Putnam County Soil & Water
Waterway Maintenance
Putnam County Soil & WaterWaterway Maintenance |
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(updated July 2009)
Blanchard River Maintenance
Prompted by the flood of 1981 which put the village of Ottawa under water, a study was conducted to determine the best methods to promote water flow and reduce the severity of future flooding along the Blanchard River.
Cleanup began in 1994 along the 98 miles of the Blanchard, which includes 35 miles in Putnam County. Nearly 493,000 acres of land drain into the Blanchard. Landowners were initially assessed $14 per parcel of land and--when the maintenance fund runs low--are charged an annual $2 per parcel per year. Annual maintenance includes removal of logjams and leaning trees.
During the initial cleanup, nearly 900 logjams, or an average of about 10 logjams per mile, were cleared. The project was estimated to cost $1 million, however, cost of the cleanup totaled $750,000. Maintenance of the river has been done annually since then, under the oversight of the Hardin, Hancock and Putnam Soil & Water Districts in each of their respective counties.
The project resulted in the establishment of the Blanchard River Stream Enhancement program, which covers the six counties of the Blanchard watershed. The program provides cost-sharing for cleaning ditches or building waterways in the entire Blanchard watershed. Such projects must be constructed through Soil & Water or County Engineer. State cost-share of the program can be as much as 30% of the cost of the project.
Persons in the Blanchard watershed interested in ditch cleaning, waterway construction or livestock waste handling can contact their local Soil & Water for more information.
Ottawa River Stream Enhancement Project
The Ottawa River
project was initiated in Allen County as a petitioned project in February 2005
to remove debris, logjams and any other blockages of the waterway. The viewing,
meeting and inventory of the river followed soon after. The construction of the
river started in December of 2006 and work continues today as part of the
maintenance.
The project consists of more than just the river. The watershed consists of approximately
238,000 acres and affects the counties of Auglaize,
Allen, Hardin, Hancock and Putnam. The river is about 60
miles (18 in Putnam and 42 in Allen) and effects approximately 100,000 people.
People living in
the watershed were initially assessed $15.00/acre for the construction and
charged $2.00/acre when necessary to replenish the maintenance fund. Maintenance
on the river is done every year and is handled by the Soil and Water Districts.