FY25-27 Des Moines River Watershed Implementation Grant

The Des Moines River Watershed Comprehensive Watershed Management Plan focuses on 9 priority 'A'and 9 priority 'B' issues (p. 17-19) that are collectively addressed by 14 short-term and long-term measurable goals (p. 25-52) in the areas of groundwater, surface water, habitat, and land stewardship. Within Section 5: Targeted Implementation, planning regions summaries (p.59-78) illustrate the prominence of priority issues changes within the 5 planning regions- Headwaters, Lime Creek-Upper Des Moines River, Heron Lake Watershed District, Main Stem Des Moines River and East Fork Des Moines River. Projects and Practices action tables (p. 61, p. 65, p.69, p. 73, p.77), based on the priority issues changes for each planning region, summarize actions for implementing structural and non-structural practices and make progress toward our measurable goals. PTMApp was used to prioritize and target potential projects for each planning region based on the highest cost-benefit ratio for reducing sediment, total phosphorus, and total nitrogen. Additional action tables were created to address education and outreach (p. 81-82) and research and assessment goals (p. 83).
Implementation efforts will be focused in the higher priority regions identified within the Plan with special consideration given to projects in critical soil loss areas and Drinking Water Supply Management Areas or adjacent to a lake of significance. Projects will be prioritized using a scoring and ranking spreadsheet developed by the Des Moines River Technical committee and approved by the Joint Powers Board/Executive committee. Staff will work with urban and agricultural landowners to encourage the installation of BMPs on the landscape while focusing on priorities set forth in the Plan. This implementation grant will fund approximately 30 agricultural practices, 2,964 acres of non-structural practices, 0.22 acres of shoreland protection projects, 10 wells sealed, 0.86 acres of urban practices, 20 septic systems replaced and 1 multipurpose drainage management plan. Additional outreach efforts will help educate watershed residents on priority concerns such as surface water, groundwater, habitat, and land stewardship.