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2020 Eastern South Dakota Water Conference

"Water’s Lasting Legacy:
Informing the Future with Lessons from the Past"

Wednesday, Oct. 14, 2020


Due to the COVID-19 outbreak, the conference was entirely online.

A recording of the conference is available:


Conference Agenda

Morning Session

"Photo of Dr. John McMaine"
John McMaine
Assistant Professor & Extension Water Management Engineer
Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering
South Dakota State University
Brookings, SD
"Photo of David Kringen"
David Kringen
Water Resources Field Specialist
Mitchell Regional Center
Mitchell, SD
"Photo of Brian Walsh"
Brian Walsh
Public Affairs Director
SD Dept of Environment and Natural Resources
"Photo of Jeanne Goodman"
Jeanne Goodman
Director of Environmental Services
South Dakota Department of Environment and Natural Resources
"Photo of Hanna Bates"
Hanna Bates
Acting Assistant Director
Iowa Water Center (IWC)
Iowa State University
Ames, Iowa
"Photo of Amy Weckle"
Amy Weckle
Program Manager
Illinois Water Resources Center (IWRC)
Champaign, IL
"Photo of Paula Mazzer"
Paula Mazzer
Associate Professor of Biochemistry
Dakota Wesleyan University
Friends of Firesteel Board Member
"Lake Lakota Sign"
Brett Pettigrew, P.E.
Agricultural Engineer
Natural Resources Conservation Service
Brookings, SD
"Photo of Nathan Schaepe"
Nathan Schaepe
Hydrologist/GIS Specialist
U.S. Geological Survey
Nebraska Water Science Center
"Photo of Dennis Todey"
Dennis Todey
Director
USDA Midwest Climate Hub
Ames, IA

Afternoon Session

"Photo of Rochelle Nustad"
Rochelle A. Nustad
Hydrologist
U.S. Geological Survey
Grand Forks, ND

Peter O’Brien
Research Agronomist
USDA Agricultural Research Service
Ames, IA

Tim Cowman, State Geologist and Program Administrator
Geological Survey Program
SD Department of Environment and Natural Resources

"Photo of Troy Gilmore"
Troy Gilmore
Groundwater Hydrologist and Assistant Professor
University of Nebraska

Featured Speakers:

Merger of the South Dakota Department of Agriculture and South Dakota Department of Environment and Natural Resources
Jeanne Goodman
Director of Environmental Services
S.D. Department of Environment and Natural Resources

Brian Walsh
Public Affairs Director
S.D. Department of Environment and Natural Resources

Partnering to Develop Research, Outreach and Education Resources to Mitigate Harmful Algal Blooms in the North Central Region
Amy Weckle
Program Manager
Illinois Water Resources Center (IWRC)

Hanna Bates
Acting Assistant Director
Iowa Water Center (IWC)

The Statewide Ground Water Quality Monitoring Network Information System
Tim Cowman, State Geologist and Program Administrator
Geological Survey Program
SD Department of Environment and Natural Resources

NRCS Assisted Watershed Dams – History, Condition of Structures, Rehabilitation and DamWatch
Brett Pettigrew, P.E.
USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service

Estimating Water Quality Lag Times using Groundwater Age
Troy Gilmore
Groundwater Hydrologist and Assistant Professor
University of Nebraska

Lake Mitchell and the Friends of Firesteel: A public/private partnership to improve water quality in the Firesteel Creek/Lake Mitchell watershed
Paula Mazzer
Associate Professor of Biochemistry
Dakota Wesleyan University
Friends of Firesteel Board Member

Investigating the Impacts of 2019 Niobrara River Dam Failure to Riparian Habitats of the Upper 39-Mile Segment of the Missouri National Recreational River
Nathan Schaepe
Hydrologist/GIS Specialist
U.S. Geological Survey, Nebraska Water Science Center

Trend Analysis: Insights, Challenges and Building Blocks
Rochelle A. Nustad
Hydrologist
U.S. Geological Survey

Climate Whiplash: Drought-Flood-Drought – Water and Agricultural Impacts from 2018-2020
Dennis Todey
Director, USDA Midwest Climate Hub
Ames, IA

Cropping Pattern Changes Diminish Agroecosystem Services in North and South Dakota
Peter O’Brien
Research Agronomist
USDA Agricultural Research Service
Ames, IA