Summary

Description

2011 Vegetation Classification for Marsh Lake, MN Vegetation Project Report, OMBIL Environmental Stewardship - Level 1 Inventory. Marsh Lake is located on the Minnesota River between Swift and Lac qui Parle Counties near Appleton, Minnesota. This area is part of an effort by the United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) to restore the river habitat. Marsh Lake is approximately 4,500 acres with a maximum depth of 5 feet. Land use in the surrounding watershed has historically been dominated by pasture and cash crop agriculture. Mash Lake lies within the Lac qui Parle Wildlife Management Area, managed by the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (MDNR). It is home to Minnesota's largest breeding colony of American white pelicans, a fairly diverse fish community, as well as up to an estimated 150,000 Canada geese in the fall. The Mash Lake Dam is owned and maintained by USACE as part of the Lac qui Parle Flood Risk Management Project. The Lac qui Parle Flood Risk Management Project includes plans for the restoration of the Pomme de Terre River to its natural channel, modification of the dam with a fish passage component, construction of a drawdown water control structure, restoration of a channel to an abandoned fish rearing pond, installation of gated culverts in order to maintain pool elevations in upper Marsh Lake, and the implementation of recreation features. The overall goal of the project is to restore the natural flooding and drying of Marsh Lake in order to promote the growth of emergent vegetation.