Traverse County Ditch 17

The Bois de Sioux Watershed District intends to begin a program to repair the legal ditches it owns and maintains for the purpose of improving water quality within the watershed and downstream receiving waters. The intent of this effort is to complete a pilot project to a legal ditch system that is in disrepair and use it as an example to educate landowners along other legal ditches on the importance of water quality. This pilot project consists of the construction of berms and side inlet culverts for sediment control along Traverse County Ditch #17 (TCD 17) and its single branch (B1) . This modification, also known as a retrofit, will be completed as a repair under MN Statues 103E.021, Subd. 6 which will ensure these erosion control features become a permanent part of the legal ditch. TCD 17 flows west to east and outlets into Twelve Mile Creek eight miles northeast of Wheaton, MN. Twelve Mile Creek flows north to the Mustinka River which ultimately enters Lake Traverse. Twelve Mile Creek and the Mustinka River have well documented issues regarding the exceedance of TMDL for turbidity, phosphorus, and overall poor biota. TCD 17 has a watershed of approximately 4.5 square miles, the land is used primarily for agricultural production. Berms and intercept culverts along legal ditch systems help to prevent sediment transport at the source and reduce turbidity downstream. The TCD 17 retrofit is aimed to be the first of many legal ditch retrofit projects within the BdSWD . By completing this retrofit it is estimated to reduce sediment loading by 340 tons/year and phosphorus loading by 700 lbs/year while working to restore and protect water resources for public use and public health.