Improving Water Quality with Indigenous Land Restoration

Background

The Oneida Nation, one of Wisconsin’s federally recognized indigenous tribes, owns over 32,000 acres of crop and forest land on and around the Oneida Reservation in Outagamie and Brown Counties. As part of the Oneida Nation, the Oneida Department of Land Management oversees 47 lease holders on their agricultural lands. Each year, the Oneida Nation participates in the reacquisition of land on or bordering the Oneida Reservation.

Highlights

The Oneida Reservation falls within the Great Lakes Watershed, with land draining into the Fox River and Green Bay, which impacts the Beneficial Use Impairments identified in the Fox River and Lower Green Bay Area of Concern. This is a Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI) phosphorus priority watershed which has been facing significant nutrient loss from the runoff of agricultural practices. The contaminated sediment making its way into the Lower Green Bay has contributed to poor water quality and the degradation or loss of habitat for indigenous animal and fish species.

Kurt Jordan is project manager for the Oneida Department of Land Management, and has worked in some capacity for the Oneida Nation for over 27 years. In 2019, in partnership with other Oneida Nation departments, Kurt approached the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) to request assistance in closing three existing manure storage facilities. The facilities were purchased from former operators and contributed significantly to the contaminated runoff issue. Oneida Nation was able to secure funding through the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP), under the Wisconsin Tribal Conservation Advisory Council (WTCAC) fund pool, to properly close the facilities.

NRCS Soil Conservationist and Tribal Liaison Sherrie Zenk-Reed, NRCS affiliate Resource Conservationist for Oneida Nation Jon Habeck, along with the Outagamie County Land and Water Conservation Department staff, partnered in developing and contracting the project. “The work that Oneida Nation is doing, like closing these manure storage facilities, really benefits the residents and the resources in the area, not just the Oneida Reservation,” said Jon.

Future Plans

The primary goal for Oneida Nation is to continue improving  water quality within the watershed through their partnership with NRCS and other organizations. So far their conservation efforts have been very successful. “I’m happy to see fish returning to the waters of the Oneida Reservation,” Kurt observed, as fish are culturally significant to the Oneida Nation. The aim for future collaborations is to utilize the EQIP program to complete a Forest Management Plan on every acre of forestland and to expand their existing successful grazing operations.