Beaver Creek project creates wetland

Beaver Creek project creates wetland

Just outside of Colwell, water appears to be flooding a field. It is intentional.

Doug Bohlen and his father, Randy, have taken the past two years to establish a pond on their property.

“I’ve always wanted a pond here,” Doug Bohlen said. “As a kid I walked down here, backed it up with a shovel and shot ducks out of it.”

The property has a propensity to be wet. According to Randy Bohlen, ever since the farm was purchased in 1939 this particular plot of land has been wet. He recalls hopping from one bog to the next trying to stay dry and coax the cattle home. Now Bohlen and his father have decided to let Mother Nature have her way and allow the area to become a pond.

It will serve multiple purposes.

“This pond is actually a shallow water wetland-flood control structure,” Dennis Sande, Natural Resources Conservation Service district conservationist, said. “This wetland will be reducing flooding, reducing nutrients leaving the wetland and provide wildlife benefits.” Major flooding in Cedar Rapids in 2008 and 2011 prompted investigation to better control flood waters.

“(The goal is to) try to slow the water down on the Beaver Creek,” Bohlen said. “We’re the head waters.”

“The Beaver Creek watershed project is one of three pilot, or demonstration, projects designed to minimize flooding in watersheds by identifying flood stress points and creating natural barriers such as wetlands to reduce those stresses,” Sande said.

As of last Thursday there was roughly one acre of standing water on the easement.

“The easement is 19 acres, during flood conditions all that (will be water),” Bohlen said.

“The wetland will be filled with tile water emptying above it and rainfall,” Sande said. “The seeding in the site that will be shallow water will need some monitoring of water levels until it is established. Once the wetland vegetation is growing, the water level will be allowed to fill up. It will probably only take a few days.”

Physical construction of the pond began the first of September. Trees were removed and the land was excavated down to the clay, Bohlen said. A berm was built to help control and contain water.

Although construction only lasted roughly a month, the process leading up to the physical portion of the project took considerably longer.

“The time frame was about two years to get all design and permits in place,” Sande said.

According to Sande, this particular project is unique in that it is funded by a grant from the Iowa Flood Center.

“It was unique in that funds had never been used this way before from that source,” he said. “Floyd County was the entity that received the funds for this and five other structures being constructed in Beaver Creek this fall.”

Although two years in the making, wildlife did not waste time showing their appreciation for the newly found open water. Bohlen and his wife have already reported seeing swans paddling across the standing water. However, Sande predicts the area will take closer to three years to become fully established among the wildlife.

“Seeding down the area will take place during appropriate seeding periods… After two years of mowing the seeding to eliminate weed completion the seeding should be established,” he said. “After three years the area should be well established and wildlife fully utilizing the site.”

Bohlen along with the Floyd County Izaak Walton League are already working to encourage waterfowl to inhabit the area. Last Thursday, the Ike’s placed three wood duck houses around the pond.

According to Ike’s member Ron Rasmussen, if the three houses are successful 24 ducks could be brought into the area. He explained one duck will hatch six to eight ducklings.

Now that the wetland has been created, Bohlen has some general upkeep so the pond continues to thrive and the wetland plants are encouraged to grow. “Maintenance would be mowing the new seeding for a couple of years and keeping trees off of the structure,” Sande said. “Water levels may (need to) be modified to let appropriate wetland plants to grow.”

Project will reduce flooding, increase nutrients, improve wildlife By Amie Johansen amie@charlescitypress.com