planning would be directed toward reducing the nonpoint source pollutant load-
ings as well as providing for local drainage needs in the watershed.
While these local programs described above have resulted in some modest reduc-
tion in the pollutant loadings from nonpoint sources, this element of the plan
remains largely unimplemented.
Current Plan Recommendations
It is recommended that construction erosion controls, onsite sewage disposal
systems management, and streambank erosion control measures, plus land manage-
ment practices designed to provide about a 25 percent reduction in nonpoint
source pollutant loadings from the urban and rural lands be carried out through-
out the Des Plaines River watershed.    Within the urban areas in the drainage
areas of George Lake and Hooker Lake, it is recommended that additional practic-
es providing for levels of control for about a 50 percent reduction in nonpoint
source loadings be provided. Also, it is recommended that additional practices
providing for about a 75 percent reduction in nonpoint source loading from rural
lands be provided in the Hooker Lake drainage area.      The types of practices
recommended to be considered for these various levels of nonpoint source control
are summarized in Appendix A.
It is further recommended that local agencies charged with responsibility for
nonpoint source pollution control prepare refined and detailed local-level
nonpoint source pollution control plans to identify the nonpoint source pollu-
tion control practices that should be applied to specific lands in the most
cost-effective manner. In this regard, the watershed should be included in the
Wisconsin Nonpoint Source Water Pollution Abatement Program in order to make
State cost-sharing programs available for nonpoint source pollution control
measures. In addition, detailed stormwater management plans in urban areas and
detailed farmland management plans in rural areas should be conducted to define
the practices to be installed. The current priority ranking of watersheds for
inclusion in that program is documented in a memorandum4 prepared by the Region-
al Planning Commission using Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources proce-
dures and is summarized in Chapter XVIII. That ranking included the Des Plaines
River watershed in the medium category, indicating that inclusion in the program
will likely be delayed until late in the planning period or beyond, unless the
process of selection is changed and/or funding levels are increased. Because a
comprehensive water resources planning program will be completed for the Des
Plaines River watershed, the implementation of the nonpoint source pollution
abatement component of that plan should be given a priority.        Thus, it is
recommended that further consideration be given to including the Des Plaines
River watershed in the priority watershed program.
WATER QUALITY MONITORING PLAN ELEMENT
Existing Conditions and Status of Implementation
While substantial progress has been made in the regional water quality manage-
ment plan elements described in the previous sections, the most direct measure
of the impact of plan implementation on water quality conditions can only be
achieved by a well-planned areawide water quality and biological condition
monitoring program.
4See SEWRPC Memorandum entitled "Assessment and Ranking of Watersheds for Non-
point Source Management Purposes in Southwestern Wisconsin: 1993."

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