Minnesota
Peatlands are protecting Minnesota’s ecosystem. Scientists are working to restore them
Here in Minnesota, scientists say we are sitting on a climate change superhero.
Peatlands, a type of wetland, cover more than 10% of the state — that’s the most of any in the lower 48. But over time, peatlands have been misunderstood and mistreated. Now some are trying to change that.
“You might feel like we’ve jumped into a Dr. Suess novel,” said Mark Felice, a peatland scientist with The Nature Conservancy.
At the Cedar Creek Ecosystem Science Reserve in East Bethel, truffle top black spruces, cotton grass puffs, colorful mosses and carnivorous plants fill in where glacial lakes retreated.
“It’s just like a whole little world,” said Eric Seabloom, interim director of Cedar Creek Ecosystem Science Reserve.
Except in this world each step squishes shaking the ground around it.
“It feels like walking on a water bed,” said Felice.
Scientists say the moss-carpeted wetland is pure magic.
“Peatlands are basically areas where as plants die they fall on the ground and then slowly decompose like your compost pile,” said Seabloom.
When that happens, it pulls carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere and stores it in the soil.
“So slowly little by little, layer by layer, we’ve built up the soil we’re standing on,” said Felice.
And while peatlands occupy just 3% of Earth’s land surface, scientists say they store about 30% of the planet’s land-based carbon. That’s more than double held by the world’s forests, according to the Nature Conservancy.
To capture their power, Felice brings along his portable greenhouse gas analyzer, which he says reminds him of R2D2 from “Star Wars.” He also carries with him laser sensors that detect methane and carbon dioxide emissions.
“Peat soil can hold about 20 times its weight in water,” said Felice
It acts like a sponge for both carbon and water, and can provide flood protection and water filtration.
“They’re sort of a hidden treasure that we don’t really think about,” said Seabloom. “Now we can understand better how these are really important, huge stores of carbon. We definitely need them.”
But over time scientists say peatlands have been misunderstood, drained for development or agriculture and scientists are now learning why that was a mistake and how we can fix it.
“People always thought of peatlands or wetlands as sort of a menace to society or something in the way to be drained away,” said Chris Lenhart, a restorationist at The Nature Conservancy. “We’re right along Cedar Creek here. This is the part that’s been straightened about 100 to 120 years ago.”
The Nature Conservancy says up to one sixth of Minnesota’s peatlands were drained in the early 20th century.
The soil of a drained peatland looks a lot like dirt.
“It’s breaking down the organic matter and releasing the carbon dioxide as opposed to holding it in place,” said Lenhart.
To fix it, restoration teams will take a straightened section of the stream and rewiggle it to it’s original form.
Restoring the stream to its original form slows the water, raises the levels, and rewets the peat soils on the shores, emitting less carbon dioxide and accumulating valuable peat once again.
The Nature Conservancy says restoring and rewetting farmed and partially-drained peatlands in Minnesota could cut roughly 6.36 million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalents, which is like getting rid of nearly 1.5 million gas powered cars for a year.
“We can have a lot of impact by managing and taking care of a pretty small blueprint,” said Felice.
“Even around the world people know about Minnesota I’d say for peatland and wetland science and protection,” said Lenhart.
Cedar Creek Ecosystem Science Reserve is owned by the University of Minnesota. It’s an area with many active research studies and restoration projects. It’s also known nationally for its research.
Minnesota weather forecast. (FOX 9)
MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) – Most of Minnesota will be under a marginal risk of severe weather on Thursday, with rain and rumbles expected.
Thursday weather forecast
Local perspective:
A line of storms is expected to develop in west-southwest Minnesota on Thursday and grow in coverage as well as intensity tracking east into the early evening.
Large hail and damaging winds are the prevalent threats, but an isolated tornado is also possible along the line.
Isolated showers are expected to form in the western part of Minnesota on Thursday morning.
Rain chances in the Twin Cities area increase in the afternoon, as a line pushes through with possible thunderstorms.
Stay Sky Aware with FOX 9 for the latest.
The Source: This story uses information from the FOX 9 weather forecast.
A TikTok creator is no longer banned from parks in St. Paul, Minnesota, after appealing the city’s restriction, according to his agent.
St. Paul Parks and Recreation Director Andy Rodriguez earlier this month accused Josh Liljenquist of going to Pig’s Eye Park to “harass, record and profit from vulnerable adults residing there without said individuals’ permission.” Liljenquist, who is known for giving away food and cash in his videos, denied the allegation.
On Wednesday, Liljenquist’s agent shared a new letter from the city.
“Based on an evaluation of the facts of this situation as they were relayed during your appeal meeting, I will be rescinding your ban from our parks, effective immediately,” the letter from Rodriguez read.
Rodriguez also wrote the city expects “all residents and visitors to our parks to abide by the rules.”
“Our responsibility is to ensure park spaces remain safe, respectful, and accessible for all, and we appreciate your partnership in that effort,” the letter read.
Liljenquist told WCCO he has only recorded at Pig’s Eye Park once, and it was with the Ramsey County Sheriff’s Office’s consent. He said he and his videographer always get consent from individuals they film, too.
Local organizations that work with people experiencing homelessness are split on Liljenquist’s impact. Sue Phillips, director of the Metropolitan Interfaith Council on Affordable Housing, said his content “is exploiting people experiencing homelessness/housing instability.” Feeding St. Paul founder Michael Brendale, on the other hand, said, “Josh has changed many lives, taken people off the streets.”
Liljenquist told WCCO he films his efforts instead of making them private in hopes of “inspiring other people to do it, showing that it doesn’t take a lot of money, it doesn’t take a lot of resources to go out there and do something for somebody.”
The National Weather Service confirmed that at least five tornadoes touched down in southeastern Minnesota on Friday, including four that hit Olmsted County. At least another three twisters were confirmed in southwestern Wisconsin.
The NWS was still analyzing data and other information to determine if more tornadoes occurred in the area.
The storms started Friday afternoon, with the first tornado touching down north of Sargeant in Mower County around 1:45 p.m. The short-lived EF0, with top wind speeds of 80 mph, traveled about 3 miles northeast into rural Dodge County near the unincorporated town of Oslo. It lasted for about five minutes in total, the weather service says, and caused minor damage to a grain silo before dissipating.
A new tornado formed a few minutes later, less than a mile away south of Oslo. The storm was also considered an EF0, with wind speeds around 80 mph. Lasting less than 10 minutes, it traveled 4 miles into Olmsted County, causing light damage to farm outbuildings and trees.
The line of storms seemed to pick up intensity as it entered Olmsted County.
Around 2:17 p.m., the EF2 tornado that would later hit Marion Township first touched down just northeast of Stewartville. The weather service estimates that the twister had wind speeds of about 130 mph and traveled nearly 10 miles northeast, before dissipating around 2:31 p.m. Multiple homes were severely damaged with roof removal and partially collapsed exterior walls.
An EF1 tornado was also confirmed to have hit near Potsdam around 2:30 p.m.
The first portion of the tornado was weak, the weather service said, with mainly EF0 damage. On the second portion of the 12-mile track, the tornado intensified to produce approximately 100 mph winds with tree and farm outbuilding damage. It lifted around 2:54 p.m.
A second EF2 tornado was confirmed in Olmsted County around 2:46 p.m. about 5 miles east-northeast of Viola and traveled about 7.5 miles, ending in Wabasha County, a few miles south of Plainview, around 3 p.m. Maximum wind speeds were around 125 mph. The storm affected mainly rural areas and damaged trees and outbuildings. One farmhouse lost a roof and a garage roof, the weather service said.
No injuries were reported in the Minnesota-Wisconsin outbreak.
Friday was a historic day for the NWS La Crosse office, which issued 26 tornado warnings – the most for any one day since the office opened in 1995.
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