Polk Springs Creek is a 5-mile stretch of stream that flows west to east in Washington County, beginning in the Town of Polk before flowing into Cedar Creek in the Town of Jackson. Polk Springs is a spring-fed stream with water temperatures that are adequate to support trout populations. However, water quality issues made trout a distant memory for even the longest tenured residents of the area.
Over the last 25 years, Washington County Land Resources Division has partnered with landowners along Polk Springs Creek on a variety of projects to improve water quality. These projects include installing a roofed barnyard, constructing grassed waterways, replacing a failing septic system, implementing two barnyard runoff control projects, abandoning a failing manure storage facility, stopping tile flows from two dairy milk-house drains, writing nutrient management plans, constructing a 5,435-foot stream bank protection and stabilization project, and establishing a 2,300 feet long riparian buffer that averages 100 feet wide.
Even with all this work, there is still more to be done!
Washington County LRD staff identified a 1,400 linear foot severely eroded section along Polk Springs Creek directly downstream of a previous stream bank and stabilization project completed in 2020. This 1,400-foot-section of stream was ditched before 1941 and prior to 2018, the streambank erosion was minimal. Before Polk Springs Creek was ditched, the streambed ran diagonally through what is now a farm field before crossing under County Highway P and flowing east.
The section of stream is bordered by farm fields and County Highway P and there were areas with five to six feet high eroded banks on each side. The stream was encroaching on County Highway P roadway, causing the guardrail to slough into the stream in 2022. County Highway P was being widened in 2024 and the construction design plans proposed moving the segment of Polk Springs running parallel to Highway P. This would ensure that it would no longer directly abut the highway, preventing further erosion from impacting the guardrail and safety.
County staff and engineering staff from the DATCP and NRCS, including the Area Engineer who specializes in stream rehabilitation projects, conducted a site visit in August 2023. The engineers suggested relocating the stream to where it historically ran through the farm field based on 1937 aerial imagery. The proposed project was pitched in the fall of 2023 and quickly gained traction since the construction on County Highway P needed to move the stream further from the road ditch anyway.
The project proposed relocating this section of stream back to where it historically meandered through the farm field, widening its banks to prevent further erosion, adding a natural gravel streambed, and creating a grass buffer on either side to store floodwater. Restoring the stream to its pre-ditched condition would restore its general structure, function, and ecosystem. Constructing a grass buffer on both sides of the stream would allow the bank to overflow, provide a safer floodplain, improve water quality, filter pollutants from the upland farm fields, and offer a place that provides wildlife habitat. Washington County LRD contacted the landowner to discuss the new project idea, and the landowner graciously agreed that moving the stream would not only solve a public safety issue but would have additional environmental benefits.
With this new plan, getting 100% funding for the project in a couple months before construction of County Highway P began was critical in order for the project to move forward. The Fund for Lake Michigan became crucial to making this project happen and helped overcome our funding challenge. With Fund for Lake Michigan Funding secured, the County was able to pool together a variety of other State and County funding sources including savings to the County Highway P reconstruction project to move ahead with the stream relocation project. Paul Backhaus, Lead Conservationist in the Washington County Land Resources Division, was able to design the project, obtain necessary permits and select a contractor for the project to begin in May 2024 ahead of the construction on Highway P.
The stream relocation project started before the County Highway P construction, and the new stream path was graded and seeded to allow for grass to grow before connecting it to the existing stream. When the construction of County Highway P began, the newly re-meandered stream was vegetated and was able to be connected to the existing stream flow. The old stream bed was filled in and the road ditch graded to a safe depth and width. Through close coordination with the Washington County Highway Department and the road construction company, the transition went smoothly, and the project was completed in August 2024 without causing delays to the highway project.
This project was constructed so the stream has room to freely meander (a natural process) and safely flood over its banks as a multi-tiered channel. Reconstructing the stream in this manner prevents further erosion and allows aquatic and terrestrial habitat to form. Washington County LRD will continue working to rehabilitate Polk Springs Creek to improve the water quality and ecosystem functionality so that a trout population can someday be sustained.
Story by Washington County Land Conservation Staff