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Healthy Waters: Expectations vs. Reality in South Dakota’s Watersheds

Wednesday, Oct. 15, 2025

McCrory Gardens Education and Visitor Center
631 22nd Ave., Brookings, SD

Agenda

8:30-8:40 a.m. Welcome, Introduction of New Water Resources Institute Director, Kasiviswanathan Muthukumarappan and Ryan Lefers

8:40-9:20 a.m. River Restoration Science and Practice and Application as a Nature-Based Solution, Peter Skidmore, Dipper Consulting, LLC

9:20-9:50 a.m. A Tale of Two Rivers, Carter Johnson, SDSU Emeritus Professor, SDSU Department of Natural Resource Management

9:50-10:10 a.m. Break

10:10-10:35 a.m. Toward Healthy Lakes: Using Research to Inform Local Decision-Making Across Ecological, Agricultural and Water Quality Outcomes, Margaret Gitau, Purdue University

10:35-11 a.m. Sentinel Waters: Climate Persistence, Hydrologic Extremes and Water Quality in the Terminal Lakes of the Eastern Dakotas, Karen Ryberg, Independent Researcher

11-11:20 a.m. Lake Poinsett Management Plan, Kelli Buscher, Banner Associates

11:20-11:40 a.m. Bridging Community Insights and Solutions in Water Resource Management: A Pathway to a Water Resources Program in South Dakota, Jeremiah Bergstrom, SDSU School of Design and Sushant Mehan, SDSU Department of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering

11:40 a.m.-noon Aligning Watershed Health, Ecology and Community in South Dakota, Mary Sahraei, I&S Group, Inc.

Noon-1 p.m. Lunch

12:30-12:50 p.m. (Luncheon Talk) Redundant Technology in Water/Wastewater: Exploring the Importance of Building Redundant Systems to Mitigate Risk, Braden Hadwiger, Huffman Engineering, Inc.

1-1:20 p.m. Healthy Waters: Expectations Versus Reality in South Dakota Watersheds, Jenn Saunders and Jennalee Jensen, South Dakota Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources

1:20-1:40 p.m. Clear and Present Threat: Zebra Mussels in South Dakota, Deb Soholt, South Dakota Lakes & Streams Association

1:40-1:55 p.m. Are We There Yet? Assessing and Improving Stream Connectivity in Eastern South Dakota, Chris Cheek, SDSU Department of Natural Resource Management

1:55-2:10 p.m. Then, Now, Next: The Enduring Mission of the Great Plains Fish Habitat Partnership, Tait Ronningen, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

2:10-2:30 p.m. Break

2:30-2:50 p.m. Strategic Planning for a Changing Landscape in Eastern South Dakota, Kyle Werning and Thomas Eskro, Houston Engineering, Inc.

2:50-3:10 p.m. Assessing Channel Migration Risks to Railroad Infrastructure along the Big Sioux River, Allie Simons, RESPEC

3:10-3:30 p.m. Aquatic Habitat Projects Ramping Up in Eastern South Dakota, Jason Jungwirth, South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks

3:30-3:50 p.m. Integrated Community and Research Approaches to Restoring Lake Mitchell, Paula Mazzer, Friends of the Firesteel

3:50 p.m. Closing Remarks