Woody Biomass Projects

Phase 1 Pilot Projects − Winter 2008

Pilot Knob Hill, Mendota Heights, City of Mendota Heights
Status: Completed March 2008.
Description: 3 acres. Oak savanna restoration. Pilot Knob Hill is a unique site of significant cultural, ecological and historic significance overlooking the confluence of the Minnesota and Mississippi Rivers. The City of Mendota Heights, with many partners including the DNR Metro Greenways Program, Trust for Public Land and Dakota County purchased a 15-acre addition (Phase II) to the 8 acres (Phase 1) of existing public natural area on Pilot Knob Hill on January 31, 2008. This project helped to implement the Pilot Knob Hill Phase II Natural Resource Management Plan This link leads to an external site. dated November 2007 prepared by Great River Greening.
Biomass Type: Mixed hardwoods.
Biomass Volume: 16 loads, 1,280 cy, 320 tons

 

Hastings Sand Coulee SNA, Hastings, MN DNR
Status: Cutting completed March 2008, grinding completed June 2008.
Description: 6.8 acres. Sand-gravel prairie restoration. Hastings Sand Coulee SNA is situated in a sandy ravine, or coulee, formed by a tributary stream to the Vermillion River. It contains 13 rare species of plants and animals. This project implemented the management goal of removing a planted conifer stand and invading red cedar as outlined in the Prairie Stewardship Plan dated June 2006 prepared by Friends of the Mississippi River This link leads to an external site. for the Maher Family who previously owned the property.
Biomass Type: Planted red pine, white pine, mixed spruce and invading red cedar.
Biomass Volume: 27 loads, 2,160 cy, 540 tons

Phase 2 Pilot Projects − Spring/Summer 2008

Janet and Carl T. Schuneman Wildlife Preserve This link leads to an external site., White Bear Lake, Jaques Chapter, Izaak Walton League.
Status: Completed August 2008
Description: 3 acres. Oak savanna restoration. This project implemented an important component of the Schuneman Marsh Restoration Project Plan dated February 2006 to restore the 100-acre site, including a wetland complex, to pre-European settlement conditions and increase public accessibility to the Preserve.
Biomass Type: Planted red pine, jack pine, spruce and invading mixed hardwoods.
Biomass Volume: 16 loads, 1,280 cy, 320 tons.

 

Indian Mounds Regional Park, St. Paul, City of St. Paul. This link leads to an external site.
Status: Phase 1 completed June 2008; Phase 2 completed December 2008.
Description: 11.7 acres funded by the DNR plus an additional 2.4 acres funded by the City of St. Paul. Oak savanna and oak forest restoration. This project implemented an important management recommendation as outlined in the Natural Resource Inventory and Management Plan of Indian Mounds Park dated December 2007 prepared by Great River Greening. A population of kittentails (Besseya bullii), a State Threatened vascular plant species, was documented in the park in the 1990s. This project was implemented in two phases; the second phase occurring upon receipt of funding from the Ramsey-Washington Metro Watershed District for erosion mitigation following biomass removal from areas with steep slopes.
Biomass Type: Predominantly buckthorn with additional mixed hardwood and conifer tree species.
Biomass Volume: 1,488 cy, 372 tons. The City of St. Paul and Ever-Green Energy (service provider to District Energy St. Paul) transported raw material, no load count.

Phase 3 Pilot Projects − Fall 2008/Winter 2009

Bridgeview Park Reserve This is a PDF file. You will need Adobe Acrobat Reader to download it. Big Lake, Sherburne County.
Status: Completed January 2008.
Description: 15 acres. Oak woodland-brushland restoration. The Bridgeview Park Reserve was created in 1999 utilizing grants from the DNR's Natural and Scenic Areas grant program (matched by the adjacent developer) and the Central Minnesota Initiative Fund?s Scenic Area Land Preservation Program and is included in a large-scale Mississippi River corridor restoration effort. This project helped to implement the Sherburne County Management Plan for the Bridgeview Park Reserve dated May 2001 prepared by a team of experts.
Biomass Type: Buckthorn and honeysuckle, eastern red cedar and mixed hardwoods.
Biomass Volume: 23 loads, 1,840 cy, 460 tons

 

Zumbro Falls Woods SNA, Zumbro Falls, MN DNR.
Status: Pending completion. The cutting and staging was completed on 7 of 8 originally designated sites in January 2009. The operator, Johnson Logging, Inc., purchased 120 cords of scaled logs to be utilized for higher value products @2.50/cord = $300 (which was deducted from the original contract amount and reincorporated into the project budget). Some grinding occurred in February 2009 but warm weather conditions stopped grinding operations. The final grinding operation, postponed until fall 2009, was cancelled due to the purchase of remaining logs and standing timber by a local logger in the fall 2009-winter 2010. This logging operation was set up by DNR Forestry and sold as an informal timber sale with a value of $887.50 (which was collected as revenue and incorporated into the project budget). This portion of the project is scheduled to be completed by June 30, 2010.
Description: 29 acres. Oak savanna restoration. Zumbro Falls Woods SNA, located along the Zumbro River in the southeast, is characterized by steep bluffs, loess-covered uplands, narrow river valleys and broad floodplains. This project involved the complete removal of 2 red pine plantations, partial removal of 3 white pine plantations, and appropriate clearing of woody vegetation from 3 mixed hardwood, conifer and shrub sites.
Biomass Type: Planted red pine, white pine, and encroaching mixed hardwoods, conifers and shrubs.
Biomass Volume: As of 2/13/09: 56 loads; 4,480 cy; 1,120 tons.

 

Fort Snelling WPA, Mendota Heights, MN DNR.
Status: Completed April 2009.
Description: 16.5 acres. Oak savanna and dry prairie restoration. This is a unique site of historical and ecological importance. In 1935, the National Park Service and the Works Progress Administration (WPA) established a residential work camp at the site. This project implemented management goals as indicated in the Fort Snelling State Park Management Plan (1997); Inventory of Biological Features and Fort Snelling State Park (1995); and, WPA Camp Management Plan (2008) as well as enhance access and educational opportunities at the WPA camp site.
Biomass Type: Shrubs (buckthorn, honeysuckle) and mixed hardwoods.
Biomass Volume: 19 loads; 1,520 cy; 380 tons

 

Lake Edith Prairie and Savanna Phase 1, Afton, Belwin Conservancy.This link leads to an external site.
Status: Completed. Lake Edith Prairie cutting and grinding completed January 2009, 33.4 acres. Lake Edith Savanna cutting completed April 2009, 40.9 acres; grinding completed September 2009.
Description: 74.3 acres. Oak savanna and dry prairie restoration. The Belwin Conservancy owns 1,300 acres which are managed, in part, to protect the Valley Creek trout stream. This project helped to implement their management goals for the Lake Edith Unit and was originally proposed to complete 34 acres with the funding provided. Many more acres were accomplished due to extended frozen weather conditions and cost efficiencies in project implementation.
Biomass Type: 1) Lake Edith Prairie: Planted pine and spruce, and mixed hardwoods and shrubs; 2) Lake Edith Savanna: Shrubs, primarily buckthorn and Amur maple, and mixed hardwoods.
Biomass Volume:

  • Lake Edith Prairie: 44 loads; 3,520 cy; 880 tons for 33.4 acres
  • Lake Edith Savanna: 165 loads; 13,200 cy; 3,300 tons from 40.9 acres.
  • TOTAL BIOMASS: 209 loads; 16,720 cy; 4,180 tons from 74.3 acres.

 

Kelleher Park, This link leads to an external site. Burnsville, City of Burnsville.
Status: Completed April 2009.
Description: 23 acres. Oak savanna and oak woodland restoration. Kelleher is a Burnsville city park and is known to have a population of kittentails (Besseya bullii), a State Threatened vascular plant species. This project implemented recommendations outlined in the 2007 Natural Resources Master Plan to restore oak savanna areas.
Biomass Type: Mixed hardwoods, conifers and shrubs (primarily buckthorn and honeysuckle).
Biomass Volume: 41 loads; 3,280 cy; 820 tons.

 

Uncas Dunes SNA-South Unit Phase 1, Zimmerman, MN DNR.
Status: Cutting and staging completed March 2009. Grinding completed February 2010.
Description: 31 acres. Oak savanna restoration. Uncas Dunes, located within the Anoka Sandplain, contains a relic dunefield associated with Glacial Lake Grantsburg. Named for the rare butterfly, Uncas Skipper (Hesperia uncas), this is one of only two sites in the state where this species is found. Several other rare plant and animal species are being documented through surveys in progress. The SNA is embedded within the Sand Dunes State Forest, administered by DNR Forestry. The Anoka Sand Plains is the focus of much funding and restoration work. This project accelerated the removal of ecologically inappropriate woody plant material on a larger area than was originally planned in support of restoration goals.
Biomass Type: Mixed hardwoods, shrubs, eastern red cedar and planted conifers.
Biomass Volume: 27 loads; 2,160 cy; 540 tons.

Phase 4 Pilot Projects – Fall 2009/Winter 2010:

 

Lake Edith Savanna Phase 2, Afton, Belwin Conservancy. This link leads to an external site.
Status: Completed September 2009.
Description: 15.4 acres. Oak savanna restoration. The Belwin Conservancy owns 1,300 acres which are managed, in part, to protect the Valley Creek trout stream. This project continued to implement their restoration goals for the Lake Edith Unit.
Biomass Type: Mixed hardwoods and shrubs (primarily buckthorn and Amur maple).
Biomass Volume: 37 loads; 2,960 cy; 740 tons.

 

Alimagnet Park, Burnsville, City of Burnsville.
Status: Completed January 2010.
Description: 28 acres. Red oak-sugar maple-basswood (bitternut hickory) forest restoration. This park was established in 1979 and lies between the two lobes of Alimagnet Lake. The natural areas within the park are designated as Priority A (highest priority) for implementing recommendations outlined in the 2007 Natural Resources Master Plan This link leads to an external site. to restore important natural areas.
Biomass Type: Primarily buckthorn and honeysuckle with additional mixed shrubs and trees.
Biomass Volume: 13 loads; 1,040 cy; 260 tons.

 

Uncas Dunes SNA-South Unit Phase 2, Zimmerman, MN DNR.
Status: Completed February 2010.
Description: 16 acres. Oak savanna restoration. Uncas Dunes, located within the Anoka Sandplain, contains a relic dunefield associated with Glacial Lake Grantsburg. Named for the rare butterfly, Uncas skipper (Hesperia uncas), this is one of only two sites in the state where this species was found. Several other rare plant and animal species are being documented through surveys in progress. The SNA is embedded within the Sand Dunes State Forest, administered by DNR Forestry. The Anoka Sand Plains is the focus of much funding and restoration work. This project accelerated the removal of ecologically inappropriate woody plant material on a larger area than was originally planned in support of restoration goals.
Biomass Type: Mixed hardwoods, shrubs, eastern red cedar and planted conifers.
Biomass Volume: 17 loads; 1,360 cy; 340 tons.

 

DNR St. Paul Hatchery Aquatic Management Area, St. Paul, MN DNR.
Status: Terminated. Project activity halted on February 16, 2010 due to probable nesting bald eagles. Upon confirmation that the nest was active, the project was officially terminated as of March 17, 2010. The project is scheduled to resume in August 2010 upon successful fledging of the eaglets.
Description: 8 acres. Oak woodland and wet ash swamp restoration. This DNR-owned land is immediately adjacent to Indian Mounds Regional Park managed by the City of St. Paul. This project will further implement an important management recommendation as outlined in the Natural Resource Inventory and Management Plan of Indian Mounds Park dated December 2007 prepared by Great River Greening and will become an important component of the overall restoration of this park. A population of kittentails (Besseya bullii), a State Threatened vascular plant species, was documented in the park in the 1990s.
Biomass Type: Primarily buckthorn with additional mixed hardwoods.
Biomass Volume: TBD.