LITTLE PIGEON CREEK WATERSHED
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Neal Schroeder joined the team in January 2024 as the Watershed Coordinator for the Little Pigeon Creek. Neal comes to us with an educational background in geography, hydrology meteorology and climatology and construction. Neal has worked in the environmental field for IDEM, IGS, and a private firm before and has ran his own construction company. Neal will be busy sampling the Little Pigeon to test for water quality and designing a management plan. We are excited to have Neal working with us.
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The Little Pigeon Creek Watershed extends into Dubois & Pike counties in the north. The eastern portion lies in Spencer county to the east, while the majority of the watershed is within the Warrick county area. Issues within the watershed? A study of the Little Pigeon- watershed identified dissolved oxygen, nitrates, E-coli, sediment loading & phosphorus. What are doing in the watershed? We will begin water quality sampling in the spring to determine the state of the water within the watershed. Also, we will conduct vegetation, soil and macroinvertebrates in the study. What can you do? Get involved. We are currently planning on having a meeting to discuss issues within the watershed. Do you live in the watershed? Would you like to be involved somehow? Look here for an announcement for the meeting date & time. |
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Want to learn more about the work we are doing in the Little Pigeon Creek Watershed? Watch this video from our zoom series Green Bites to hear Neal Schroder, our Watershed Coordinator, tell you all about it! |
FUN FACTS ABOUT THE LITTLE PIGEON CREEK WATERSHED
- The Little Pigeon Creek Watershed is actually comprised of 2 watersheds. The Otter Creek - Little Pigeon Creek to the west, and the Barren Fork - Little Pigeon to the East.
- Combined, the 2 watersheds are over 350 square miles.
- The Little Pigeon Creek Watershed is actually comprised of 2 watersheds. The Otter Creek - Little Pigeon Creek to the west, and the Barren Fork - Little Pigeon to the East.
- Combined, the 2 watersheds are over 350 square miles.
Nitrogen:
Nitrogen makes up about 80% of the air we breathe and is found in all living things. Nitrogen occurs in water as nitrate (NO3), nitrite (NO2), and ammonia (NH3). It enters the water from human and animal waste, decomposing organic matter, treatment lagoons, and runoff of fertilizer from lawns and crops. Nitrates are an essential nutrient for plant growth. Similar to phosphates, these are the main ingredient in fertilizers and can lead to increased aquatic plant growth and eutrophication. Nitrogen is a leading cause of hypoxia (lack of oxygen) in salt waters.
Excessive growth of these organisms, in turn, can clog water intakes, use up dissolved oxygen as they decompose, and block light to deeper waters.
Lake and reservoir eutrophication can occur, which produces unsightly scums of algae on the water surface, can occasionally result in fish kills, and can even "kill" a lake by depriving it of oxygen. The respiration efficiency of fish and aquatic invertebrates can occur, leading to a decrease in animal and plant diversity, and affects our use of the water for fishing, swimming, and boating.
(Source: Indiana Department of Environmental Management Hoosier RiverWatch & USGS)
For more information on eutrophication in the Gulf of Mexico
please visit:
Dead Zone in the Gulf of Mexico (noaa.gov)
Data for the Little Pigeon Creek is now available to view on the Hoosier RiverWatch website.
click on the link: https://www.hoosierriverwatch.com/
or copy and paste into your browser.
The following are the instructions on how to view the data:
- Once at the site, select 'Search Datasets'
-A new page will load, select 'More Search Criteria'
-Enter a site ID number, the LPC ID's are 3014-3027
-Once an ID is entered, select 'Add Search'
-The Site returns all the data for that site
- If you click 'Map', the sample site location is shown
-To view a graph for a specific test parameter, 'Select Test'
-A graph is displayed thru time for that test parameter
- Hit the 'Back Arrow' to run another Query
Enjoy! Questions? Call Neal Schroeder @ 812-459-8443
Nitrogen makes up about 80% of the air we breathe and is found in all living things. Nitrogen occurs in water as nitrate (NO3), nitrite (NO2), and ammonia (NH3). It enters the water from human and animal waste, decomposing organic matter, treatment lagoons, and runoff of fertilizer from lawns and crops. Nitrates are an essential nutrient for plant growth. Similar to phosphates, these are the main ingredient in fertilizers and can lead to increased aquatic plant growth and eutrophication. Nitrogen is a leading cause of hypoxia (lack of oxygen) in salt waters.
Excessive growth of these organisms, in turn, can clog water intakes, use up dissolved oxygen as they decompose, and block light to deeper waters.
Lake and reservoir eutrophication can occur, which produces unsightly scums of algae on the water surface, can occasionally result in fish kills, and can even "kill" a lake by depriving it of oxygen. The respiration efficiency of fish and aquatic invertebrates can occur, leading to a decrease in animal and plant diversity, and affects our use of the water for fishing, swimming, and boating.
(Source: Indiana Department of Environmental Management Hoosier RiverWatch & USGS)
For more information on eutrophication in the Gulf of Mexico
please visit:
Dead Zone in the Gulf of Mexico (noaa.gov)
Data for the Little Pigeon Creek is now available to view on the Hoosier RiverWatch website.
click on the link: https://www.hoosierriverwatch.com/
or copy and paste into your browser.
The following are the instructions on how to view the data:
- Once at the site, select 'Search Datasets'
-A new page will load, select 'More Search Criteria'
-Enter a site ID number, the LPC ID's are 3014-3027
-Once an ID is entered, select 'Add Search'
-The Site returns all the data for that site
- If you click 'Map', the sample site location is shown
-To view a graph for a specific test parameter, 'Select Test'
-A graph is displayed thru time for that test parameter
- Hit the 'Back Arrow' to run another Query
Enjoy! Questions? Call Neal Schroeder @ 812-459-8443
