Join us for this in-person or virtual hybrid edition of Clean Lakes 101 to learn about research to predict summertime algal abundance. Register as an in-person attendee or to receive a Zoom link through your confirmation email and watch virtually.
In recent decades, cultural eutrophication of coastal waters and inland lakes around the world has contributed to a rapid expansion of harmful cyanobacteria (blue-green algae). Potential outbreaks of toxin-producing cyanobacteria species have drawn concern from health officials and water managers given their negative ecological, aesthetic, and socioeconomic impacts.
Currently, little information regarding expected summertime cyanobacteria abundance is available prior to the season. With sufficient lead time, communicating the likelihood of elevated cyanobacteria abundance may be informative for proactively managing potential threats to lake and beach safety. We developed a model to issue predictions in early June of expected summertime cyanobacteria abundance for Lake Mendota. The prediction model demonstrates moderate to good skill and an ability to accurately predict summers with above-normal cyanobacteria abundance. Associated beach closure predictions also show promise but are highly sensitive to the short observational record – a limitation directly being addressed by Clean Lakes Alliance volunteer monitors and researchers at UW-Madison.
About our Speaker
Dr. Paul Block is an associate professor in civil and environmental engineering at the University of Wisconsin – Madison. His research focuses on hydroclimatology and water resources systems, with a goal to couple climate, hydrology, and management models and knowledge to reduce risks and promote sustainability of water resources for societal benefit. He is involved in many national and international projects that promote season-ahead forecasts as a means to inform decision-making, with applications to reservoir operations, agricultural planning, water quality assessment, and disaster management. He also has extensive experience as a licensed civil engineer working on groundwater protection and extraction, landfill management, and storm water control projects.
Event Details
This event will be held at The Edgewater hotel – grand ballroom level 5 (1001 Wisconsin Pl, Madison, WI 53703). Doors open at 7:30 a.m. The program runs from 8 – 9 a.m. A Q/A session will follow the presentation as time allows. Complimentary event parking will be available at The Edgewater parking ramp. Parking spots fill up quickly and may be limited depending on hotel capacity.
A Zoom link will be sent to all registrants via the Eventbrite confirmation email.
Join us online on Wednesday, December 8th to hear from two UW-Madison Civil and Environmental Engineering senior Capstone teams as they present their culminating designs for two lake-friendly improvement projects.
Since 2016, Clean Lakes Alliance has worked in partnership with the UW-Madison Civil and Environmental Engineering (CEE) Department to support student capstone projects focused on designing more accessible and lake-friendly parks, beaches, and community spaces. Senior Capstone Design is a required course for all civil and environmental engineers at UW-Madison and serves as the culminating work of their undergraduate degrees.
Clean Lakes Alliance, along with CG Schmidt, is proud to be a sponsoring partner of these student capstone projects. While Clean Lakes Alliance serves as a “client”, the students work diligently all semester to apply their acquired expertise to inspire the community through unique project designs that advocate for healthy lakes and beaches. With 48% of the shoreline owned by the public and 25 beaches in the Greater Madison area, this is an excellent avenue to elevate a variety of project opportunities for the students and the community. In this month’s Clean Lakes 101, you’ll be presented two unique projects in the Madison area:
Plaenert Drive/Wingra Creek Revitalization
John Nolen Drive Redesign
Project Details
Project 1: Plaenert Drive/Wingra Creek Revitalization
This project is located along Wingra Creek in southern Madison, Wisconsin. The creek is bounded to the north and south by W. Wingra Drive and Plaenert Drive, and Fish Hatchery Road and S. Park Street to the west and east. To highlight the importance of waterways within the heart of Greater Madison, the creation of an inclusive and inviting greenspace and park setting is the focus of this project. By providing an alternative route design for Plaenert Drive, this allows for development of a park setting on the south side of Wingra Creek.
This project aims to improve and protect Madison’s water resources while involving the community in its development. Phosphorus reduction is at the forefront in enhancing water resources and continuing to establish Madison as a ‘green city’. Enhancing water quality, sustainably protecting the shoreline, improving access, and improving placemaking of the region is incorporated into every aspect of the project design. This region will provide a space for the community and environment to seamlessly interact by featuring many amenities including a viewing platform over Wingra Creek, pedestrian path, and non-motorized boat launch for creek access.
Project 2: John Nolen Drive Redesign
John Nolen Drive across Lake Monona serves as the primary gateway to downtown Madison. To reflect the significance of the causeway, our objectives are to improve recreation opportunities for users, manage runoff to minimize negative impacts of stormwater, address shoreline erosion from waves, and improve aesthetics and landscaping along the causeway. Our designs seek to improve water quality, increase sustainability and access, and to enhance placemaking. The improvements for the bike and pedestrian path will create a significant positive recreational impact on the community’s transportation network and remind users that Greater Madison values green infrastructure and the lakes.
The bike and pedestrian path final design includes a 16 ft wide pedestrian boardwalk stretching the southern half of the existing bike and pedestrian pathway, use of recycled materials, and the inclusion of several surface level and underground stormwater management techniques. Alongside the boardwalk there is a two-lane bike path, two 225 sq ft outlook points along the boardwalk, and a 625 sq ft capital outlook point. In addition to the boardwalk, this alternative includes amenities such as bike racks, benches, emergency call boxes, signage, local art, coastline steps for increased erosion control and recreational use, and landscaping.
Design images of Project 1 and 2 respectively seen below:
Plaenert Drive and Wingra Creek RevitalizationJohn Nolen Drive Redesign
Meet the Students
Chase Cummings is graduating from University of Wisconsin-Madison in December 2021 with a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering. He has worked as a Civil Engineering Intern for HNTB and has focused on field inspection and plan design. After graduation, he will work for HNTB in Madison, Wisconsin as a Field Engineer.
Michael VerVelde is graduating from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in December 2021 with a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering with Certificates in both Business and Entrepreneurship. He has worked as a Civil Construction Field Management Intern for Bechtel on two nuclear reactors at Plant Vogtle in Georgia and expanding the AT&T 5G system in Northern California. After graduation, he intends to continue working for Bechtel as a Civil Field Engineer either nationally or abroad.
Nora Rickman is graduating from University of Wisconsin-Madison in December 2021 with a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering with a certificate in Sustainability. She worked as a Civil Engineering Intern for MSA Professional Services and focused on field and office work on road reconstruction and greenfield development projects. After graduation, she will work for MSA Professional Services in Marshfield, Wisconsin as a Civil Engineer.
Matthew Humbert will be graduating in May 2022 from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a Bachelor of Science in both geological engineering and geology and geophysics. Matt has first-hand experience working in an agricultural research setting collecting data and preparing lab tests. After graduation Matt plans on working in the geotechnical field on issues involving water resources and sustainability.
Riley Hughes is a geological engineering student graduating in the spring of 2022 from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a bachelor’s in science in Geological Engineering, a major in Geology and Geophysics, and a certificate in Engineering Energy and Sustainability. She has prior internship experience working as a geotechnical/field engineer working across the United States on preliminary and final wind and solar investigations. She will begin working full time with Westwood Professional Services in Westminster, CO starting July 2022.
Freddy Koth is a civil engineering student graduating in the fall of 2021 from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a bachelor’s in science in Civil Engineering with an option in Environmental Engineering. He has prior internship experience as a field inspector and project designer on WisDOT transportation construction projects. He will begin working full time with DARR Engineering in Wausau, WI starting January 2022.
Brandon Hungelmann-Skiba is a civil engineering student graduating in the spring of 2022 from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a bachelor’s in science in Civil Engineering with an option in Environmental Engineering and an additional major in Economics. He has prior internship experience as a pavement inspector and technician performing work on reports for the DOT and FAA. He will begin full time with Applied Pavement Technology in Waunakee, WI starting January 2022.
Jordan Nolle is a civil engineering student graduating in the spring of 2022 from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a bachelor’s in science in Civil Engineering. He has prior experience working as a field technician to perform lead contamination tests, both in soil and in groundwater. Jordan will begin working full time in Madison, WI starting June 2022.
Lauren Kinchla is a civil engineering student graduating in the fall of 2021 from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a bachelor’s in science in Civil Engineering and a certificate in Environmental Studies. She has experience in property management from her internship in Boston, MA. Lauren is searching for full time engineering opportunities after graduation in January 2022.
Event Details
This event will be held online via Zoom. The online talk is free and open to the public. A link to access the talk LIVE will be sent to all registered attendees ahead of the event.
Willow Creek is the end-of-pipe water course to a 1,900-acre urban watershed. But how can it be transformed into a green infrastructure destination on the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus?
In this month’s talk, we’ll hear from experts from the UW-Madison and the City of Madison about how Willow Creek is not solely being planned as a storm water conveyance, but also as a natural resource that is integral to the campus greenspace network. With proposed new institutional developments, and increases in campus populations in the areas directly adjacent to the corridor, we’ll learn how the campus can reorient itself to this forgotten corridor. Through area planning and creek engagement from adjacent development, Willow Creek and University Bay will be transitioned from the ‘back waters’ of the agricultural campus, to a critical infrastructural amenity to the entire community.
Event Details
This event will be held online via Zoom. The online talk is free and open to the public. A link to access the talk LIVE will be sent to all registered attendees ahead of the event.
About our Speakers
Gary A. Brown, PLA, FASLA has been with the University of Wisconsin for more than 34 years. After serving for 15 years with the UW System as a landscape architect and facilities planner, his travels around the state’s 26-campus system brought him back to the flagship UW-Madison. He currently serves as the director of Campus Planning and Landscape Architecture, overseeing the development and implementation of the 20-year campus master plan on this spectacular 938-acre university campus.
He also serves as the university’s historic preservation officer, environmental affairs officer, and is the director of the university’s 300-acre Lakeshore Nature Preserve. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Landscape Architecture from UW-Madison and was inducted as a Fellow with the American Society of Landscape Architects in 2004 for his administrative works.
Lauren Striegl is a stormwater and special projects engineer with the City of Madison. She has been with the City for six years, and works primarily on stormwater hydraulic and hydrologic modeling, water quality modeling and design of unconventional stormwater treatment projects. She has a BS in Civil Engineering from UCLA and a Masters in Civil Engineering from the University of Wisconsin – Madison.
Aaron Williams, PLA, ASLAis the assistant campus planner with the University of Wisconsin-Madison in the division of Facilities Planning & Management. He provides planning and design assistance across the 938-acre UW-Madison campus, as well as zoning coordination for all major capital improvement projects. He is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Madison Department of Planning & Landscape Architecture with tours at Sasaki Associates (Watertown) and SAA Design Group (Madison).
As a landscape architect, his work is focused on the spatial tangents bridging Planner/Architect/Engineer. His approach to projects is centered around three connected concepts: A thorough understanding of ‘site’ to achieve a desired creation of place; understanding the role of human occupation in a site; and the execution of plans to achieve meaningful design. He also likes birds.
Yahara Lakes 101 Lecture Series
Yahara Lakes 101 is a series of educational events open to the public and a great chance for residents to learn more about the science behind the issues that affect our lakes. Each month we feature a different expert to make the science accessible and interesting to non-technical audiences.
The University of Wisconsin-Madison installed stormwater facilities on its west campus including four bioretention basins, a bioswale, and a naturalized wet pond. The project, which won an engineering excellence award, utilizes a specialized soil mix to remove as much phosphorus as possible while contending with high groundwater and limited space.
Support clean, healthy lakes with Clean Lakes Alliance’s 12th Annual Loop the Lake Bike Ride, presented by Lake Ridge Bank. Loop the Lake is an at-your-own-pace bike ride around Lake Monona on Saturday, June 15th that raises funds to protect and preserve Greater Madison’s lakes. Make a day of it while you enjoy entertaining and educational activities at many parks along the route.
Fun and educational stops (see information below) Super soft t-shirt, compliments of Lands’ End Food cart item Free beer or seltzer, courtesy of Bell’s Brewery (21+)
Fun and educational stops (see information below)