Minnesota Pollution Control Agency

Contact: Forrest Peterson, 320-214-3789 Toll-free: 1-800-657-3864 Marshall, Minn. - Two public meetings will be held on Monday, April 14 to present information on a water quality improvement report for the West Fork Des Moines River watershed including Heron Lake. The first meeting is scheduled for 2:30 p.m. in the gray 4-H building on the Murray County Fairgrounds at South Broadway Ave. in Slayton. It will be repeated at 6:30 p.m. at the Heron Lake Community Center at 312 10th St. in Heron Lake. Displays and information will be available the first half hour; formal presentations will begin at 3 p.m. and 7 p.m. The West Fork Des Moines River watershed extends across seven counties in southwestern Minnesota, including Murray, Cottonwood, Jackson, and Nobles and a small portion of Pipestone, Lyon and Martin counties. The watershed covers an area of 1,333 square miles. The report addresses a total of 33 water quality impairments in the watershed. Known as a Total Maximum Daily Load, or TMDL study, the report focuses on pollution in sections of the West Fork Des Moines River and tributaries caused by fecal coliform bacteria and turbidity. The report also examines excess nutrients in North Heron Lake and South Heron Lake, and acidity levels in the Heron Lake outlet. The impairments caused by these pollutants affect aquatic life and recreation, and are related to land use. Fecal coliform bacteria can affect human health and limit recreational use of the water. Livestock on overgrazed pasture, surface-applied manure on cropland, feedlots lacking adequate runoff controls, and failing individual septic systems are the primary sources of the fecal coliform bacteria. Turbidity is a measure of water cloudiness and affects aquatic life. Soil erosion from stream banks, upland soil loss from row crop land, and nutrients contributing to algae growth are the primary sources of turbidity. Excess nutrients can affect the recreational use of a lake. Nutrients such as phosphorus can cause algal blooms, which inhibit swimming and boating. The Heron Lake outlet is listed as impaired for high pH most likely attributed to the excessive production of algae due to excess phosphorus in North and South Heron lakes. The TMDL report is part of a nationwide effort under the federal Clean Water Act to identify and clean up pollution in streams, rivers and lakes. Every two years, states are required to submit a list of impaired waters to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). A TMDL report is a scientific study that calculates the maximum amount of a pollutant a water body can receive, known as the "loading capacity," without exceeding water quality standards. The meeting precedes an official 30-day comment period. The public is encouraged to attend one of the meetings to learn about the project and, if interested, provide written comments during the comment period planned for later this spring. For more information, contact Chris Zadak at 651-297-8613, or Kelli Daberkow at 507-537-6497. The Cottonwood County Environmental Services office and Heron Lake Watershed District are assisting with the project. Following a public comment period and approval by the EPA, a plan based on the report will be developed to reduce the pollutants causing the impairments. More information about the West Fork Des Moines River Watershed TMDL project is available on the Web at www.dmr-tmdl.org/. More information on the state's impaired waters list and TMDL studies is available on the Web at www.pca.state.mn.us/water/tmdl/index.html, or toll-free at 1-800-657-3864.