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COMMENTS & RESPONSES <br /> <br />Minnesota Department of Natural Resources <br /> <br /> I200 Warner Road <br />St. Paul, Minnesota 55106 <br />651.772.7900 <br /> <br />James Norman, City Administrator <br />City of Ramsey <br />15153 Nowthen Boulevard NW <br />Ramsey, Minnesota 55303 <br /> <br />June 30,2005 <br /> <br />RE: Sommerset Station Environmental Assessment Worksheet (FAW) <br /> <br />Dear Mr. Norman: <br /> <br />The Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has reviewed [he EAW for the proposed <br />Sommerset Station residential development in the City of Ramsey. We offer the following <br />comments for your consideration. <br /> <br />Cover Types (Item No. 10). <br /> <br />The table shows the conversion of fifteen acres of wooded/forest cover; This may result in the <br />removal of a significant amount of wood from the site. Depending on the condition of this wood, <br />the project proposer may elect to market it as sawlog, landscaping material, firewood, or bib-fuel <br />for the production of energy. We strongly recommend that the City contact-Jean Mouelle, <br />Regional Forest Utilization and Marketing Specialist (65t 772-7567), for advice on this :subject. <br /> <br />One of our main concerns in this area is oak wilt, Oak wilt behaves like:an exotic pest and we <br />treat it as such. Given the high disease press0re and prevalence of the ~nnoculumbase, <br />communities in Anoka County are at risk of losing many if not most of thole remair~ir~g oaks if <br />they do not take aggressive steps to limit its further spread. Because its incidence iscloselytied <br />to the kind of wounding typically associated with construction, we encou_rage~he:developer to <br />limit fragmentation, carry out construction; operations at times, other than :the ;p~ak irffeCtion <br />period (April-June) and treat oak Wilt prior to breaking:ground~ We recommend that the city'of <br />Ramsey, as part of its approvals and permits~ require treatment prior to land clearing. <br />Sherburne County has a good example of how that can be done. I¢ utilizing: building permits to <br />control oak wilt is undesirable, the City could build into its fee structure incentives to encourage <br />builders to control oak wilt before construction. <br /> <br />Water Use (Item No. 13) <br /> <br />The EAW projects water use from this development based on an average water use of 150 <br />gallons per person per day. The metro average is 75 gallons per person per day and in 2002 <br />the City of Ramsey reported a use of 99 gallons per capita Per day. ThroUgh greater restrictions <br /> <br /> An Equal Opportunity Employer Who Values Divemity <br /> <br />DNR Information: 651-296-6157 1-888-646-6367 TrY: 651-296-5484 <br /> <br />1-800-657'3929 <br /> <br /> <br />