Plan

Upper Iowa IWA Project Final Report Staff Beaver Creek Final Report - Iowa Publications Online 2012 Ag Census Web Maps, Overview | USDA/NASS Advanced Hydrologic Prediction Service: La Crosse Allamakee County Environmental Health Biodiversity Information Serving Our Nation (BISON) BioNet - Iowa DNR Biological Monitoring and Assessment Database Climate Change Has 'Loaded The Dice' On The Frequency Of 100-Year Floods | HuffPost Consumer Confidence Report for 1999-2017 | City of Decorah Iowa Decorah Bicycles: Travis & Josie Decorah Parks System - Decorah Park & Recreation Department Des Moines Register: Iowa water pollution is getting much worse and killing the [...]

4.1 Cover Crop Analysis 4.2 Iowa Best Management Practice (BMP) Mapping Project The Iowa Best Management Practice (BMP) Mapping Project was completed by Iowa State University and funded by Iowa DNR, IDALS, Iowa Nutrient Research Center at ISU, National Laboratory for Agriculture and the Environment and Iowa Nutrient Research and Education Council. The BMP Project provides an inventory of already existing conservation practices in watersheds across Iowa. BMPs were identified using different types of aerial imagery. Analysis of BMPs in the Upper Iowa River Watershed used LiDAR, infrared, and natural color imagery, from 2007 to [...]

Download printable version of the Summary of Upper Iowa Flood Events Story Map

Watershed Resiliency Plan Appendices Upper Iowa Outreach Plan and Upper Iowa Outreach Matrix Reference Materials Jurisdiction Plans Winneshiek County Comprehensive Plan Winneshiek County Hazard Mitigation Plan Howard County Hazard Mitigation Plan City of Lime Springs Plan Decorah Stormwater Management Plan Decorah Comprehensive Plan Allamakee County Hazard Mitigation Plan Flood Mitigation Planning for the Upper Iowa River Watershed Mitigation Action Chart Related Plans and Information Report: On the path to community flood resilience for the Upper Iowa Watershed: Documenting 2016 flood experiences in Freeport, Iowa Root River One Watershed One Plan Publications Partners

3.5.1What is Source Water? Source Water is the term that is used to define the source or origin of drinking water. Source water can be derived from surface water, such as a river, stream, lake, or reservoir, or it can be from groundwater. The quality of Source Water can be influenced by many natural and human processes and activities. Historically, Source Water derived from surface water in Iowa has been more susceptible to contamination than Source Water derived from groundwater. However, Source Water derived from surface water sources can also be restored more quickly than Source Water derived from [...]

Nutrient transport in the Upper Mississippi Basin has become such an issue that Iowa, like many other states within the basin, developed and adopted the Iowa Nutrient Reduction Strategy in 2012. The Iowa Nutrient Reduction Strategy (INRS) addresses urban and rural, point and non-point sources of nitrogen and phosphorous and set goals for reducing nutrient loads leaving the state by 45% by the year 2035. 3.4.1 Non-Point Source Pollution Non-point source pollution is caused by rain or runoff carrying pollutants into surface or ground water sources. Iowa’s primary pollutants are nutrients such as nitrogen and phosphorous from commercial fertilizers used [...]

6.1 Goals Improve and protect ground and surface water quality; Reduce the risk to and impact of flooding to social, economic and ecological systems; Build human and landscape resiliency. 6.2 Objectives, Strategies, and Actions Objectives, Strategies and Actions were adopted by the Upper Iowa River Watershed WMA Board to help them reach their goals and achieve their vision. They were adopted with appreciation and consideration for the community engagement and input provided by watershed residents and partners; consideration for the watershed characteristics as described in the Understanding the Watershed section of this plan; recognition of the unique Challenges and Opportunities [...]

The impact of any individual flood event in the UIR Watershed is dynamic and complicated. It can include loss of life, direct and indirect economic loss and stressors, social, psychological, and cultural impacts, public and private physical infrastructure degradation or loss, property damage or loss, and business loss. The ecological impacts, including water quality degradation, terrestrial and aquatic habitat loss, and soil and nutrient loss and loading can be significant. Time spent on flood prevention and route detours is rarely considered but has significant impacts. There are also direct and [...]

Unique physical and geologic characteristics, human/landscape relationships, and changing climate conditions create complex challenges for Upper Iowa River Watershed residents and resource managers. For better or worse, humans have altered nearly 100% of the UIR Watershed landscape in some way. Some of the most obvious human induced changes include conversion of native prairie, wetland and woodlands to agricultural production. Urbanization, transportation infrastructure development, resource extraction, rural and urban waste management, small and large landscape alterations, and implementation of conservation practices have also changed or influenced the hydrologic system. Local watershed changes are compounded when combined with [...]