Moody Lake Wetland Rehabilitation

Moody Lake is the headwaters of the Comfort Lake-Forest Lake Watershed District northern flow network, and as such, its water quality sets the stage for downstream waters, particularly Bone Lake, Comfort Lake, the Sunrise River, and ultimately Lake St. Croix. A multi-year diagnostic and implementation feasibility study was conducted in the Moody Lake watershed to prioritize nutrient sources, target cost-effective BMPs, and estimate the measurable phosphorus reductions that will be achieved through implementation of these projects. Through this process, the District was able to eliminate the targeting of BMPs in two-thirds of the watershed which was not found to be a phosphorus problem, and focused the targeting of BMPs at specific locations within the remaining one-third of the watershed known to be a phosphorus problem. In addition, the District is implementing the three proposed wetland rehabilitations systematically in order from upstream to downstream and then from less intensive to more intensive treatment. Three phases of winter wetland rehabilitation implementation are proposed, followed by spring and summer monitoring to determine the effectiveness of each implementation phase and whether proceeding to the next phase of implementation is necessary to achieve the phosphorus reduction goal. Rehabilitating the degraded wetlands in the northwest portion of the watershed is expected to achieve 80% of the watershed phosphorus load reductions needed for Moody Lake to meet water quality standards.