Indiana State Nonpoint Source Program Management Plan 2025 – 2029

Vision:

“To restore waters impaired by nonpoint source pollution and maintain water quality in healthy watersheds through locally led partnerships.”

Prepared by:

Indiana Department of Environmental Management Office of Water Quality Watershed Assessment Planning Branch Watershed Planning and Restoration Section

Table of Contents:

Acronyms List

Mission Statements

• INDIANA DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT
• OFFICE OF WATER QUALITY

Executive Summary

• Approach

Purpose of the Indiana Nonpoint Source Management Plan

History of the Nonpoint Source Program in Indiana

Indicators of Success

• Environmental Indicators
• Estimated Load Reductions
• Program Progress - Administrative Indicators

Physical Inventory

• Demographics, Population & Location
• Geology
  • Bedrock and Glacial History
  • Soils
  • Septic System Suitability
• Current Land Use
  • Rural Land Uses
  • Urban Areas
• Mineral, oil and gas extraction
• Oil and Gas
• Indiana’s Hydrology
  • Watersheds
  • Streams
  • Large Rivers
• Great Rivers
  • Beyond Indiana: Hypoxia in the Gulf of Mexico
• Lakes
• Great Lakes
  • Lake Michigan
  • Lake Erie
• Wetlands
• Groundwater
• Water Quality
  • TMDLs
  • Regulatory Actions to Control Nonpoint Source
  • Water Quality and Water Shortage
  • Non-Regulatory Actions to Control Nonpoint Source
  • Monitoring
  • Watershed characterization for combined TMDL and WMP planning

Inventory of Stakeholders

• Legal Framework Renders all Citizens Stakeholders Relative to nonpoint source pollution
• Internal IDEM Program Partners
• External Program Partners
• External Agency Partners
• Nonprofit Partners
• Academia
• Stakeholder Participation
  • Methods
  • Results

Problems, Causes, Sources

• Problem
• Causes
• Pollution Indicators
  • Sources of nonpoint source pollution

Indiana’s Nonpoint Source Program

• Current Approach
  • Monitoring
  • Targeted Grantmaking for Water Quality Improvement
  • Strategic Outreach and Education
  • Powerful Partnerships
  • Responsible Administration
• Addressing Nonpoint Source Pollution Impacting Underserved Communities
  • Additional IDEM considerations
• Addressing Extreme Weather

Program Successes to Date

• Coastal Nonpoint Source Pollution Control Program
• Successes in Water Quality Monitoring
  • Performance Measures
• Successes in Water Quality Improvement
• Successes in Water Quality Protection
  • Refuges, Preserves, and Easement Programs
  • State-funded Erosion-Control Programs
  • Regulatory Protections
• Successes in Integrating Programs/Partnerships
  • Monitoring
  • Integration with other non-profit, local, state, and federal programs
• Successes in Outreach and Education
• Successes in Adaptive Management

Program Challenges to Date

• Decrease in Funding for Projects
• Assessment Criteria for some Nonpoint Source Pollutants
• Staff Turnover at the Federal, State and Local Levels
• Challenging Sources
  • Septic Systems
  • Hydromodification
  • Modified Hydrology
• Uncompleted projects
• Measuring Success
• Clarification of Policy for Watershed Management Planning Activities
• Critical Areas

Prioritizing Waters

• Approach #1. Use the 303(d)/consolidated list (e.g., “stay the course”)
• Approach #2. Prioritize by source (e.g., conventionally tilled fields, livestock with stream access, denuded stream banks, eroding stream banks, drinking water resources)
• Approach #3. Prioritize implementation of current plans only
• Approach #4. Only provide funding for local project staff, not cost share (i.e., fund outreach, monitoring, planning, and coordination-related tasks)
• Approach #5. Prioritize areas with no planning for planning
• Approach #6. Use state/federal prioritizations already in place for MRBI, GLRI, endangered species, OSRWs, and others
• Approach #7. Prioritize using the U.S. EPA’s Recovery Potential Tool and Environmental Justice Screening Tool
• Approach #8. Prioritize based on Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) development

Goals and Management Measures

• Goal 1: Improve the resources available for nonpoint source pollution management through partnerships
  • Coordinating with Clean Water State Revolving Fund to address nonpoint source pollution
  • Working with the Lake Michigan Coastal Program
  • Indiana’s State Nutrient Reduction Strategy
  • Indiana’s Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement Annex 4 Domestic Action Plan
  • Goal 1 Objectives
• Goal 2: Characterize Indiana waters for nonpoint source pollution impairments and improvements
  • Goal 2 Objectives
• Goal 3: Cultivate a citizenry that embraces the value of water quality
  • Goal 3 Objectives
• Goal 4: Improve Indiana’s water quality by reducing nonpoint source pollution and restoring aquatic habitats
  • Goal 4 Objectives
• Goal 5. Protect priority water resources so that they may continue to meet their intended uses
  • Goal 5 Objectives
• Goal 6. Provide networking, guidance, and support to the people doing the work
  • Goal 6 Objectives

Funding Mechanisms

• Clean Water Act grants
  • State-led Programs: T by 2000, Lake and River Enhancement, Clean Water Indiana, and the Healthy Rivers Initiative
• Coastal Zone Management Act
• USDA Programs
• Conservation Reserve (Enhancement) Program
• National Water Quality Initiative
• Wetland Reserve (Enhancement) Program
• Mississippi River Basin Initiative
• Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (EQIP, EWPP – Floodplain Easements)
• Western Lake Erie Basin Initiative (EQIP)
• Cooperative Conservation Partnership Initiative (EQIP, CSP)
• Private and other Grants

2025 – 2029 Action Register

Adaptive Management

References

Appendices

• Appendix A: Section 319 [33 U.S.C.1329] Nonpoint Source Management Programs
• Appendix B: Nonpoint Source Program and Grants Guidelines for States and Territories (EPA 841-R-24-009)
• Appendix C: Geologic Timeline
• Appendix D: Indiana Designated MS4s
• Appendix E: IDEM Watershed Management Plan (WMP) Checklist 2024
  • Section 1: Watershed Community Initiative
  • Section 2: Overall Watershed Inventory
  • Section 3: Subwatershed Inventories
  • Section 4: Watershed Inventory Summary
  • Section 5: Pollutant Loads, Critical Areas, and Goals
  • Section 6: Action Register and Future Activities
  • Section 7: Tracking Effectiveness
• Appendix F: IDEM-Approved 9-Element Watershed Management Plans
• Appendix G: Indiana Attorney General Opinion of IDEM's Authority to Control and Prevent NPS
• Appendix H: Stakeholder Survey
• Appendix I: List of Survey Stakeholders
• Appendix J: 319 FOTG BMPs List
  • Section 319 Grant Program Eligible NRCS Field Office Technical Guidance Practices
• Appendix K: Core and Supplemental Environmental Indicators Lists
• Appendix L: Status of CZARA Section 6217 Conditions
• Appendix M: Pollutants and Sources Addressed by Indiana Section 319 Eligible Practices
• Appendix N: Outstanding State/National Resource Waters, High Quality Waters
• Appendix O: Updating a Watershed Management Plan
• Appendix P: Determining Critical and Protection Areas in WMPs
• Appendix Q: Nutrient Criteria Development Milestones for FY25
• Appendix R: Nonpoint Source Priority Waters

Table of Figures

• Figure 1. Total Indiana Section 319 funding allocation in FFY 2014 through 2023.
• Figure 2. Adaptive management (From EPA 2008)
• Figure 3. White River through Indianapolis.
• Figure 4. Ecoregions of Indiana.
• Figure 5. Bedrock Units of Indiana.
• Figure 6. Indiana State Land Use.
• Figure 7. Corn field in Indiana.
• Figure 8. Coal production in Indiana.
• Figure 9. Historical Oil Production in Indiana.
• Figure 10. Indiana’s 2-digit watersheds.
• Figure 11. Indiana’s 8-digit Watersheds.
• Figure 12. Major Indiana Rivers.
• Figure 13. White River through Indianapolis.
• Figure 14. Goose drinking water in the White River.
• Figure 15. Hoosier Riverwatch staff member giving a Hoosier Riverwatch Presentation.
• Figure 16. Hoosier Riverwatch supplies.
• Figure 17. Watershed Leadership Academy.
• Figure 18. Watershed Specialist coverage areas.
• Figure 19. Frozen Williams Creek.
• Figure 20. Cows grazing in pasture in Indiana.
• Figure 21. Pathway to Water Quality Education at Indiana State Fair.
• Figure 22. Total Indiana Section 319 funding allocation in FFY 2014 through 2023.
• Figure 23. Low-head dam and bridge over the Patoka River in Dubois County.
• Figure 24. Waterfalls in Mill Creek.
• Figure 25. Bird at Eagle Creek Reservoir in Indiana.

Table of Tables

• Table 1. Selected Field Indicators of Hydric Soils (NRCS 2018).
• Table 2. Indiana Land Use.
• Table 3. Assessment of monitored stream and lake miles in Indiana.
• Table 4. Water quality standards for common nonpoint source pollutants.
• Table 4 cont. Water quality targets for common nonpoint source pollutants.
• Table 5. Waterbodies Reported to U.S. EPA under its Success Stories (WQ-10) programs. Performance Measures Reported 2008-2024.
• Table 6. Hydroelectric Dams in Indiana.
• Table 7. Prioritization Approach #1 Decision Table.
• Table 8. Prioritization Approach #2 Decision Table.
• Table 9. Prioritization Approach #3 Decision Table.
• Table 10. Prioritization Approach #4 Decision Table.
• Table 11. Prioritization Approach #6 Decision Table.
• Table 12. Prioritization Approach #7 Decision Table.
• Table 13. Prioritization Approach #8 Decision Table.
• Table 14. Cisco Lakes Priorities.
• Table 15. Indiana Eligible CREP Practices.