Red Lake Watershed District

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Red Lake Watershed District

• Impoundments Within the Thief River Watershed

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RLWD Impoundments in the Thief River Watershed

• Moose River Impoundment
• North Pool
• South Pool
• Lost River
• Elm Lake

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Elm Lake (Farmes Pool)
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Elm Lake Location

• Marshall County, approximately 17 miles NE of
  Thief River Falls.
• Drainage area of Ditch 200 above Elm Lake is 63
  sq. miles.

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Elm Lake History

• Elm Lake was drained around 1920 due to the
  construction of Branch 200 of JD 11.
• Restoration project was a cooperative effort.
• USFWS, MN DNR, RLWD, Ducks Unlimited
• Majority of funding was from DU.
• Largest DU project in the lower 48 states at the
  time
• Cost
• 2 Million
• Operational 1991

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Elm Lake Purpose

• Multi-purpose
• Flood Control
• Increase Wildlife Values
• Upstream drainage improvement

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Elm Lake Flow Diagram
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Elm Lake Outlet Structure
Outlet Structure
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Elm Lake Operation and Maintenance

• RLWD determines need for additional stop-logs to
  provide downstream flood control during
  significant flood events
• Agassiz NWR responsible for operating outlet
• Various other maintenance items are the
  responsibility of either the USFWS, State of
  Minnesota, or the RLWD.

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Elm Lake Designed Storage
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Elm Lake Actual Storage
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Elm Lake Additional Comments

• Investigative WQ monitoring on Ditch 200
• 2004 Hydrograph

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Lost River Pool
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Lost River Location

• Located in Marshall County, Grand Plain Township,
  approximately 20 miles NE of Thief River Falls.
• The drainage area above the impoundment is 53
  square miles.

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Lost River Flow Diagram
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Lost River History and Purpose

• Constructed in mid-1970s by the MN DNR to
  improve waterfowl habitat.
• December 14, 1978 The RLWD MNDNR formally
  agreed to modify the impoundment by raising the
  elevation of the dike and emergency spillway.

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Lost River - Description

• Four 48 in. diameter gated pipes and a spillway
  from Ditch 200 of JD 11 supply water to the
  impoundment
• Approximately 10 miles of earthen embankment, an
  outlet control structure, and an emergency
  spillway into Ditch 200
• This impoundment is an off-channel reservoir.
• Lost River Pool is now a multi-purpose
  impoundment
• Wildlife and Flood Control

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Lost River - Structure

• Outlets to Marshall County Ditch 200

Stop-Logs
Screw Gate
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Lost River Operation and Maintenance

• Operation and maintenance is the responsibility
  of the state.
• Cost - 109,000 to modify

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Lost River Intended Storage
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Lost River Actual Operation and Storage
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Lost River 2004 Hydrograph
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Moose River Impoundment
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Moose River Impoundment - General

• Cooperative effort between the RLWD and the MN
  DNR
• 2 pool design
• Flood Control and Wildlife Management
• Built to reduce flood damages by impounding
  floodwaters in the upper reaches of the
  watershed.
• Wildlife and rec. benefits enhanced by water
  retained in the two pools
• Stream flow maintenance
• Fire Control

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Moose River Impoundment - Construction

• Constructed on land managed by the MN DNR
• 3.4 Million total construction cost
• 1,690,000 State of Minnesota
• 612,000 Red Lake Watershed District
• 1,126,000 Red River Watershed Management Board
• Operational in 1988

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Moose River ImpoundmentWatershed Boundary
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Moose River Dike Cross Section
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Moose River Impoundment Water Control Structures
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Moose RiverFlow Diagram
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Moose River Impoundment Operation and Maintenance

• RLWD responsible for operation of floodgates
• Local person monitors and records elevations and
  stream gages, also operates the floodgates as
  directed by the RLWD
• Outflows from pools coordinated with Agassiz NWR
  and Thief Lake WMA
• Maintenance is the responsibility of the RLWD and
  the State

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Moose RiverImpoundmentStream Gage Sites and
Drainage Areas
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Moose River Impoundment Functional Design Data
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Moose River Impoundment Water Storage
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Moose River Impoundment Water Storage
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Moose River Impoundment North Pool
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Moose River North Pool Purpose and History

• Outlets into the Moose River (JD 21)
• Major Components
• 5 miles of diversion ditch
• 4 miles of earthen dike (top elevation 1218)
• One gated outlet structure
• One rock lined emergency spillway (elev. 1216)
• Approx. 1/3 (41.7 sq. mi.) of the total Moose
  River Impoundment project drainage area drains to
  the Moose River

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Moose River Impoundment North Pool

• Actual Operation and Total Storage

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Moose River Impoundment North Pool 2004
Hydrograph
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Moose River Impoundment South Pool
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Moose River Impoundment South Pool

• Outlets into the Mud River (JD 11)
• Major Components
• 3 miles of diversion ditch
• 9 miles of earthen dike (elevation 1220)
• 4 miles of earthen dike between N S pools (1220)
• Inter-pool structure which may be used to pass
  water between the pools
• 2 rock-lined emergency spillways (at elevation
  1218)
• Approximately 2/3 (83.3 sq. mi.) of the total
  project drainage area (125 sq. mi.) drains to the
  Mud River

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Moose River South Pool -

• Actual Operation and Total Storage

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Moose River Impoundment South Pool 2004
Hydrograph
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Moose River Impoundment Additional Comments

• Maintenance Issues

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Water Quality Monitoring
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Water Quality Monitoring
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Water Quality Monitoring

• RLWD
• At least 4 times per year
• Field Measurements of turbidity, transparency,
  dissolved oxygen, pH, conductivity, temperature,
  stage
• Samples collected for total phosphorus,
  orthophosphorus, total suspended solids, total
  dissolved solids, total Kjeldahl nitrogen,
  nitrates nitrites, ammonia nitrogen, fecal
  coliform, e-coli

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Water Quality Monitoring

• Grygla River Watch
• Monthly during open water
• Field Measurements of turbidity, transparency,
  dissolved oxygen, pH, conductivity, temperature,
  stage

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Water Quality Monitoring Results

• No impairments for turbidity found on the Moose
  or Mud Rivers
• DO is low on Moose Mud Rivers
• Moose River.
• P and N are high relative to ecoregion values
• Mud River
• P is high compared to ecoregion values.
• Thief River will be impaired for turbidity from
  Thief Lake to Thief River Falls
• Source ??? Complicated question, will need
  better understanding of the w-shed, further study
  research

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Questions?