3.97 Miles
0 - 3.97
Cool-Cold Headwater, Cool-Warm Headwater
2015
Fair
Washington
Yes
No
No
Fish and Aquatic Life
Overview
Allenton Creek in Washington County is one of the headwater streams forming the East Branch of the Rock River. About 3.5 miles of the creek is classified as a Class II trout fishery (WDNR, 1980). The stream is confirmed to be a cool-cold headwater.
Date 2002
Author Aquatic Biologist
General Condition
Allenton Creek (WBIC 867100) was assessed during the 2018 listing cycle; new biological (fish Index of Biotic Integrity (IBI) scores) sample data were clearly below the 2018 WisCALM listing thresholds for the Fish and Aquatic Life use. This water was meeting this designated use and was not considered impaired.
Date 2017
Author Ashley Beranek
Condition
Wisconsin has over 84,000 miles of streams, 15,000 lakes and milllions of acres of wetlands. Assessing the condition of this vast amount of water is challenging. The state's water monitoring program uses a media-based, cross-program approach to analyze water condition. An updated monitoring strategy (2015-2020) is now available. Compliance with Clean Water Act fishable, swimmable standards are located in the Executive Summary of Water Condition in 2018. See also the 'monitoring and projects' tab.
Reports
Management Goals
Wisconsin's Water Quality Standards provide qualitative and quantitative goals for waters that are protective of Fishable, Swimmable conditions [Learn more]. Waters that do not meet water quality standards are considered impaired and restoration actions are planned and carried out until the water is once again fishable and swimmable
Management goals can include creation or implementation of a Total Maximum Daily Load analysis, a Nine Key Element Plan, or other restoration work, education and outreach and more. If specific recommendations exist for this water, they will be displayed below online.
Monitoring
Monitoring the condition of a river, stream, or lake includes gathering physical, chemical, biological, and habitat data. Comprehensive studies often gather all these parameters in great detail, while lighter assessment events will involve sampling physical, chemical and biological data such as macroinvertebrates. Aquatic macroinvertebrates and fish communities integrate watershed or catchment condition, providing great insight into overall ecosystem health. Chemical and habitat parameters tell researchers more about human induced problems including contaminated runoff, point source dischargers, or habitat issues that foster or limit the potential of aquatic communities to thrive in a given area. Wisconsin's Water Monitoring Strategy was recenty updated.
Grants and Management Projects
Monitoring Projects
| WBIC | Official Waterbody Name | Station ID | Station Name | Earliest Fieldwork Date | Latest Fieldwork Date | View Station | View Data |
|---|
| 867100 | Allenton Creek | 10030862 | Allenton Creek at Wildlife Rd | | | Map | Data |
| 867100 | Allenton Creek | 10030865 | Allenton Creek 100m US of Wildlife Rd | 1/1/2015 | 1/1/2015 | Map | Data |
| 867100 | Allenton Creek | 10044510 | ALLENTON CREEK DS HWY 41 | 1/1/2015 | 1/1/2015 | Map | Data |
| 867100 | Allenton Creek | 673022 | Allenton Creek Headwaters Trib - Headwaters Trib | | | Map | Data |
| 867100 | Allenton Creek | 10029080 | Allenton Creek - Upstream of Deer Road | 9/2/2008 | 1/1/2015 | Map | Data |
|
Monitoring Studies
Fish data was collected in 2009 and 2015. This stream was found to be in "fair" condition based on a cold-cool headwater community.
Date 2018
Author Lisa Helmuth
Watershed Characteristics
Allenton Creek is located in the East Branch Rock River watershed which is 198.99 mi². Land use in the watershed is primarily agricultural (58.90%), grassland (17.20%) and a mix of wetland (11.90%) and other uses (12.00%). This watershed has 306.48 stream miles, 292.02 lake acres and 16,059.62 wetland acres.
Nonpoint Source Characteristics
This watershed is ranked High for runoff impacts on streams, High for runoff impacts on lakes and High for runoff impacts on groundwater and therefore has an overall rank of High. This value can be used in ranking the watershed or individual waterbodies for grant funding under state and county programs.However, all waters are affected by diffuse pollutant sources regardless of initial water quality. Applications for specific runoff projects under state or county grant programs may be pursued. For more information, go to surface water program grants.
Allenton Creek is considered a Cool-Cold Headwater, Cool-Warm Headwater under the state's Natural Community Determinations.
Natural communities (stream and lake natural communities) represent model results and DNR staff valiation processes that confirm or update predicted conditions based on flow and temperature modeling from historic and current landscape features and related variables. Predicated flow and temperatures for waters are associated predicated fish assemblages (communities). Biologists evaluate the model results against current survey data to determine if the modeled results are corect and whether biological indicators show water quaity degradation. This analysis is a core component of the state's resource management framework. Wisconsin's Riverine Natural Communities.
Cool (Warm-Transition) Headwaters are small, sometimes intermittent streams with cool to warm summer temperatures. Coldwater fishes are uncommon to absent, transitional fishes are abundant to common, and warm water fishes are common to uncommon. Headwater species are abundant to common, mainstem species are common to absent, and river species are absent.
Cool (Cold-Transition) Headwaters are small, usually perennial streams with cold to cool summer temperatures. Coldwater fishes are common to uncommon (<10 per 100 m), transitional fishes are abundant to common, and warm water fishes are uncommon to absent. Headwater species are abundant to common, mainstem species are common to absent, and river species are absent.
TYPE OF DEVELOPMENT/ENHANCEMENT
There was new stream channel construction and relocation due to the widening of U.S. Highway 41. As a result, wing deflectors, channel constrictors, lateral logs, crosslog revetments, brush bundles, root wads, channel blocks, boulders, half-logs, and rip-rap were added to the creek.
STUDY PERIOD AND DESIGN
There was a 0.04 mile treatment zone before the new stream channel construction and relocation and a 0.26 mile treatment zone that consisted of the entire newly constructed stream channel following construction. There was a 0.04 mile stream segment above and below the treatment zone creating a 0.08 mile reference zone prior to stream channel construction, and a 0.11 mile stream segment above and below the treatment zone creating a 0.22 mile reference zone after stream channel construction. A pre-development trout population survey was conducted
in all study zones July 1993. The new stream channel was constructed adjacent to the old channel in winter 1993-94 and included 78 in-stream habitat structures (Table 19). The newly constructed stream was diverted into the new channel beginning in spring 1994 and a post-development trout population survey was conducted July 1997.
Date 2018
Author Lisa Helmuth