Bower Creek, East River Watershed (LF01)
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Bower Creek, East River Watershed (LF01)
Bower Creek (118400)
3 Miles
0 - 3
Natural Community
Cool-Cold Headwater, Cool-Warm Headwater
Year Last Monitored
2024
Poor
 
This river is impaired
Degraded Biological Community, Low DO, Degraded Habitat
Total Phosphorus, Sediment/Total Suspended Solids
 
Brown
Trout Water 
No
Outstanding or Exceptional 
No
Impaired Water 
Yes

Fish and Aquatic Life

Current Use
Restricted Aquatic Life
Attainable Use
WWSF
Designated Use
Default FAL

Overview

Bower Creek, a 13-mile creek, supports a warm water forage fishery and a warm water sport fishery. This stream is a turbid hardwater stream draining sluggishly into the East River. The stream drains highly agriculturalized land where it picks up the heavy silt load that composes the bottom material. Undercut banks and rock provide instream cover. Crayfish are very prolific in this stream. The fishery consist of bluegills, young-of-the-year northern pike, suckers and carp. Stream habitat assessment surveys indicate poor to fair habitat and macroinvertebrate studies indicate poor to fair water quality. The highly agriculturalized watershed makes very poor recreational waters out of this stream. The Water Resources Division of the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with local, State and Federal agencies, obtains a large amount of data pertaining to the water resources of Wisconsin each year (Holmstrom 1996). A gaging station is located on Bower Creek on the left bank downstream from the County Trunk Highway MM bridge, 1.1 mile east from intersection of Highways G and MM, and 6.2 miles southeast of the post office in De Pere (USGS 1996). Discharge data has been collected since October 1990. Please refer to the U.S. Geological Survey Water Resource Data Wisconsin Water Year 1996 for specific data. Funding should be secured to continue operating this U.S. Geological Survey gauging station to maintain adequate flow records in the Lake Michigan Geological Management Unit (GMU). Data will be used to monitor impacts from land practices in the Bower Creek Subwatershed. The basin was studied during 1985-86 to determine water quality in relation to stream flow. Data for Upper Bower Creek included baseline sample and event analysis. In a report by Hughes (1988) Upper Bower Creek had the highest mean concentrations of BOD-5, total phosphorus, fecal coliform and fecal streptoccoccus of all the sites monitored during 1985-86. This stream exceeded the acceptable coliform level for recreational water quality of 200 counts/100 ml 91% of the time. Agricultural discharges were suspected of contributing significantly to degraded water quality. Suspended solids at the downstream boundary of the Upper Bower Creek watershed was 264 tons/mi2/year. Total phosphorus yields were 2,676 lbs/mi2/yr (Hughes 1988).

Bougie, Cheryl A. 1999. Lower Fox River Basin Water Quality Management Plan. Public Review Draft. Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, Madison, WI.

Date  1999

Author  Cheryl Bougie

Natural communities (stream and lake natural communities) represent model results that use predicted flow and temperature based on landscape features and related assumptions. Ranges of flow and temperature associated with specific aquatic life communities (fish, macroinvertebrates) help biologists identify appropriate resource management goals. Wisconsin Natural Communities.
This is the most recent date of monitoring data stored in SWIMS. Additional surveys for fish and habitat may be available subsequent to this date.
Trout Waters are represented by Class I, Class II or Class III waters. These classes have specific ecological characteristics and management actions associated with them. For more information regarding Trout Classifications, see the Fisheries Trout Class Webpages.
Wisconsin has designated many of the state's highest quality waters as Outstanding Resource Waters (ORWs) or Exceptional Resource Waters (ERWs). Waters designated as ORW or ERW are surface waters which provide outstanding recreational opportunities, support valuable fisheries and wildlife habitat, have good water quality, and are not significantly impacted by human activities. ORW and ERW status identifies waters that the State of Wisconsin has determined warrant additional protection from the effects of pollution. These designations are intended to meet federal Clean Water Act obligations requiring Wisconsin to adopt an 'antidegradation' policy that is designed to prevent any lowering of water quality - especially in those waters having significant ecological or cultural value.
A water is polluted or 'impaired' if it does not support full use by humans, wildlife, fish and other aquatic life and it is shown that one or more of the pollutant criteria are not met.
The use the water currently supports. This is not a designation or classification; it is based on the current condition of the water. Information in this column is not designed for, and should not be used for, regulatory purposes.
Fish and Aquatic Life communities are not fully supported in this ecosystem.
The use that the investigator believes the water could achieve through managing "controllable" sources. Beaver dams, hydroelectric dams, low gradient streams, and naturally occurring low flows are generally not considered controllable. The attainable use may be the same as the current use or it may be higher.
Streams capable of supporting a warm waterdependent sport fishery. Representative aquatic life communities associated with these waters generally require cool or warm temperatures and concentrations of dissolved oxygen that do not drop below 5 mg/L.
This is the water classification legally recognized by NR102 and NR104, Wis. Adm. Code. The classification determines water quality criteria and effluent limits. Waters obtain designated uses through classification procedures.
Fish and Aquatic Life - Default Waters do not have a specific use designation subcategory but are considered fishable, swimmable waters.