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Stewardship

Painted turtles and pink lotus flowers help keep our waters from turning green

Storm drain mural contains music and fish to connect it to como park and hands representing our responsibliity to care for the lake

You can now visit these colorful, water quality-themed mural at Como Lake! This mural is the second design by community members to decorate Como Lake's shores.

Ever wondered why so many metro lakes turn green in the summer?

For St. Paul's Lake Como and many others, one main reason is nutrients that come from neighborhood lawns and streets. After it rains, fertilizer, leaves and grass clippings are directed into our local lakes, creeks and rivers via storm drains, in turn feeding algae and excessive plant growth. 

At Como, a pair of murals reminds us of this important connection between our yards, streets, lakes and rivers, and celebrates the community in the process. >>

by Kate Clayton
July 2

Burn, baby, burn...but only when we say so!

An April prescribed burn rolls through a blufftop prairie at the Flint Hills Pind Bend Bluffs property.

A prescribed burn rolls through a blufftop prairie at the Flint Hills Pind Bend Bluffs restoration site. (Photo by Karen Schik.)

Spring has officially sprung, and with it comes those familiar signs of life: plants begin to green, flowers bloom, migrating birds return, and fires burn through the prairies at FMR restoration sites!

Learn more about how we use fire to restore wildlife habitat, and the impact of a recent unplanned fire on an FMR restoration site. >>

by Alex Roth
May 7

Pull garlic mustard at Hampton Woods

Hampton Woods is the largest continuous oak forest in southern Dakota County, providing critical habitat for forest-dwelling animals, especially birds. This site is especially important because much of the surrounding area is farmland.

Thanks to an FMR partnership with Dakota County, the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, and local landowners, 191 acres of Hampton Woods are permanently protected as a Wildlife Management Area. We're returning to the site for the first volunteer work night there since 2019. Register to be a part of the restoration of this impressive site!

Claim your day: FMR is scheduling summer group outings

Students stencil storm drains in St. Paul neighborhoods

A group of students from Neighborhood House summer programs stencil storm drains in a St. Paul neighborhood.

If you're looking for a service outing that's educational, active, outdoors and provides a tangible community benefit, consider storm drain stenciling in St. Paul with FMR. 

Reservations for outings, as well as classroom presentations and litter cleanups, are now being taken for summer and fall 2018. >>

by Kate Clayton
February 6

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