Lac qui Parle-Yellow Bank One Watershed one plan
The Lac qui Parle-Yellow Bank One Watershed, One Plan (1W1P) planning area is located along the South Dakota boarder in west central Minnesota. The 622,856 acre are comprised of portions of La qui Parle, Yellow Medicine and Lincoln Counties. The Yellow Bank and Lac qui Parle River watersheds extend from originations in South Dakota and outlet to the Minnesota River, which traverses along the northern edge of the planning area. The Coteau Des Prairies, a terminal moraine formed from the most recent glaciation, travels in a southeasterly direction and intersects the southwest portion of the planning area. Topographic relief from the Coteau Des Prairies influences the general northeasterly trending waterflow and creates tremendous diversity in the planning area. Landscape along the Coteau Des Prairies is a mixture of agricultural and pasture land with intricate topography, where as the northeast portion of the planning area experiences little elevation variation and has been heavily altered for agricultural production.
The Lac qui Parle-Yellow Bank One Watershed, One Plan began in September 2020 with Grant Administration/Coordination provided by the Lac qui Parle SWCD and fiscal management provided by the Lac qui Parle-Yellow Bank Watershed District.
The counties of Lac qui Parle, Lincoln and Yellow Medicine, their respective SWCDS, Lac qui Parle-Yellow Bank Watershed District and Area II comprise the 8 members of this agreement.
Houston Engineering, Inc. has provided consultant services to draft the Plan document and guide the partners through the process to prioritize subwatersheds and target best management practices and activities that will result in measurable quantities. The draft Plan will be in internal review August-September 2022, formal 60-day review in October-November 2022 with a public hearing in December 2022. The member boards will approve of the plan in early 2023 with BWSR Board approval in March-April 2023. Within 120 days following BWSR approval, the member board will voluntarily adopt the Plan and begin implementation.
Lac qui Parle-Yellow Bank Watershed Plan Development: Work Plan
This work plan outlines tasks for developing a comprehensive watershed management plan through the Board of Water and Soil Resources’ (BWSR) One Watershed, One Plan program. The work plan is designed to reflect the One Watershed, One Plan Operating Procedures and Plan Content Requirements. Suggested start dates may not be in sequential order due to the overlapping nature of the tasks.
This document, along with a budget and a timeline reflecting the work plan tasks, are required in order to receive a BWSR planning grant through the One Watershed, One Plan program.
Grant Title: 2021 Lac qui Parle-Yellow Bank Watershed One Watershed, One Plan Planning Grant
Fiscal Agent/Grantee: Lac qui Parle-Yellow Bank Watershed District, Mitch Enderson
Administrative Lead (project coordinator): Lac qui Parle SWCD, Chessa Frahm