Management Plans

Understanding Watershed Management Plans

A Watershed Management Plan is an important tool for any group looking to improve their local lake, river or stream.

Put simply, a Watershed Management Plan (WMP) identifies water quality problems in your watershed, proposes solutions, and creates a strategy for putting those solutions in action. Watershed Management Plans take a long-term, comprehensive approach, which has proven to be successful in a number of watersheds.

Like a road map directing you from the start to finish of your effort, it helps you create a strategic, targeted plan for making changes in your watershed.

Detailed information on creating a WMP:

• Watershed Management Plan Guidebook

For more information, see the Contact Watershed Staff Page

Approved Watershed Management Plans

Map of approved plans

• Williamson Pond - rural lake, southern Iowa 
• Carter Lake - urban oxbow lake, western Iowa 
• Dry Run Creek - rural and urban stream, northeast Iowa
  • Assessment Update (2017)
  • Assessment Update Presentation (2017)
• Lake Hendricks - rural lake, northeast Iowa
• Big Creek Lake (rural lake, Upper Des Moines & Raccoon)
• Clear Lake (rural & urban glacial lake, northeast Iowa)
• Price Creek (rural stream, northeast Iowa
  • Price Creek WMP
  • Price Creek Map
  • Appendix B - Estimated Sediment Delivery
  • Appendix C - Water Quality Monitoring Sites
  • Appendix D - Landuse
  • Appendix E1 - Sediment Delivery and Bacteria Loads/Acre
  • Appendix E2 - Proposed Stream Buffer and Livestock BMPs
• Duck Creek (urban and rural stream, southeast Iowa)
• Lake Geode (rural lake, southeast Iowa)
• Silver Lake (urban lake, western Iowa
• Five Island Lake (rural & urban glacial lake, northwest Iowa)
• Black Hawk Lake (rural & urban glacial lake, Upper Des Moines & Raccoon)
  • WMP
  • City of Lake View Urban issues Plan, IDNR Fisheries In-Lake Management and Restoration Plan, & Water Quality Benefits through Management
  • TMDL Section 1
  • TMDL Section 2
  • TMDL Section 3
  • Diagnostic Feasibility Study
  • Best Management Practice Targeting Plan
• Tete Des Morts Creek (rural stream, northeast Iowa)
• Silver Creek (rural stream, eastern Iowa)
• Rathbun Lake (rural lake, southeast Iowa)
  • NEW - Rathbun Lake Combined WMP and Source Water Protection Plan
    Previous Plans:
    • Rathbun WMP
    • 2013 Monitoring Summary
    • Watershed map
    • General features map
    • Sub-watersheds map
    • Land use map
    • Land in CRP map
    • Impaired waters map
    • Monitoring points map
    • Priority land map
    • Targeted watersheds map
• Don Williams Lake (lake, central Iowa)
• Badger Creek Lake (lake, central Iowa)
• Lyons Creek (rural stream, central Iowa)
• Yellow River (rural stream, northeast Iowa)
• Union Grove Lake (lake, central Iowa)
• Storm Lake (lake, northwestern Iowa)
• Silver Creek (rural stream, north Iowa)
• Hickory Grove Lake (central Iowa)
• Otter Creek Lake (central Iowa)
• Easter Lake (urban lake, central Iowa)
  • Section 1
  • Section 2
  • Section 3
• Iowa Great Lakes (urban and rural lakes, northwest Iowa)
• 2018 Revised Iowa Great Lakes WMP
  Previous Plan:
  • Section 1
  • Section 2
  • Section 3
  • Section 4
  • Section 5
  • Section 6
• Big Hollow Lake (rural lake, southeast Iowa)
  • NEW - Big Hollow Lake Watershed Plan (2022)
• Palo Alto Shallow Lakes (rural lakes, northwest Iowa)
  • NEW - Five Island Lake Watershed Management Plan (2022)
  • NEW - Lost Island Lake Watershed Management Plan (2023)
  • NEW - Silver Lake (Palo Alto County) Watershed Management Plan (2024)

Basin Water Quality Plans 

• Raccoon River Master Plan
• North Raccoon River Watershed Plan
  • NEW - 2022 Addendum
• Additional Basin-level plans are available on the DNR Watershed Management Authorities page

Watershed Protection Plans

• NEW - Trout Run Watershed Plan - Siewers Spring and Chuck Gipp Decorah Fish Hatchery protection plan 

Other Available Plans

Watershed Assessment Plans

• Three Mile Lake - rural lake and water supply reservoir, south central Iowa
• Dry Run Creek - primarily urban stream with biological impairment in northeast Iowa (Cedar Falls)
• Eldred Sherwood Lake - rural lake with algal impairment in north central Iowa (also as "Indian Lake")