New watershed plan aims to clean up water at Decorah fish hatchery

Trout need cold, clear water to thrive — but the water flowing to the Decorah Fish Hatchery often is muddy and has to be filtered to protect the rainbow trout being raised there.

“They’ve got several devices there to sort out the sediment and get the water to settle so the trout don’t die, but it’s an extra step for (the Iowa Department of Natural Resources) staff,” said Paul Berland, a board member of the Friends of Decorah Fish Hatchery. “Anything they can do to improve water quality at the hatchery is a real benefit.”

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The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in April approved a watershed plan for Trout Run and Siewers Spring, which supply water for the hatchery. The goal is to reduce erosion from farms in the Trout Run watershed to keep the creek clear of sediment.

The project will offer farmers payments to help fund conservation projects that build soil health and reduce erosion. These include growing cover crops and reducing tilling, as well as adding filter strips, grass waterways, conservation cover, sediment basins and stream bank stabilization, the Iowa DNR reported this week.

The project has $100,000 for cost-share through Nov. 30, 2026. The primary source of the funds is EPA Section 319 grants, but the Natural Resources Conservation Service and Winneshiek Soil and Water Conservation District also are helping with some costs, said Megan Giorgenti, Trout Run Watershed coordinator.

She has applied for grants for future years as well.

“The plan is written for a 20 year time frame,” Giorgenti said in an email. “Conservation adoption takes time and there are a lot of moving parts. There are annual goals for the project, which include enrolling 1,000 acres in cover crops. We are already up to 850 acres with more interest coming in!”

How does muddy water hurt fish and hatchery visitors?

The Decorah Fish Hatchery was built in 1935 and includes a limestone office and house built by the Civilian Conservation Corps. At first, it was a hatchery for smallmouth bass, but now staff raise 150,000 trout there each year. The trout are stocked in 15 streams in Allamakee, Howard, Mitchell and Winneshiek counties, the Iowa DNR reported.

But the cloudy water has been a problem. Over the past 16 years, there have been an average of 42 days per year when the trout could not be fed at the hatchery due to cloudy water, the Iowa DNR said.

“Cloudy water not only affects the way we feed the fish, it also stresses the fish to be in the muddy water and the fish get sick,” Brian Malaise, hatchery manager, said in a statement. “The muddy water makes it hard for the trout to breathe.”

Iowa’s eight fish hatcheries also are tourist destinations where people enjoy feeding the fish and fishing in stocked ponds. But if the water is cloudy, fish can’t see the lures and flies and won’t bite, Berland said.

“Visitors can’t see trout very easily,” he said. “It does impact the visitor experience at the hatchery certainly.”

Trout Run Watershed farmers and landowners interested in learning more about cost-share or technical assistance for building soil health and improving water quality in the watershed may contact Giorgenti at megan.giorgenti@dnr.iowa.gov or (563) 929-6979.

Trout Run farmers may also contact the Winneshiek Soil and Water Conservation District at (563) 382-4352, extension 3.

Earlier this year, the Iowa DNR asked employees who live in state-owned houses at fish hatcheries to move out by Jan. 1, 2029. The house at the Decorah hatchery likely will be turned into an office, while other houses will be sold and moved or torn down.

A recently-retired employee questioned the decision, saying fish will be vulnerable if there are sudden power outages or other emergencies. The agency said hatcheries with electrical systems have alarms that alert staff if there are problems.

Comments: (319) 339-3157; erin.jordan@thegazette.com

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