Water Resources Center

The Water Resources Center is affiliated with the College of Food, Agricultural and Natural Resource Sciences and University of Minnesota Extension.

Cumulative Impacts of Development on Minnesota Lakes

Project Staff:

Principal Investigators: Patrick L. Brezonik, Professor, Department of Civil Engineering; Marvin E. Bauer, Professor, Remote Sensing and Geospatial Analysis Laboratory and Department of Forest Resources; Jim Perry, Professor, Department of Fisheries, Wildlife, and Conservation Biology, University of Minnesota

Funding:

Minnesota Department of Natural Resources

Project Duration:

March 1999 - June 1999

Summary

The objectives of this study were to provide to the DNR:

  • A review and summary report on lake and land-based measurements (metrics) that can be used to assess the cumulative effects of land development on lake quality;
  • A review of the goals and methods of classifying lakes and of indices useful for lake classification;
  • A report evaluating goals and strategies for monitoring of conditions in Minnesota lakes;
  • A preliminary evaluation of the usefulness of satellite imagery and other remote sensing techniques for routine monitoring of Minnesota lakes; and
  • A preliminary analysis of the cumulative effects of land development on lake quality in the hardwood forest ecoregion of Minnesota.