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Dan Olson

Finding clues to water quality in the bottom of a lake

Scientists used canoes braced together.
St. Croix Watershed Research Station scientists used canoes braced together to gather sediment from five locations in Solem Lake near Kensington in west-central Minnesota in late May.
Dan Olson | MPR News

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Scientist Dan Engstrom, director of the St. Croix Watershed Research Station, studies the sediment on lake bottoms, which can show how — or even if — certain farming practices affect water quality.

"We're investing a lot in encouraging farmers to do these things, but are we getting much bang for our buck?"

Join Engstrom on the road to one of Minnesota's 11,842 lakes.

Gallery
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Heavy rainfall sent topsoil into the lake.
Solem Lake in Solem Township is mostly surrounded by corn and soybean fields, where a recent heavy rainfall sent topsoil from one field through a culvert into the lake.
Dan Olson | MPR News
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Retrieving a lake bed sediment sample.
St. Croix Watershed Research Station scientists Jim Almendinger, Shawn Schottler and Adam Heathcote retrieved a clear plastic tube filled with sediment from the bottom of Solem Lake.
Dan Olson | MPR News
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Research Station director Dan Engstrom
Dan Engstrom said gradations of color and texture from Solem Lake-bottom sediment show recent deposits at the top and sediment up to 300 years old at the bottom. He looked at samples pulled from the lake on May 27.
Dan Olson | MPR News