapes occurred in the east side basin (see map below). Native plants emerged where reed canary grass was scraped away. Management including mowing, spot herbicide treatment and seeding continue in this area to increase plant diversity. 

The upland – wetland basin in the CCCA has the potential to be restored to native dry prairie and sedge meadow habitats. Many of the remaining sedge meadows are often only fragmented narrow strips, adjacent to non-native cattails, making them difficult to manage. It is feasible to create a burn break around this unique wet meadow and prairie habitat to restore and maintain the plant communities. There is an opportunity to include this area with an adjacent dry prairie that is part of a regularly scheduled prescribed burn management plan. Additionally, the soil type along the wetland margin in this basin are known to support rare plant species. Once restored, this site could be a recipient site for rescued rare plants. For more information contact Carrie Taylor,Restoration Ecologist, at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Construction was completed in early November to stabilize one of the highest priority riverbanks in Anoka County. Two separate projects, spanning multiple properties, stabilized 935-feet of some of the tallest and most eroding riverbank on the Rum River. Portions of this stretch ranked at the top of the list of 80+ identified eroding banks during a 2017 erosion inventory of the Rum River through Anoka County. Altogether, these projects are estimated to reduce annual pollutant loading to the Rum River by 753-tons of sediment, and 640-lbs of total phosphorus.  

Each year, Anoka Conservation District (ACD) works with dozens of partners to install conservation projects and implement programs that improve water quality, hydrology and habitat across our shared natural resources. ACD employees nominate partners for consideration by ACD's elected Board of Supervisors to be honored as Anoka County's Outstanding Conservationist.

This year, we are excited to announce that the City of Circle Pines has been named the 2024 Anoka County Outstanding Conservationist. While this honor typically goes to a candidate that collaborated with ACD on a project in any given year, in this case, the award highlights a milestone reached in 2024 for Golden Lake due to the City of Circle Pines' long-standing partnerships with ACD and others. Golden Lake is the jewel in the crown of the City of Circle Pines' natural resources and a focal point for recreation. Efforts to improve water quality in Golden Lake culminated in 2024 with water quality levels that warrant removal of Golden Lake from the MN Pollution Control Agency's Impaired Waters List. For context, only eight other lakes were removed from the list in 2024, and the list includes 1,765 lakes. 

At the December 10, 2024 City of Circle Pines Council meeting, ACD presented the city with an award featuring a small bronze statue of a green heron for the City's accomplishments. While this milestone achievement is exciting and worth taking a moment to revel in, it's as City of Circle Pines Mayor Dave Bartholomay acknowledged, we don't get to say "well, we're done, let's move onto something else." We must continue to implement projects to maintain the ground we've gained, but we can do so moving forward at a slower pace with less annual investment.

ACD has grant funding available to enhance in-stream habitat in the Rum River! This effort focuses on areas adjacent to public land and those which are accessible for shore fishing. Rock vanes, woody overhangs, and similar features will be installed in areas where aquatic habitat structure is currently lacking to provide adequate holding and resting areas for game fish and the forage they rely on. This is part of a larger, corridor-scale river restoration effort supported by funding from the Outdoor Heritage Fund and several collaborating agencies. 

We are currently compiling a detailed inventory of existing conditions at several sites throughout Anoka, Isanti, and Mille Lacs Counties. Do you enjoy shore fishing along the Rum? Let us know which areas you think could use improvement! Share your feedback with Breanna Keith, Water Resource Specialist, at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. 

You may have observed a major difference between this year and our last few growing seasons: plenty of precipitation. According to the DNR's Climatology Office, the amount of rain that's fallen from April through August 2024 has been nearly the most on record over a good share of Minnesota. Overall, this is good news for our forests – but all that near- historic rainfall has had additional impacts to trees. 

As shoots and leaves emerge in the spring, they're particularly susceptible to infection from fungal pathogens. Extremely wet weather during this timeframe promotes sporulation (formation of spores) of these microscopic fungi, and rain spreads the spores around. The end result is a slew of common leaf diseases that we've seen in 2024. 

Read the full article from the MNDNR or contact Becky Wozney, Wetland Specialist, at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

ACD has its first agricultural cover crop project underway! A landowner in Linwood Township will plant 40 acres of cover crops each of the next three years. The project benefits soil health, water quality, and habitat. Cover crops are planted with a cash crop or after harvest of a cash crop. It's an alternative to leaving the soil bare for nearly half of the year. Cover crops prevent erosion, scavenge nutrients that might otherwise wash away, build soil structure, and increase infiltration. Common cover crops are oats, rye, turnips, and kale. The cover crops are terminated just prior to planting the next cash crop. 

To encourage farmers to give cover crops a try, ACD offers incentive payments. These flat rate payments are on a per-acre basis - $50/ac/yr if planting 1-2 species and $60/ac/yr if planting 3+ species. The practice must be implemented annually for three years to qualify for funding. ACD also has incentive payments for other practices including conservation cover, contour buffer strips, filter strips, and no-till/strip-till. For more information contact Jamie Schurbon, Watershed Projects Manager, at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Over 77% of Minnesota voters said 'Yes' to renewing the dedication of MN Lottery funds to the Environment and Natural Resources Trust Fund (ENRTF)! Through this, approximately 40% of net lottery proceeds (or seven cents per dollar spent playing the lottery) will continue being allocated to this fund for the next 25 years.

Since its creation in 1988, the ENRTF has contributed over one billion dollars to support efforts such as the expansion of parks, trails, and other outdoor recreation opportunities, habitat restoration and protection, sustainable resource management, scientific research and technological advancements across a wide range of environmental fields, and more. You can learn more about the inner-workings and accomplishments of the ENRTF HERE. 

Addressing eroding slopes along an undeveloped portion of the Martin Lake shoreline required a creative stabilization solution. Sandy soils, wave action (increasing with boat activity), and fluctuating water levels cumulatively drove soil loading to the lake and the gradual encroachment of the shoreline toward the adjacent road. However, site access and workable land upslope was limited, and preserving mature trees and other natural shoreline elements was a priority. To achieve this, sections of stacked logs were anchored to the base of the shoreline along critical eroding areas. 

The lower logs act as a barrier to prevent waves from washing out soil at the base of the slope, and the upper logs trap the sandy soil falling from behind – rebuilding the eroded voids and creating a more stable slope within which vegetation can become re-established. At the same time, wildlife such as nesting turtles can still access these areas. ACD staff will continue monitoring this site in the coming years to assess its long-term effectiveness in protecting the shoreline. For more information contact Breanna Keith,Water Resource Specialist, at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

ACD recently completed a lakeshore project on Crooked Lake to replace a failing retaining wall. It's one of several such project where tumbling walls left an eroding shoreline. Now, these shorelines are gradually sloped and feature in-lake aquatic emergent plants and an upland native plant buffer. Shoreline walls are prone to failure and are generally not allowed by the MNDNR. Walls on shorelines tend to get undermined by waves and walls also eliminate shoreline features that provide valuable habitat for wildlife. 

At the Crooked Lake project site, the steep shoreline was addressed with geogrid textile instead of a wall. The honeycomb-like matrix (pictured above) is set just below the soil and helps hold soils in place on steeper slopes. The geogrid is invisible after construction and adds another layer of stability. This Crooked Lake project utilized a new funding source: legislatively approved soil and water conservation district aid. This new funding requires less administration so that we can put more of it into projects. Additional project funding came from the landowners. For more information contact Jamie Schurbon, Watershed Projects Manager, at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 

Project Features:

• A coconut fiber biolog was installed on top of the previously installed coir-log to raise the elevation.
• The void space was filled with brush bundles and topsoil.
• Topsoil was graded by hand.
• Erosion control fabric was installed over the other project features to hold in place.
• Live staked above coir logs with Red osier dogwood.
• Native plants were planted along the top of bank to provide aesthetics, wildlife habitat and additional stabilization.

Pollution Reduction:

• Phosphorus reduction: 0.616 lbs/yr
• Sediment reduction: 1,450 lbs/yr

Cost-share funding was provided from BWSR SWCD Aid and a contribution from the landowner. ACD provided project administration, design, and project installation.For more information contact Kris Larson, Water Resource Specialist, at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.