The Raccoon River Watershed Association (RRWA) will hold its annual banquet and conference Friday, March 3 and Saturday, March 4 at the Hotel Pattee in Perry.
The Friday night fundraising banquet supports the RRWA, which is dedicated to preserving and enhancing the Raccoon River and funding watershed research efforts.
Dr. Larry Weber from the Iowa Flood Center will be the keynote speaker at the banquet, which begins a 5:30 p.m. Izaak Walton League Clean Water Director Dannielle Donkersloot will also give a short address regarding the league’s planned water quality efforts in the Raccoon River and across Iowa.
The Saturday conference is free and open to the public and will follow this agenda:
9 a.m. Introduction — Steve Roe, RRWA President
9:15 a.m. Katie Van Dooren and Peter Levi, “Water quality patterns in the Raccoon River basin across space and through seasons”
10 a.m. Chris Aurand and Thomas Rosburg, “Monarch populations, reproduction and habitat in the Raccoon River Watershed”
10:45 a.m. Dr. Amy Burgin, “Land use and practices”
11:45 a.m. Danielle Donkersloot –Izaak Walton League water quality project in Iowa.
12:30 p.m. Lunch in the hotel ($10)
1 p.m. Michelle Soupir. “Black Hawk Lake project”
1:45 p.m. Chris Henning, “Conservation and cover crops”
2:30 p.m. Eileen Miller, “Nature photos from the Raccoon”
The 130 RRWA members from up and down the Raccoon River sponsor the annual conference, bringing together experts and researchers to talk about the condition of the regional ecosystem.
Cost for the banquet is $50 per plate. For more information, contact Mike Delaney at mikedelaney1@mac.com.
