Summary
The South Fork Wildcat Creek Watershed is located within the larger Wildcat Creek Watershed and covers portions of Clinton, Tipton, and Tippecanoe Counties, Indiana. The land use of the watersheds is predominately agricultural. The City of Frankfort along with the small towns of Michigantown, Kempton, Mulberry, and Dayton make up the urban and residential areas of the watersheds. Several stream reaches in the watersheds are listed on the Indiana Department of Environmental Management’s 303(d) List of Impaired Waterbodies, and the South Fork of Wildcat Creek is designated as one of three State Scenic Rivers.
The purpose of the Watershed Management Plan (WMP) is to evaluate the current state of each watershed and determine where future improvements and protection should be focused. The Planning Team for the WMP includes the Clinton County Soil & Water Conservation District (SWCD) Board of Supervisors, the Steering Committee for the grant, and the many Stakeholders who have attended our events and provided input.
The South Fork Wildcat Creek WMP addresses several causes of water quality impairments in the watersheds based on scientific data and visual observations by the Steering Committee and SWCD staff. The causes addressed in this plan are excessive sediment and nutrients, high E. coli, and stream corridor degradation.
Each cause of impairment is addressed by a goal that provides direction for specific objectives and action items that are identified in this Plan for the improvement of water quality in the watersheds. The WMP will be implemented utilizing funds from a three- year Section 319 Clean Water grant to install conservation practices and begin fulfilling tasks set forth in the Plan beginning in January 2013. The plan will be reviewed every five years.