The Oxbow Restoration Project within the Boone River Watershed (BRW) includes the Headwaters of the Boone, Prairie, Otter, Eagle, and White Fox Creeks (Kossuth, Hancock, Humboldt, Wright, and Hamilton Counties) in north-central Iowa. The BRW is a Mississippi River Basin Initiative (MRBI) watershed and the Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has designated the lower 26 miles as a “Protected Water Area.” The first oxbow was restored in 2011 with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources (IA DNR), The Nature Conservancy (TNC), and Fishers & Farmers. Since then, Fishers & Farmers have helped fund 12 oxbows, and almost 30 have been completed with all of the partners.

Purpose of the project: 

Current and past land-use practices in the Boone River Watershed have affected both stream hydrology and hydraulics. As a result, these effects have degraded and fragmented oxbow habitat and have caused impairments to water quality. Fishers & Farmers partners are working together with landowners to restore oxbow habitat critical to the federally listed endangered species, Topeka shiner (Notropis Topeka). Topeka shiners use oxbows as primary spawning grounds and nursery areas. In addition, aquatic invertebrates, reptiles, amphibians, mammals, and birds also benefit from oxbows to sustain or complete their life histories. Restored oxbows provide natural hydrology by connecting streams with their floodplains, help hold sediment, and provide “filters” to improve water quality. This project will work to create landowner awareness of the Fishers & Farmers Partnership and their partners, provide technical assistance, and educate landowners on the benefits of oxbows to their farm, fish, and wildlife. Furthermore, this is a feasible practice for producers within a constrained landscape as it does not take land out of production. This project meets the National Fish Habitat Partnership’s (NFHP) strategies of reconnecting fragmented streams and reducing sediment and nutrient loading to the stream. Finally, the oxbow restoration project area has qualified for U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) Fish Passage funding for stream connectivity purposes to expand available fish habitats important to all species inhabiting area streams.

During construction equipment is used in the winter to excavate soil down to the historic riverbed depth and then re-slope and re-seed the banks with native prairie grasses. Topeka shiners are not present in the oxbows during construction. The average surface area of an oxbow is about 0.25 ac. Oxbows are in wet floodplains of nearby streams or creeks and reconnect during floods. Restored oxbows provide habitat for other fish, aquatic invertebrates, waterfowl, amphibians, and reptiles. The land is not taken out of production for these projects so it’s a win-win for both farmers and biologists.

Human Interest/Community Benefit:
• Restored oxbows can remove an estimated 45-90% of nitrate from intercepted tile water, which decreases nitrate in the Boone and the Des Moines River which is the source of drinking water for Des Moines, IA.
• Each one-acre oxbow provides an estimated one million gallons of floodwater storage each year and helps restore the natural hydrology.
• Oxbows provide critical habitat for the rare and endangered Topeka shiner minnow.
• Habitat for thousands of fish representing 40 species have utilized restored oxbow habitat.
• The Audubon and partners have identified 54 species of birds at restored oxbows, many of them waterfowl or shorebirds, some oxbows could provide more hunting experiences.
• Aquatic invertebrates, reptiles, amphibians, mammals, and birds also benefit from oxbows to sustain or complete their life histories, many of these species provide ecosystem services that we may not even completely understand yet.
• Oxbows are a win-win because they don’t take land out of production for the farmer and they provide fish and wildlife habitat and benefits for the community.

Project Timeline:

In 2009-2011, TNC, Iowa Soybean Association (ISA), IA DNR, Iowa State University (ISU), and FWS, assessed the quantity and quality of nonfunctioning oxbow habitat present in four Boone River tributary watersheds. In the assessment, more than 150 potential oxbow restoration sites were identified. IA DNR, TNC, and Fishers & Farmers selected an oxbow on White Fox Creek for the first restoration in 2010. Information collected was used for long-term planning efforts and to reach and educate farmers in the BRW. Since then, the Fishers & Farmers Partnership, through the NFHP – FWS Fisheries Program, has funded 12 oxbows, which includes 5.6 acres of oxbows. The acreage doesn’t sound all that impressive, but remember Topeka shiners are minnows! In addition, some of these oxbows also intercept tile water from hundreds of acres and provide a water quality benefit that impacts drinking water.

NFHP funding for oxbows occurred in 2011, 2013, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, and a proposal for 2020 funding. Fishers & Farmers, TNC, IA DNR, ISA, and partners are committed to funding not only the current oxbows being restored but also additional projects outside of NFHP. Partners are also working on soil health practices such as cover crops, reduced tillage, rotational grazing, and other farming practices that impact fish habitat. Fishers & Farmers Partnership is dedicated to working on projects long-term in order to show measurable success at both project and basin scales.

Partners:

Coca-Cola Foundation, Hamilton and Wright Soil and Water Conservation Districts, Iowa Department of Natural Resources, Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship, Iowa Geological Survey, Iowa Soybean Association, Iowa State University, Landowners, National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, Practical Farmers of Iowa, Sand County Foundation, The Nature Conservancy, and USFWS Ecological Services, Fisheries, & Private Lands (Region 3), Wells Fargo.

TNC has completed a Conservation Action Plan for the BRW basin. ISU has completed a Boone River Rapid Watershed Assessment, including multiple stakeholder meetings and a report identifying physical watershed attributes resource priorities and capabilities. A Water Quality Improvement Plan (Total Maximum Daily Load) was written in 2009 to address nitrate impairment in Des Moines River, in which the BRW basin is located. A Soil and Water Assessment Tool model was used to evaluate pollutant loading patterns in three project sub-watersheds. Iowa Soybean Association facilitated and wrote area-wide plans for three of the project watersheds. The BRW is a Mississippi River Basin Initiative watershed; MRBI is a USDA initiative supporting agricultural practices that reduce nutrient and sediment leaving the land. Several oxbow studies are currently happening with ISU, Iowa Geological Survey, ISA, TNC, and partners on water quality and how best to construct an oxbow. They are currently working on an Index of Biotic Integrity for oxbows.

The BRW project is working to bring in new partners. When the first oxbow was funded, on Jake Peterson’s farm, there was just a handful of federal, state, county, and agricultural partners, however now almost 20 partners are participating. With the help of all these partners, almost 30 oxbows have been restored. Fishers and Farmers Partnership has learned that it takes one consistent dedicated partner such as Karen Wilke (TNC) to drive conservation in a watershed. Having multiple partners trying to lead usually ends up in landowner confusion and project failure. Karen works with both natural resources and agricultural organizations like the Iowa Soybean Association and SWCD’s so that everyone is working on the priorities of water quality and fish and wildlife habitats together. Because of her work with the partners, the past five years, oxbows were finally added to the list of nitrate removing practices in the Iowa Nutrient Reduction Strategy and have the potential to receive more state funding.