Yellow Medicine One Watershed One Plan

The Yellow Medicine One Watershed One Plan (1W1P) was developed as one of five pilot "One Watershed One Plan" projects in Minnesota as a result of legislation passed in 2012 that authorized the Minnesota Board of Water and Soil Resources (BWSR) to align local planning on watershed boundaries. The nine-county partnership of Area II Minnesota River Basin Projects (Area II) has been working cooperatively since its inception in 1978 to address water quality and quantity issues in southwestern Minnesota. The soil and water conservation districts (SWCDs) within Area II recognized the need to increase coordination and provide greater assurances for meeting resources management goals and measurable outcomes. Because four of the five counties in the Yellow Medicine Watershed had plans that were expiring as early as 2016 and a Watershed Restoration and Protection Strategy (WRAPS) was being completed for the watershed, SWCD members determined that the 1W1P pilot project was consistent with their goals and that the Yellow Medicine Watershed was the best candidate for the pilot project. Area II members envision that this pilot project will be adopted throughout the rest of the Area II planning area and a regional approach for watershed-based management will be embraced.