It is the intention of the Board of Managers to manage
the waters and related resources within the Roseau River Watershed District in a reasonable and
orderly manner which will improve the general welfare and public health of the residents of the District.
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The RRWD partners with various federal, state, regional, and local funding sources for the development and construction of projects and programs. The RRWD board of managers directs the management of grant applications and contracts. The Administrator acts as the authorized representative directly managing and overseeing grant management. Click here for current Board members and staff.
The Roseau Lake Rehabilitation project is a Natural Resource Enhancement (NRE) / Flood Damage Reduction (FDR) water management project located about 6 miles northwest of the City of Roseau. This is a joint project of the Roseau River Watershed District (RRWD) and Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (MN DNR) with the purpose of improving habitat conditions in the Roseau Lake and the Roseau River and to manage the available storage capacity of the lake basin to reduce flood damages near and downstream of the lake basin.
The Whitney Lake subwatershed is located in northwest Minnesota near the Canadian border. Agricultural producers in the area suffer frequent inundation from even minor events in both the spring and summer causing crop loss and/or damage.
The purpose of the project is Flood Damage Reduction: Reduce damages to agricultural lands for a 10 year 24 hour storm (total 3.3 inches of precipitation) and reduce damages to roadways for a 25 year 24 hour storm event (total 3.9 inches of rainfall) in the Whitney Lake subwatershed.
The RRWD, along with its partners, has adopted the Roseau River Comprehensive Watershed Management Plan (RRCWMP) aligning local water planning efforts to create a unified plan that results in more effective and efficient resource management.
The RRCWMP was developed through the One Watershed, One Plan (1W1P) program through the Board of Water and Soil Resources (BWSR) that supports partnerships of local governments in developing prioritized, targeted, and measurable implementation plans. The underlying principle of watershed management is that people, land, and water are connected. People use land in a variety of ways and affect ecosystems and ultimately their own communities for better or worse. Managing and protecting the environment while providing a high quality of life for people is a complex process that is most successful when governing bodies, community members and experts in various fields are true partners in the planning process. A Joint Power Board was formed at the beginning of January 2023 between Roseau County, Roseau River Watershed District and the Roseau County Soil and Water Conservation District for the purpose of plan implementation. The new Roseau River Comprehensive Watershed Management Plan is effective for 10 years. Updated link to the plan: https://www.roseauriverjpb.org/
The Roseau River Watershed District is proposing a multi‐component project to restore the hydrology and natural habitats within the Roseau River WMA and Beaches Lake WMA. The project components include the abandonment of State Ditch 69 (SD 69) and SD 72 laterals, meandering and two‐stage floodplain establishment of Badger Creek (SD 69 Lateral 1 and 3) and restoring bed and slopes of SD 69 and SD 20. The project will restore hydrology to the large wetland and peatland complexes that make up the WMAs. Following restoration, the natural habitats will regenerate and provide improved functionality, biodiversity, and ecosystem resilience. An additional component includes the construction of the Whitney Lake floodwater impoundment to provide flood damage reduction in the Whitney Lake sub‐watershed. The Environmental Assessment Worksheet (EAW) will be published in the EQB on August 26, 2025, activating a 30-day comment period. The comment period will end on September 25, 2025. Please submit comments on the EAW to the RGU at tracy@roseauriverwd.com. The EAW can be found on the Roseau River Watershed District projects webpage (https://roseauriverwd.com) OR directly at this link: Juneberry Area Project EAW - Downloadable Link.pdf
