Spring Regional Spotlight: Utilizing GIS in the Big Eau Pleine Watershed
Join us at the upcoming Spring Regional Meeting to learn how GIS is being utilized for project planning and analysis in the Big Eau Pleine Watershed.
Listen to seasoned conservationists, Matt Repkin and Kirstie Heidenreich, give insight on how they’ve utilized GIS and other data and mapping tools in their watershed analysis and management efforts. The Big Eau Pleine Watershed in Central Wisconsin has been heavily studied for decades, due to many fish kills in its 70,000-acre reservoir that drains into the Upper Wisconsin River Basin. The speakers will summarize data from a first-of-its-kind pilot project that was implemented four years ago to incentivize producers to utilize conservation practices within the watershed.
Matt Repking is a Conservation Analyst for Marathon County Conservation, Planning and Zoning. He has a decade of experience in county conservation and is also a Certified Crop Consultant (CCA). He works with landowners on nutrient management, the county animal waste ordinance, and a variety of cost share programs, including administering the Fenwood Pilot Project. He serves as the GIS Coordinator for the Conservation Team, and has taken on several GIS projects to increase conservation capabilities in the department. Prior to his work with Marathon County, he served as the Assistant Superintendent at the University of Wisconsin Arlington Research Station, where he was the staff agronomist. Matt has a Bachelor’s Degree from UW-Stevens Point in Soil Science and a Master’s Degree from UW-Madison, also in Soil Science. In his free time, he enjoys spending time with his family, hunting, fishing, and any outdoor activities.
Kirstie Heidenreich is the County Conservationist for Marathon County Conservation, Planning, and Zoning. She serves as the Conservation Program Manager for a team of seven conservationists and administers the Marathon County Land & Water Resource Management Plan. Prior to her position in Marathon County, she held conservation and land use planning positions with American Bird Conservancy and Trempealeau County Department of Land Management. She is passionate about bringing together diverse groups of stakeholders to build community capacity around environmental issues. One of her favorite things about her position is working with Marathon County’s Producer-Led Watershed Group, EPPIC (Eau Pleine Partnership for Integrated Conservation), which is a network of farmers, landowners, farm groups, lake stewards, natural resource-oriented organizations/agencies agronomists, and equipment dealers whose mission statement is "Integrating resilience into the natural resources, community, and economy of the Eau Pleine Watershed.” More information can be found on their website https://www.eaupleinepartnership.com/ and their Facebook (@eaupleinepartnership).
Above Image: Big Eau Pleine River
Images Source: Kirstie Heidenreich
Make sure to register for the Spring Regional Meeting and get your hotel room now! Additional details, including the full preliminary agenda, can be found on the event page.