Watershed - Reads and Tainter Creeks (LW03)
Reads and Tainter Creeks Watershed

Details

The Reads and Tainter Creeks watershed includes the main stem of the Kickapoo River from its confluence with the West Fork of the Kickapoo downstream to Gays Mills. The tributary streams to the Kickapoo have high gradients. Most of the wetlands found in the watershed are in the floodplain of the Kickapoo River. Many of these have been degraded due to grazing or cultivation. Land use in the watershed is agricultural mixed with woodlands. The erosion control plan for the Vernon County portion of the watershed estimates a soil loss of 7.3 tons per acre per year. The Tainter Creek portion of the watershed in Crawford County had the highest proportion of nonpoint source water pollution due to animal waste in the county according to the county's animal waste management plan. It also garnered the highest priority watershed ranking for the need to control soil erosion, according to the county's soil erosion control plan. Many of the streams in this watershed have a good potential for improvement if nonpoint source water pollution is controlled. Many of the Class II trout streams have the potential to become Class I trout streams.

Date  1994

Population, Land Use

The Gays Mills - Soldiers Grove area is the center of apple production in southwest Wisconsin. The only municipal dischargers to surface water in the watershed are Readstom and Soldiers Grove.

Date  1994