The St. Louis River needs a state match. Without it, federal dollars for the project will dry up. Rich Kremer reports Superior Day’s delegates are making the match a top priority.

The end of the five year designation process is closing in. An environmental impact statement and one more public hearing are all that’s left before the St. Louis River becomes the nation’s 28th National Estuarine Research Reserve. Along with distinction, it would bring federal research dollars to Superior and Douglas County. But UW-Superior liaison Faith Hensrud says before any checks are cashed the state needs come up with a 30% match.

“The state match for us is about $230,000. So, what we’re looking for in this particular legislative issue is we want to talk to the members of the legislature about the National Estuarine Research Reserve and express our interest in getting this funding, so we can move forward with the federal funds.”

And in the future she would like to see the project expanded so scientists based in Superior could study other estuaries across the state. To do that, delegates are asking for an additional $240,000

“That will help us to expand the scope and expand it beyond Superior, beyond Lake Superior but also into the estuaries of Lake Michigan as well.”

Hensrud says the research reserve will provide a window into the complex biology of freshwater estuaries and will offer opportunities for in-depth, hands on education for kids.

This will be a top Superior Days issue this week in Madison. Rich Kremer will be filing stories from Madison this week.

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