Forum on the Health of the Black Earth Creek Watershed

By Michelle Harris & Andy Morton, BECWA Board of Directors

On Earth Day, April 22, 2025, BECWA hosted a community Forum on the Health of the Black Earth Creek Watershed at the Wisconsin Heights Middle School Steproom. The Forum was an opportunity to communicate key points of BECWA’s 2024 Watershed Report (BECWA.org/2024-watershed-report) as well as to share information on several key watershed-related initiatives and topics.

Steve Born

The 80+ forum attendees included watershed residents, policy makers, and various stakeholders. A variety of watershed organizations were present at an open house before and after the Forum including: Dane County Land and Water Resources, Wisconsin DNR, Mazomanie Free Library, Black Earth Library, Cross Plains Rosemary Garfoot Public Library, UW Extension, Capital Area Regional Planning Commission (CARPC), Trout Unlimited, USGS, Groundswell Conservancy, Wolf Run Trail, Vermont Church, Gateway to the Driftless, UW-Madison Biocore Outreach Ambassadors, and BECWA.

Andy Morton

The Forum opened with a warm welcome from one of BECWA’s founding members, Stephen Born. After a lead-off presentation of BECWA’s Health Report by Michelle Harris and Andy Morton, attendees heard informative talks from Nic Buer (USGS) on Black Earth Creek Water Quality Monitoring, Nick Bower (CARPC) and James Brodzeller (Dane County) on Green Infrastructure/Flooding, Mike Miller (WDNR) on Neonic Pesticides and Impacts to Black Earth Creek, Kim Kuber and Mitch Trow (WDNR) on Trout Fishery and Stream Health, and Tony Abate (Groundswell Conservancy) on the Black Earth Creek Valley Project. The PowerPoint slideshows from all of these presentations can be accessed on the BECWA website’s Events page.

Mike Miller

A lively Q&A discussion indicated that many participants considered information about neonicotinoid insecticides to be particularly enlightening, and highlighted the importance of involving farmers in future Watershed Health program planning and implementation. Respondents to a post-Forum survey appreciated insights on the many initiatives designed to improve our watershed’s health, and suggested ways that we might organize future events to help people better absorb all of the important information related to our watershed. One attendee wrote, “This was a model for respectful community engagement you should be proud of.”