Cedar River Watershed Restoration and Protection Strategy Report May 2019 wq-ws4-59a Project Partners Minnesota Pollution Control Agency: Bill Thompson (Project manager), Ashley Ignatius, Justin Watkins, Nick Gervino, Chuck Regan, John Erdman, Marco Graziani, Jinny Fricke, Mike Walerak, Cathy Rofshus, and Wayne Cords Emmons & Olivier Resources, Inc.: Meghan Funke, Pat Conrad, Joe Pallardy, Paula Kalinosky, and Etoile Jensen City of Austin, MN: Steven Lang, Nels Rasmussen Dodge County: Dean Schrandt Dodge County Soil and Water Conservation District: Adam King Freeborn County: Rachel Wehner Freeborn County Soil and Water Conservation District: Mark Schaetzke Mower County: Angie Knish, Paul Hunter Mower County Soil and Water Conservation District/Cedar River Watershed District: Justin Hanson, James Fett, Cody Fox, Jeanne Crump Board of Soil and Water Conservation – Rochester, MN: David Copeland, Shaina Keseley Minnesota Department of Natural Resources: Craig Soupir, Todd Piepho, Brooke Hacker, Jeanine Vorland Minnesota Department of Health: Jennifer Ronnenberg Table of Contents Project Partners......................................................................................................................................... 2 Table of Contents ...................................................................................................................................... 3 Table of Figures ......................................................................................................................................... 5 Table of Tables .......................................................................................................................................... 8 Key Terms ................................................................................................................................................ 11 Summary ................................................................................................................................................. 12 What is the WRAPS Report?.................................................................................................................... 18 1. Watershed Background & Description ........................................................................... 20 2. Watershed Conditions .................................................................................................. 24 2.1 Water Quality Assessment ................................................................................................................ 24 Streams ............................................................................................................................................... 25 Lakes.................................................................................................................................................... 29 2.2 Water Quality Trends .................................................................................................................. 29 2.3 Stressors and Sources .................................................................................................................. 32 2.4 Pollutants and Sources ................................................................................................................ 36 Altered Hydrology ............................................................................................................................. 42 Phosphorus ........................................................................................................................................ 51 Bacteria .............................................................................................................................................. 60 Nitrogen ............................................................................................................................................. 65 Sediment ............................................................................................................................................ 71 2.5 Protection Considerations ........................................................................................................... 76 3. Prioritizing and Implementing Restoration and Protection ............................................ 77 3.1 Civic Engagement ........................................................................................................................ 78 Public Notice for Comments .................................................................................................................... 79 3 Cedar River Watershed Restoration and Protection Strategies Report 3.2 Targeting of Geographic Areas ................................................................................................... 80 Critical Area Identification Tools and Results ..................................................................................... 80 BMP Targeting Tools ........................................................................................................................... 82 Prioritization........................................................................................................................................ 83 3.3 Restoration & Protection Strategies ........................................................................................... 84 Local Partner Input .............................................................................................................................. 85 Watershed-wide.................................................................................................................................. 87 Middle Fork Cedar River Subwatershed ............................................................................................. 94 Roberts Creek Subwatershed............................................................................................................ 100 Upper Cedar River Subwatershed ..................................................................................................... 104 Turtle Creek Subwatershed............................................................................................................... 113 Rose Creek Subwatershed ................................................................................................................ 120 West Beaver Creek Subwatershed .................................................................................................... 124 Lower Cedar River Subwatershed ..................................................................................................... 127 Otter Creek Subwatershed ............................................................................................................... 134 Deer Creek Subwatershed ................................................................................................................ 137 Little Cedar River Subwatershed ....................................................................................................... 140 Elk River Subwatershed..................................................................................................................... 143 4. Monitoring Plan .......................................................................................................... 148 Local .................................................................................................................................................. 149 State .................................................................................................................................................. 149 Federal .............................................................................................................................................. 150 5. References and Further Information ........................................................................... 151 6. Appendix A: Stream Assessment Status ...................................................................... 155 7. Appendix B: BMP Targeting Tools ............................................................................... 158 4 Cedar River Watershed Restoration and Protection Strategies Report 8. Appendix C: ET Rate Data & Calculation ...................................................................... 166 Table of Figures Figure 1. Cedar River Watershed ................................................................................................................ 20 Figure 2. Cedar River Watershed land cover .............................................................................................. 21 Figure 3. Minnesota karst lands .................................................................................................................. 22 Figure 4. Aquatic life use assessments........................................................................................................ 25 Figure 5. Lower Mississippi watersheds Fish Index of Biotic Integrity (F-IBI) Ratings ................................ 26 Figure 6. Lower Mississippi watersheds Macroinvertebrate Index of Biotic Integrity (M-IBI) Ratings ...... 27 Figure 7. Aquatic recreation assessments .................................................................................................. 28 Figure 8. MSHA score and assessment locations ........................................................................................ 33 Figure 9. Point source locations in the Cedar River Watershed ................................................................. 37 Figure