Minnesota's Impaired Waters and TMDLs

TMDL Project: Valley Branch Watershed District Watershed Restoration and Protection Project

Background

The Sunrise River Watershed, located in the St. Croix Basin, spans throughout the counties of Anoka, Chisago, Isanti, and Washington.  The Sunrise watershed consists of the West Branch of the Sunrise River, North Branch of the Sunrise River, and the Sunrise River itself.  The watershed is approximately 381 square miles in extent, and includes 33 cities and townships.

The Valley Branch Watershed District is located on the eastern edge of Minneapolis-St. Paul Metropolitan area and covers approximately 70 square miles. Approximately one square mile is in Ramsey County, the remainder of the district lies within Washington County.

The VBWD includes all or portions of the following communities: Maplewood, North St. Paul, White Bear Lake, Afton, Baytown Township, Grant, Lake Elmo, Mahtomedi, Oak Park Heights, Oakdale, Pine Springs, St. Mary’s Point, West Lakeland Township, and the city of Woodbury.

The VBWD currently manages 38 different waterbodies; examples of these are: Valley Creek, Kelle’s Coulee, Raleigh Creek, Silver Lake, Lake Elmo, and a portion of the St. Croix River. More information and a complete list can be found on the VBWD’s website.

In 2009, the MPCA conducted a watershed assessment on the entire Lower St. Croix Watershed, which included waterbodies within the VBWD. As part of the watershed assessment, monitoring was done on lakes and streams within the Lower St. Croix Major Watershed to determine if they met state standards for aquatic recreation and aquatic health. Based on this assessment and previous assessment, seven lakes were found to be impaired (Sunfish Lake, Eagle Point, Bay, Downs, Goose, Kramer Pond, Echo Lake), and one stream (Kelle’s Coulee) was listed as impaired for E. coli. This restoration and protection effort is a joint effort between the Valley Branch Watershed District, Washington Conservation District, local communities, Minn. Department of Natural Resources, the MPCA, and other state, local and federal agencies.

Map and Location

The Valley Branch WD watershed is located in Washington and Ramsey County, within the Lower St. Croix Watershed of the St. Croix River Basin.

TMDL report and implementation plan

TMDL currently in development.

Other documents

• Lower Saint Croix Watershed Stressor Identification (under development)
• Lower St. Croix River Watershed Monitoring and Assessment Report (wq-ws3-07030005b)

Meetings and Events

See the TMDL Meetings, Events and News page for notices of general interest and event-related information on impaired waters/TMDLs.

Information contact

Christopher Klucas, Project Manager
520 Lafayette Rd
St. Paul, MN 55155
651-757-2498
christopher.klucas@state.mn.us