Greenseams® and Working Soils®: Regional Efforts to Protect Headwater Floodplains, Hydric Soils, and Farmland

Learn how the Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District (MMSD) partners with farmers and other rural landowners to reduce flood risk, preserve and restore hydric land features, and improve water quality and habitat. As a future flood risk reduction effort, MMSD has protected 5,300 acres of undeveloped land in watershed headwaters and has a goal of protecting a minimum of 10,000 acres. Land protection preserves the water holding capacity of hydric soil properties and preserves natural areas and farmland. Additional benefits of the programs include restoring habitat, reducing nutrient runoff from undeveloped land, increasing subsurface organic matter, improving environmental connectivity, and supporting the local farming economy. Key partners include Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, US Fish and Wildlife Service, USDA-Natural Resources Conservation Service, Fund for Lake Michigan, local counties and municipalities, and land trusts. Participants in this talk will learn MMSD’s integrated watershed approach to floodwater management, how MMSD selects sites and works with willing private landowners, and how the programs contribute towards regional climate resiliency.