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Chapter 1: Table of Contents

Section 1-4: The Watershed Approach

Protecting our water resources from the impacts of NPS pollution is a complex challenge.

Indiana uses a watershed approach as its water quality management strategy to protect and restore water quality. The watershed approach is used by IDEM and others to examine and address water quality concerns in each waterbody in the context of its watershed, thereby attempting to address all the potential sources of pollution within the watershed.

Environmental problems, such as NPS pollution, often cut across media and political jurisdictions. Consequently, environmental mitigation and protection requires a comprehensive and collaborative approach that works with a multitude of programs and agencies. The watershed approach is a coordinating framework for management that focuses public and private sector efforts to address the highest priority, water-related problems within geographic areas, considering both surface and ground water flow. By examining water quality issues on a watershed basis, problems can be observed in relationship to their sources so that the causes can be effectively addressed.

IDEM’s ongoing effort to implement the watershed approach includes:

  • ensuring that IDEM resources are focused on addressing water quality issues affecting waters identified in the Indiana 303(d) List of Impaired Waters. This will be performed by conducting semi-annual reviews of Office of Water Quality activities and making necessary adjustments to program priorities and activities;
  • improving internal coordination between water quality assessment, watershed planning, and implementation programs to facilitate an integrated watershed management approach to restore impaired waterways; and,
  • improving coordination with and leverage efforts of local watershed groups, community groups, and other state and federal agencies to achieve greater improvements in water quality and protect waters not identified as impaired by NPS pollution. The large number of nonpoint sources and the fact that they are difficult to regulate make the voluntary efforts of citizens, businesses, service organizations, and other groups an essential part of the overall effort to address NPS pollution in Indiana.

Two key steps needed to solve NPS problems within a watershed context are the development of a watershed-based plan that addresses a waterbody’s water quality problems (including the incorporation of any TMDLs that have been developed) and the actual implementation of the plan. Careful analysis of the sources of water quality problems, their relative contributions to the problems, and alternatives to solve those problems, provide the best basis for sound decision-making and implementation that will actually solve those water quality problems. For this reason, IDEM will emphasize using watershed-based planning and implementation processes to realize the long-term goal for the state’s NPS management program.

Table of Contents