Local News

Wednesday, December 12, 2007 New ditch inspector jumps in with both feet By Karin L. Nauber One of her first days on the job proved to be an adventure for new ditch inspector Emma Larson. She and her boss Andrew Dahlgren were out inspecting Ditch 25 when Larson started to sink down in the boggy area. Dahlgren pulled her back up. The "sinking" experience hasn't deterred Larson from her tasks, but it has made her grateful for waders which she didn't have on that day out on the bog. Larson began working for the county on October 31 and has jumped into the training and learning about Minnesota ditch law with both feet. She has been out to numerous ditches in the county getting firsthand experience. Larson said one of her biggest goals in this position is to get the county to a place where the ditch laws can be understood. She also wants to make ditching viable for farmers so they can make a living using their land. Right now she is working on Ditch 25 and Ditch 32. Several more ditches will be coming up for inspection and Larson has no doubt she will be kept busy. Her long term goals include inspecting and setting up maintenance plans for the approximately 50 ditches that run through the county. "Eventually I want to see all the county ditches properly maintained and have the farmers and landowners be happy and able to use their land," she said. Larson and her husband, Jason, moved here from Bangor, Northern Ireland on September 1. Her husband was born and raised in Brainerd. "We met while at university in Lancaster, England," said Larson. She has a degree in environmental sciences and worked in water and hydrology before immigrating to the United States. "In Belfast I did water quality testing for farm runoffs. There is a lot of agricultural and sheep farming in Ireland," she said. "We had always decided we would come to Minnesota," said Larson of their decision to settle here. Currently, Jason is enrolled at Alexandria Tech in the law enforcement program. Larson likes to play volleyball and she is singing in a choir in Sauk Centre for a community Christmas performance of Handel's Messiah.