Chippewa/East Mackinac Conservation
District
BUILDING
A
WATERSHED
MANAGEMENT
PLAN
What is a Watershed?
The area of land from which runoff (from rain, snow and springs) drains into a stream, river, lake or other body of water. Streams and rivers function as the "arteries" of the watershed. They drain from the land as they flow from higher to lower elevations.
Effects of Land Development
Developed lands, which may be as simple as a well-manicured lawn or a driveway, are more impermeable (solid) than natural land. Rain hits the hard surfaces of compacted ground and runs off into drainages instead of percolating into the ground. This occurrence drastically changes the fate of precipitation in the water cycle.
* Less water soaking into
the ground effects the water table.
*
Stream flow becomes more intense during and immediately after storms.
*
Less precipitation is transpired back to the atmosphere from plants.
The Water Cycle
The water cycle is the movement of water through the environment. It is through this movement that water in river systems is replenished. When rain or snow falls to an undeveloped watershed, 40 percent will return to the atmosphere by evaporation and transpiration(loss of water vapor by plants). About 50 percent will percolate into the soil, and the remaining 10 percent moves across the land as runoff and drains into streams, wetlands and other bodies of water.
The water that soaks into the ground is important
for maintaining stream flow during dry weather. Percolating water slowly moves
downward through the soil until it drains into an area where all the pores and
cracks in the rock are saturated with water. The top of this zone is known as
the water table.
Water in this saturated
zone moves laterally, following the law of gravity and/or water pressure from
above. If the path of the moving ground water intercepts a stream channel, the
ground water is discharged into the stream as a spring. This discharge is
defined as its base flow. At times when there is no surface runoff, the entire
flow of a stream might be base flow from ground water.
Watershed Management
These runoff sources carry pollutants from the
higher elevations into the water below. The rationale for watershed management is
that, if we properly manage land activities on the land that drains into
creeks, rivers, and lakes, we will be protecting the water resource.
Watershed planning brings together the people within
the watershed to address those activities, regardless of existing political
boundaries. By working together, individuals within the watershed can design a
coordinated plan to protect the water.
The Watershed Association
With the supervision of
the Conservation District and the guidance of the Nature Conservancy, the initial
goals of the coordinator and the Association will be to determine area
watershed concerns, suggest remedial and preventative action, and pursue
financial resources to satisfy project needs.
The long range plan for the coordinator and the Association will be a
continuing exploration of watershed threats, projects to satisfy those
problems, aand the continued pursuit of monies to fund these projects.
The Watershed Coordinator
Supervised by the Chippewa/ East Mackinac
Conservation District and guided by the Nature Conservancy, the watershed
coordinator's primary role is to help citizens protect the Northern Lake Huron
Shoreline Watershed throughout the establishment of a grass roots, community
driven organization with the mission of protecting the area water
resources. The Coordinator will assist the organization in the development of a
focus, provide technical support, public determined environmental
concerns, and help with the design and fundraising of public initiated
remedial projects.
Watershed Coordinator
Pat Carr
P.O. Box 578
Cedarville, MI 49719
Phone: (906) 484-3031