Fish Creek Watershed Project
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UPCOMING EVENTS: The next Fish Creek Advisory Committee meeting date will be Tuesday, January 7th, 2025 – 6:00 pm ET at the Spencer Public Library. For more information, contact the Watershed Coordinator or the Owen County SWCD.
The Fish Creek watershed is comprised of 172,729 acres encompassing much of the land in Owen County, with portions spanning into Greene and Monroe counties. The 10-digit HUC (Hydrologic Unit Code 0512020202) includes 176 miles of tributaries that flow into the White River, which bisects the watershed from northeast to southwest. Recently, the Owen County Soil & Water Conservation District submitted a 319 Planning grant application and was selected for funding! This two-year initiative is slated to start in early 2023 and will focus on forming an Advisory Committee as well as compiling and reviewing new and existing data with the ultimate goal of completing a comprehensive Watershed Management Plan for the selected region. Long-term goals will include applying for 319 Implementation funding to follow the completion of an approved Watershed Management Plan, which will result in improved water quality in the region The upcoming 319 grant is valued at $114,950 with a match/in-kind commitment of $76,633.33. More information will be forthcoming, but until then stakeholders and partners interested in learning more are encouraged to contact the Owen County Soil & Water Conservation District.
CLICK HERE for an interactive map of the Fish Creek watershed.
Fish Creek Windshield Survey Form (printable PDF)
FCW Map of Monitoring Sites (319 baseline study 2023-2024)
319 Project HISTORY in Owen County
In 2007, IDEM completed a TMDL for E.coli titled West Fork White River (WFWR) – Owen County Tributaries. This TMDL sampled 44 sites within the area that corresponds to the proposed HUC10 Fish Creek watershed 319 project and found 43 sites to be in violation of the geometric mean. In 2009, a WMP following the 2003 Checklist was approved for three subwatersheds in this region, though Implementation funds were never obtained. The focus of the 2009 WMP included Little Mill Creek-Mill Creek (051202020201), Limestone Creek-White River (051202020202), and Fall Creek-White River (051202020203). Based on data collected and analyzed, specific critical areas were chosen and described in detail in the Owen County Lower White River Watershed Project WMP. The pollutants of concern outlined in this WMP included nitrates, E.coli, and TSS (sediment). Information gathered in the aforementioned reports will be instrumental in the upcoming creation of an overarching Watershed Management Plan for the Fish Creek watershed. For more information on the TMDL or WMP project or to view the full reports:
West Fork White River (WFWR) – Owen County Tributaries 2007 TMDL Report
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To learn more about the Fish Creek Watershed Project:
Owen County SWCD
788 Pottersville Road Spencer, IN 47460
(812) 829-2605
owenswcd@gmail.com
http://owencountyswcd.org/
