Watershed at-a-glance

The Zumbro River watershed is more than 900,000 acres in size, and reaches parts of six counties in southeast Minnesota. These counties include Olmsted, Dodge, Steele, Rice, Goodhue, and Wabasha. Rochester, one of Minnesota’s largest cities, is located in the southeast quadrant of the watershed.

Characteristics

The Zumbro River watershed is known for its diversity of landscape, ranging from deep fertile glacial-tills, to steep sandy soils of the bluffs. Much of it is underlain by karst, with exposed bedrock and complex groundwater systems predominant in the eastern half of the region. Landforms common to this area are steep bluffs overlooking deep river valleys, sinkholes, caverns, and cold-water spring-fed streams.

To the west the land is characterized by lake plains, outwash plains, end and ground moraines, and drumlin fields, all remnant landscapes of past glacial activities and the melt water drainage associated with it. 

Land use is mostly agricultural, with row crops dominating, particularly in the western half of the watershed. The small stream tributaries in the far east (bottom of the watershed) are mostly cold, groundwater streams that support trout populations.

What's being done

The MPCA is planning to work with local partners to:

• Complete a Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) study addressing 17 turbidity impairments in the watershed. This study has been underway since 2007 and will be public noticed in 2011.
• Initiate a planning project that will update the existing Zumbro River Watershed Management Plan and provide for implementation planning pertaining to the turbidity TMDLs.
• Initiate intensive watershed monitoring in 2012.
• Study the complexity of the karst geology, which underlies much of the Zumbro River watershed.

MPCA's watershed approach: Since 2007, the MPCA and its partners have begun implementing a 10-year rotation for watershed restoration plans to address Minnesota's waters at the major watershed level.