Lake George Watershed Targeted BMP Analysis

Lake George is the premier recreational lake in Anoka County with above average water quality, a vibrant fishery, and a large regional park and beach that is among the most utilized in the county. Located in northwestern Anoka County within the Upper Rum River Watershed Management Organization (URRWMO), the Lake George Improvement District (LGID) was formed to tend to the lake's diminishing water quality and problematic invasive species. In the last decade, Lake George's lake grade according to Met Council's lake water quality report card has dropped from a consistent A grade to a consistent B grade. The Rum River WRAPS task force has preliminarily identified Lake George as a protection concern. The WRAPS will not, however, provide a specific implementation plan to address this lake resource. In effort to halt, and hopefully reverse the trend of declining water quality the LGID intends to implement Best Management Practices (BMPs) within the lake and throughout the watershed. Before this can be done, project opportunities and their associated costs and benefits must be ascertained. The purpose of this project is to identify water quality improvement opportunities throughout the watershed to achieve water quality management goals. SWAT, PTM App. or other suitable models will be used to model the watershed and the effect of selected BMPs within it. The model will be calibrated with hydrology and water quality monitoring data to ensure the highest degree of accuracy possible. This watershed level analysis is the first of two phases of project identification, modeling and cost-benefit analysis; with the second phase focusing on near-lake and in-lake project opportunities. Projects identified by this and subsequent efforts will be presented for incorporation into the Upper Rum River WMO's plan update scheduled for completion by the end of 2017.