The Wisconsin Coastal Management Program recently provided Ozaukee County Land and Water Management Department and Cedarburg Science a grant to study the health of the Sucker Brook watershed, which primarily runs through Ozaukee County and drains directly into Lake Michigan just north of Port Washington. Because it drains directly into the lake, the quality of water flowing from Sucker Brook directly affects Lake Michigan.

The first step that was taken in determining the health of the watershed was to gather information on water quality, vegetation, birds and stream habitat. Physically walking much of the brook has also allowed us to observe changes in the composition of the stream bed while GPS mapping any drain tiles that emptied into the brook. The drain tiles are often from nearby agricultural fields and were put in place to help remove rainwater that could otherwise damage or drown crops. These drains can become cracked over time allowing increased amounts of sediment to enter the brook. They can also act as an expressway for excess nutrients to enter the waterway by allowing the runoff to bypass vegetative buffer zones along the brooks’ banks.

Over the summer and early fall of 2010 monitoring and testing was done at various places along the brook and results have shown Sucker Brook to be in poor health. There are a variety of factors that may have contributed to this. Channelization decreases flow and opens banks for infestation by invasive species such as reed canary grass and hybrid cattail. Polluted runoff, habitat loss and erosion also must be taken into consideration. Once causes have been determined an action plan for improvement can be implemented.

Local residents have told us that they used to see both salmon and trout in the brook and it is our hope that the health can be improved enough to once again see more of these fish in Sucker Brook.