Frequently Asked Questions

Do I live in a watershed?
Yes! No matter where you live, you're in a watershed.

What is a watershed?
A watershed is the land area over which water flows into a river, lake, or reservoir. Watersheds are surrounded by ridgelines forming boundaries and separating one watershed from another. A large basin, such as the Great Lakes, contains thousands of smaller watersheds.

I live in the city. What can I do to improve the water quality of the river?

Limit pesticide and fertilizer use.
Dispose of hazardous wastes properly.
Clean up after your pet and dispose of waste properly.
Create a rain garden.
Use porous building materials.
Conserve water.
Wash your car on the grass, not the street.
Volunteer water monitoring.

What's the biggest polluter of our local rivers?
Sediment. Sediment is soil, sand and minerals washed from land into waterways. This sediment then accumulates and settles to the bottom of the water. The sediment affects aquatic life and increases the growth of algae. Soil erosion and sediment resulting from poor construction, logging, landscaping and agricultural practices cause physical changes in rivers that can lead to decreased water quality.

Where does my drinking water come from?
For the citizens of Fort Wayne and New Haven, Indiana, their drinking water comes from the St. Joseph River and is filtered through the Three Rivers Water Filtration Plant. Drinking water in other areas may come from both surface water and ground water. Surface water includes rivers, lakes and reservoirs. Ground water is pumped from wells which tap into aquifers. An aquifer is the natural reservoir under the earth's surface. Replenishment of surface and ground water comes from rain and melted snow. It's important to think about not only the part of the river or lake you can see, but the entire watershed. Activities many miles away from you may affect the quality of the water you see everyday. For more information http://www.epa.gov/safewater/dwh/where.html

What is a HUC?
Hydrologic Unit Code (HUC) is your watershed address. It is important to your watershed address to understand the influences on the water quality in your stream or waterway. Hydrologic units represent the geographic boundaries of water as it flows across the landscape. Each HUC has an associated number or code which is representative of the size of the basin. Larger basins are represented by smaller numbers. Indiana is divided into 39 watersheds at the 8-digit level. Each of these watersheds can also be divided into smaller sub-watersheds which are represented by 11-digit numbers, and even smaller units with 14-digit numbers. To find your watershed, visit "Surf Your Watershed" at http://www.epa.gov/surf/

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