For a list of contacts in the Milwaukee River Basin, follow the link here. (The link takes you out of this web site).
This web site provides local governments and citizens with a planning guide that encourages good land-use decisions to protect Milwaukee River Basin water resources. Today, land use planning must provide the tools local officials and citizens need to understand the economic, social and environmental factors involved in making land-use decisions. Economic development and resource protection can coexist.
The
Milwaukee River Basin is one of Wisconsin’s most significant natural
and cultural resources. The 850 square mile basin is home to more than
one million people living in seven counties. As the most populous area
in Wisconsin draining to Lake Michigan, the Milwaukee Basin has a significant
impact on the quality of one of the largest freshwater lakes in the world.
Most of the people living in the basin depend upon Lake Michigan for their
drinking water. Agriculture, manufacturing, tourism and outdoor recreation
are all leading industries, and are all fundamentally dependent upon access
to abundant supplies of fresh water and sustainable patterns of land use.
To see a larger map of the Milwaukee River Basin, follow the link here or click on the smaller version to the right. Or to jump to the Milwaukee River Basin Partnership Web site to learn more. (This site will take you out of the Protecting Our Waters Web site.)
Surface water quality varies throughout the Basin, ranging from nearly pristine trout streams in the headwaters to degraded conditions in the south. Problems influencing the water resources can be grouped into four general categories: toxins, nutrients, bacteria and alterations to habitat. Both rural- and urban- land uses contribute to these problems, which manifest locally and progressively accumulate. While great strides have been taken to improve our Basin’s water resources, we have not crossed the finish line in our restoration efforts. In 1987, the Milwaukee estuary and the 22 square miles draining to the Milwaukee, Menomonee and Kinnickinnic Rivers were identified as one of 43 Areas of Concern on the Great Lakes. The health and preservation of the Basin’s rivers, as well as the health of Lake Michigan, depend upon careful conservation practices and land-use planning.