Project name: Kettle Creek Watershed size: 1,065 acres Year began: 2007 Year Complete: Ongoing SWCD Contact: Wapello Phone: (641) 682-0752 Purpose: Improve water quality
Soil and Water Conservation District(s): Wapello Other partners: Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship, Iowa Department of Natural Resources, Natural Resources Conservation Service, City of Ottumwa, Southern Iowa Development and Conservation Authority.

It’s a small watershed, but big enough that both agricultural land and urban land contribute to the water quality woes of Kettle Creek.

Eroding gullies in the 633 acres of agricultural land and phosphorus runoff from the 432 acres of urban land are the primary targets for improvement in the Kettle Creek Watershed Project.

Originating less than 2 miles south of the city limits of Ottumwa, Kettle Creek empties into the city’s oxbow lagoons. The lagoons are designated as impaired waters by the Iowa Department of Natural Resources and are listed on Iowa’s 303d list of impaired waters.

A mix of funds are being used to establish best management practices in the watershed. Through the Wapello County Soil and Water Conservation District (SWCD), the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship (IDALS) has allocated more than $120,000 so far to build grade stabilization dams in the agriculture area. The Southern Iowa Development Corporation has contributed about $25,000, and landowners have contributed an estimated $40,000. The city of Ottumwa and REAP funding have added another $15,000.

The city of Ottumwa received a Watershed Improvement Review Board (WIRB) grant of $388,000 to control stream bank and stream bed erosion within city limits, and a bio-retention cell project is planned. The Wapello SWCD, with funding from IDALS, also purchased 300 white pine seedlings to teach children how to plant a seedling to benefit water quality and other resources.

One in a series of summaries of watershed projects in Iowa carried out by local conservation districts, the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship, Division of Soil Conservation, and other partners.

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