Stormwater May 2012 : Page 47
Wetlands and wetland restora-tions are a big part of Greenseams. Last year the program worked jointly with Ducks Unlimited, the Wisconsin DNR, and the National Fish and Wild-life Foundation to convert one piece of property from farmland back to its natural wetland state. Another Greenseams acquisition, the 150-acre Ryan Creek headwaters area in the city of Franklin, is designat-ed as a Wisconsin DNR Land Legacy Place. The area is part of the Big Mus-kego Lake Wildlife Area, a rare shallow lake ecosys-tem, which contains 2,260 acres of water, islands of cattail marsh, and wetlands dominated by cattails. The eastern shore of Dumke Lake, 31 acres of wetland vegetation, is part of the pristine Ryan Creek headwaters area. The prop-erty’s previous owner was Edwin Dumke, who served as an alderman in Muskego for 24 years and died in 2008. An avid fi sherman and birdwatcher, Dumke raised peacocks and pheas-ants on the land. Every au-tumn, millions of waterfowl visit the area on their mi-gration to warmer climates. Like other landowners who have sold their properties to Greenseams, Dumke’s daughter is happy that her father’s legacy will continue and that the land will never be built on. For-mer agricultural land will be returned to grassland and savanna, along with preservation of the wetland. Despite its many potential benefi ts, Greenseams was not an immediate success with Milwaukee taxpayers and government offi cials. It began when green infrastructure and low-impact-development (LID) strategies were much less well known than they are today. “Local municipalities and land-owners had a hard time understand-ing why a sewerage district would be buying land for preservation purposes and what they would do with it,” said Hrobar. “For example, many thought MMSD would create large detention The Conservation Fund basins or engineer large stormwater manage-ment projects.” Shafer recalls that some of the lack of popularity was “be-cause people thought we would use condem-nation [to acquire prop-erty].” The approach in-stead has been through voluntary purchases at full market value. He adds that an-other possible reason for lack of enthusiasm for Greenseams was that MMSD was then “building approximately $300 million worth of fl ood management for short-term needs, and we told the public that we needed to change the dynamic of adding impervious land cover Marsh marigolds along a creek on Greenseams land with no thoughts on the consequences. It took awhile, but people began to see the wash into our waterways.” He acknowledges that maintain-wisdom of Greenseams.” Hrobar agreed. “It took a couple of ing Greenseams during these times of years of education the public about why tight budgets will be a challenge. “We MMSD was implementing the Green-are hoping to keep the program going seams Program and what the long term forward through all of this. I would vision was. Once Greenseams was able hope to continue to see approximately to acquire and restore a few properties $1 to $1.5 million per year spent on we were successful at building trust the Greenseams program, but this is all subject to our budget.” within the community.” For skeptics who doubt the cost ef-Greenseams is concentrating on projects in the most urban areas within fectiveness of green infrastructure, he the four major watersheds, where most says, “I believe that if you looked at suburban growth is expected. Shafer fl ooding from a watershed approach, hopes to expand the program to less-you would fi nd signifi cant investments populated areas. “I feel that is an ideal are necessary for typical fl ood manage-program that should be expanded into ment approaches such as detention rural areas to help us to reduce the ponds and channelization. Greenseams amount of nutrients and sediment that is an alternative that is more conducive Greenseams is concentrating on projects in the most urban areas within the four major watersheds, where most suburban growth is expected. May 2012 www.stormh2o.com The Conservation Fund 47
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