Fecal Coliform TMDL Assessment for 21 Impaired Streams in the Blue Earth River Basin

The Blue Earth River Basin (BERB) is located across portions of 14 counties in southcentral Minnesota and Northern Iowa. The basin includes three major watersheds, the Blue Earth, Le Sueur and Watonwan. The BERB contains 3,364 miles of streams and rivers and 3,374 miles of public drainage (719 miles of public open ditch and 2,665 miles of public tile). The 3,540 square mile BERB includes all or portions of 51 municipalities, the largest being Fairmont, St. James, Blue Earth and Mankato. The estimated human population is 92,202, with 60% living in cities and 40% in rural areas. Agricultural landuse comprises approximately 88% of the landscape, with corn and soybeans the primary crop types. The BERB has just over 2,300 feedlot facilities, with swine as the major livestock type. It is estimated that over 2.2 million swine are raised in the basin. As part of larger, long-term efforts to improve Minnesota River water quality, the BERB is the focal point of this report. As compared to other Minnesota River major watersheds, the Blue Earth, LeSueur, and to a lesser extent, Watonwan rivers, have been shown to contribute disproportionately high pollutant loads to the Minnesota River. Even with the serious water quality concerns, the Blue Earth River system is quite popular for fishing, canoeing, and even swimming. The water quality concerns and recreational interest have led to solid local policy and technical organizations capable of addressing these issues through TMDLs and other means. For these reasons, initiating this TMDL was a priority at both the local and state level.