Leech Lake watershed gets healthy marks from state

A new state report finds the Leech Lake River Watershed in northern Minnesota to be one of the healthiest watersheds in the upper Mississippi River basin. The report from the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency says that's largely because the majority of the land within the watershed is publicly owned - either by state, federal or county government, or by the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe.

"The forest lands do a very good job of protecting the water quality within this watershed," said Phil Votruba, watershed project manager with the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency.

The Leech Lake watershed has more than 750 lakes prized for fishing, boating and other recreation.

As part of the four-year study, the MPCA assessed 85 lakes in the watershed. Only one, Hart Lake in Hubbard County, didn't meet state standards for water quality. One stretch of the Kabekona River, a high-quality trout stream, had elevated levels of E. coli bacteria.

Despite the good news, Votruba said there are still causes for concern. The watershed is facing increased development pressure on privately owned land, especially as lake owners tear down small cabins and replace them with large homes. State demographers project the population of the watershed will grow by 60 percent by 2030.

"When you get more development like that, we get more impervious surfaces, we get more runoff and then we get more nutrient contributions to our lakes and streams, which we could see a trending of downward influence on some of these streams and lakes," Votruba said.

The report outlines strategies for protecting the watershed, including sustainable forestry practices, controlling erosion and stricter land-use regulations.

A public comment period on the draft report is open until March 15.