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St. Joseph River (Michigan, Indiana)
Project Status: modeling
is complete
Watershed
Characteristics
The St. Joseph River is a tributary to Lake Michigan and discharges
at St. Joseph, Michigan. The river basin contains eight sub-watersheds,
including Prairie River, Coldwater River, Fawn River, Pigeon River,
Little Elkhart River, Elkhart River, Dowagiac River, and Paw Paw River.
It's watershed drains approximately 4,685 square miles, including portions
of counties within Indiana and Michigan.
The St. Joseph River watershed is
roughly 60 percent agricultural land use, 20 percent forested, and less
than 10 percent urbanized. However, management practices within the
agricultural industry have contributed to bank erosion and sedimentation
issues within the watershed. Channelization, drainage of wetlands, and
installation of artificial drainage systems have also altered stream
temperature regimes and decreased flow stability. Most of the large
cities located within the watershed are along the mainstem of the river
and have significant effects on water quality. The lower and mouth segments
of the St. Joseph River basin are also threatened by increased development
pressure.
Modeling
Approach
The purpose of this study was to develop a modeling tool that could
be used by local stakeholders to minimize erosion and sediment delivered
to the St. Joseph River and, subsequently, the St. Joseph Harbor.
In this study, a model of the St. Joseph River watershed was created
using the Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT). Several
scenarios that looked at the effects of dams, tillage practices, and
the use of filter strips were developed and
modeled. A comparison was also made with historical (pre-European development)
conditions. Two-dimensional flow and sediment modeling was done for
the inner harbor using RMA-2 and SED-2D
to provide more detailed estimates of sediment movement and delivery
to the near-shore zone of Lake Michigan.
Modeling was completed in July of
2005. A training workshop for state and local partners took place in
August of 2005.
Use
and Applications
The modeling project included the development of analysis tools that
will enable the users to evaluate Best Management Practices (BMPs) to
reduce sediment transport to the lower reaches, including the navigation
channels and harbor. Several entities (watershed commissions, universities,
etc.) have expressed interest in obtaining these models for use in future
applications pertaining to the assessment of future land uses and the
development of BMPs to address these issues.
Project
Partners
Baird & Associates
City
of Elkhart, Indiana
City
of South Bend, Indiana
Friends
of the St. Joseph River Association, Inc.
Indiana
Department of Environmental Management
Lake Michigan
College
Michigan
Department of Environmental Quality
Michigan Department
of Natural Resources
Michiana Area Council
of Governments (MACOG)
US Environmental Protection
Agency
US
Geological Survey
USDA – Natural
Resource Conservation Service
Western
Michigan University
For more information—or
to obtain digital data for advanced modeling purposes—contact:
James P. Selegean, P.E., Ph.D.
Great Lakes Hydraulics and Hydrology Office
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
Detroit District
477 Michigan Avenue
Detroit, MI 48226
Office: (313) 226-6791
Fax: (313) 226-2398
James.P.Selegean@usace.army.mil
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Nonpoint
source pollution from agricultural fields appears to be the
greatest factor that degrades water quality in this watershed
