Improving Water Quality for Beaver Creek

The proposed project will be in conjunction with an improvement project to the 103E County Ditch 63 Lateral N (CD 63) system. The project will accomplish the construction of five water and sediment control basins (WASCOB) and five alternate intakes to replace open intakes within the CD63 system, which is the headwaters of Beaver Creek East Fork. The construction and installation of the conservation practices will achieve a reduction of sediment, provide temporary water storage, and reduce peak flows that allow sediment and phosphorus to directly enter impaired Beaver Creek East Fork. Beaver Creek East Fork, which was designated impaired for sediment (TSS) and altered hydrology in the 2017 Hawk Creek Watershed Restoration and Protection Strategies (WRAPS) report, has been prioritize as a Tier 1 (High Priority) impaired stream in the Hawk Creek-Middle Minnesota Comprehensive Watershed Management Plan (HCMM). The project falls within the Beaver Creek watershed (HUC 070200411), which is listed as a priority watershed in the HCMM. The HCMM outlines goals to address the Beaver Creek Watershed and the impaired Beaver Creek East Fork for altered hydrology and soil erosion and sediment loss. The implementation of these conservation practices will achieve an estimated reduction of peak flows by 21% for a 2-year storm, a reduction of 48% for a 10-year storm, and a reduction of 32% for a 25-year storm. These water quality practices will achieve an estimated reduction of 103.02 tons per year (T/yr) of TSS, and 118.47 pounds per year (lbs/yr) of Phosphorus (P).