Project Detail

Bear and Bluff Creek Targeted Watershed Assessment, Douglas County

Purpose

This project, located in North District, involved monitoring in two HUC 12 watersheds using the targeted watershed assessment approach in 2018 -- Bear Creek (a.k.a. Allouez Bay-Frontal Lake Superior) and Bluff Creek. Both of these watersheds drain into Allouez Bay. Allouez Bay water quality, sediment quality and biological communities (benthic invertebrates and fish) were monitored in 2017. Allouez Bay has high phosphorus and suspended solids concentrations, and high turbidity.

Read the Bear and Bluff Creeks Targeted Watershed Assessment: A Water Quality Plan to Restore Wisconsin Watersheds..

Water quality at the mouths of Bear and Bluff Creeks was also monitored in 2017. Both creeks have high phosphorus and suspended solids concentrations and high turbidity. Bear and Bluff Creek are on the impaired waters list due to high phosphorus concentrations. Total phosphorus (TP) concentrations as high as 987 ug/l were measured in Bluff Creek in 2017. A large cattle raising operation is present in the Bluff Creek watershed and may be a significant TP source. A rail yard at a taconite storage facility is believed to be the source of occasional iron concentration spikes observed in Bluff Creek. Some fish and macroinvertebrate community work was previously done by DNR for both creeks in 2009-10: - 5 sites in Bluff Creek watershed for fish - 6 sites in Bluff Creek watershed for macroinvertebrates (4 sites with 2 years of data) - 4 sites in the Bear Creek watershed for fish - 4 sites in Bear Creek watershed for macroinvertebrates (2 sites with 2 years of data) Fish IBI’s were variable, ranging from poor to good. Macroinvertebrate sample MIBI ratings were good to excellent at all but one site, which was fair. The goal of future monitoring in these two watersheds is to: - Identify significant nutrient and sediment source areas by monitoring water quality at multiple sites affected by differing land uses. This could help direct and justify water quality improvement efforts. - Conduct additional fish surveys to enlarge this data set. - Monitor iron concentrations in runoff from the taconite storage facility railyard (this will depend on the ability to obtain access).

Objective

Project for Northern District TWAs. The objective was to create a complete dataset of water quality monitoring to understand watershed condition.

Outcome

Proposed project for Northern District TWAs

Study Design

Proposed project for Northern District TWAs: Water quality monitoring: 12 sites (TBD) divided between the 2 watersheds, sampled once per month, May-Oct.= 72 samples Field parameters – temp, DO, pH, cond, turbidity Lab parameters – E. coli ($38), TP ($25), TN ($29), TSS ($22) ($114 per sample; E. coli testing at UW-Superior; $76 per sample for SLOH) Fish surveys:3 sites (TBD) for Bear Creek watershed and 2 sites (TBD)for Bluff Creek watershed. Iron sampling at rail yard 4 iron samples @ $50 (SLOH) = $200

Project Type

Targeted Watershed Approach

Project Sub Type

Evaluation (TP SSC, Stressor, Bioassess)

Project ID

North_TWA_5_2018

Year Started

2018

Status

Complete

Reports and Documents

Bear and Bluff Creeks Targeted Watershed Assessment: A Water Quality Plan to Restore Wisconsin Watersheds