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| We are pleased to provide the Loramie Creek
Watershed Management Plan online. Simply <<click here>> to download the file
(requires Adobe Acrobat Reader -- a free plug in for your browser) |
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| The
Loramie Creek Watershed is located in West Central Ohio, and is comprised of portions of
four counties, Shelby, Darke, Mercer, and Auglaize. The watershed is at the headwaters of
the Great Miami River, and once served as a heavily traveled portage route for Native
Americans and colonial settlers. Several villages and towns dot the watershed including
Ft. Loramie, Minster, Anna, Botkins, North Star, Osgood, Yorkshire, Newport, Russia,
Lockington, and Kettlersville. Although the western edge of the city of Sidney drains to
the Loramie Creek, most of Sidney lies outside the watershed and drains directly to the
Great Miami River. |
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Water Quality
The quality of the Loramie
Creek and its tributaries is largely affected by nonpoint source pollution. This is the
kind of pollution, which runs off the land with heavy rain or snowmelt. Since the majority
of landuse in the watershed is agricultural (87%), agricultural activity can have a large
influence on the condition of Loramie Creek and Lake Loramie. Another potential impact in
the rural watershed is contamination from malfunctioning septic systems. Additionally, In
order to improve drainage, trees were removed from much of Loramie Creek and many of its
tributaries. This increases streambank erosion, raises water temperatures, and removes
important food and habitat resources from much of the ecosystem. |
Click on
the map to see a larger image
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Ohio EPA Rating
Because of these human impacts, the Ohio
Environmental Protection Agency rated most of Loramie Creek only "Fair" or
"Poor" in 1994. The agency also listed the portion of Loramie Creek upstream
from Lake Loramie as "non-attaining" designated uses, and the segments from Lake
Loramie to Loramie-Washington Rd as only "partially attaining." Significantly,
the portion of Loramie Creek below Loramie-Washington Road has a relatively intact
streamside forest. This portion of the creek was rated as "good" or
"exceptional," and was found to be meeting water quality standards. Loramie
Creek serves as a good example for how landuse close to a body of water can dramatically
influence water quality. |
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| Leonard
Albers, Chair, Shelby SWCD |
Ivo Osterloh - Auglaize County |
| Allen
Bohman, Vice-Chair, Darke County |
Steve
Berning- Shelby County |
| Scott
Ayers, Shelby SWCD |
Bill Bergman
- Mercer County |
| Don
Lecklider - Darke SWCD |
Kenneth Seger - Loramie Watershed
Association |
| John
Schwarck- Auglaize SWCD |
Vernon Siegel - Township Trustees |
| Don
Broering- Mercer SWCD |
Ed Hasselman
- Villages |
| Bob
Lehmkuhl- Lake Loramie Improvement Association |
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| Alternates |
| Tom Becker - At-large Farm
Organizations |
Tom Bensman - Auglaize County |
| Vernon Grieshop - Darke County |
Tom Dirksen -
Mercer County |
| Donald Schmitmeyer - Lake Loramie
Improvement |
Art Ayers - Loramie Watershed
Association |
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