DNR to Remove Dam on Little Rock Creek

(KNSI) — The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources says a dam in a central Minnesota creek that is now considered obsolete will be removed.

The DNR says the dam on Little Rock Creek, which flows through Benton and Morrison Counties, was initially built to fill a pond they hoped would be used for duck hunting. The creek has been on the list of impaired waters for the last 20 years due to pollution and the lack of oxygen for fish and chemicals. The area where the creek flows also runs through farmland, and the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency says the problems with the water stem from farm runoff and excess nitrate. The water in the creek has also become too warm to sustain fish and other aquatic life.

By removing the dam, the DNR hopes to cool the stream and restore the natural flow of the reservoir into the creek.

A sustainable groundwater supply in the Little Rock Creek area is also a concern.

Randall Doneen, DNR Manager for the Conservation Assistance and Regulation, said that a “water use conflict” exists in the Little Rock Creek Area because of the competing demands among existing and proposed water users for agricultural irrigation and natural resources. The demands, she said, exceed the reasonably available water supply.

Water users are encouraged to help develop a plan to resolve the conflict. The DNR says it will meet with irrigators to collaborate on an action plan.

Some of the proposed scenarios include adjusting how water in the Sartell Wildlife Management Area is managed, increasing water conservation, using pipelines to distribute water from sources farther from the stream, changing the stream flow during low flow periods by pumping water into the stream from a
well, and modifying permits.

The DNR says it will modify the operation of the dam for a trial period of three years by removing all boards in the dam spillway and allowing a free-flowing stream system. The DNR will monitor stream temperatures to determine if this action has the desired effect.

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