Margaret Johnson, Middle Fork Crow River Watershed District, Administrator The Middle Fork Crow River Watershed District is a special purpose unit of government that was established by citizen’s petition in April 2005. The District exists for the protection and preservation of water quality in the Middle Fork Crow River Watershed. The District consists of a board of five Managers. Board members are appointed by County Commissioners and serve three-year terms. The Middle Fork Crow River Watershed drains a 271 square mile area. The river begins in Stearns County in the Belgrade area and flows southward through northeast Kandiyohi County. As the river flows south it passes through the City of New London and enters Green Lake in Spicer. After the river outlets from Green Lake, it flows eastward. Water runoff from the City of Atwater and Diamond Lake enter the Middle Fork Crow River just before it crosses the Meeker County line. The river joins the North Fork Crow River east of Manannah. The North Fork Crow River eventually enters the Mississippi near Dayton. Base funding for the Middle Fork Crow River Watershed District (MFCRWD) comes from an annual levy of $250,000 assessed among each property owners in the watershed, roughly 4,000 parcels. The District expands local efforts without increasing costs to the property owners in the District in the form of state and federal grants. Margaret Johnson has been with the Middle Fork Crow River Watershed District since 2012, serving as the Administrator since 2013. Since then she has administered 23 grants, three loan programs, and four Capital Improvement Projects. Since 2005, the MFCRWD has secured $2,882,820 in grant funds requiring $1,550,512 in match from the District. Drew Kessler, PhD, Project Manager / Principal, Houston Engineering, Inc. Founded in 1968 by George Houston, HEI is a full-service civil engineering firm that excels in projects related to water management in rural agricultural environments. With more than 200 staff across Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Iowa, HEI has the capacity and commitment to contribute the success of this project. Dr. Drew Kessler serves as Project Manager at Houston Engineering, Inc. with over 14 years of experience. Drew specializes in the areas of water resources management, surface water quality, wildlife ecology in aquatic systems, sediment source assessment, and the total maximum daily load (TMDL) process. His expertise is specifically related to the use of geographic information systems (GIS) for analyzing water resources and developing modeling systems that bring science into decision-making processes. Drew earned his doctorate in water resources science from the University of Minnesota. His doctoral work involved investigating the causes, sources, and management of excess sediment in the Minnesota River with an emphasis on riverbank erosion.