Protecting in partnership: the Mukwonago River Basin Protection Plan

Abstract

The Wisconsin (USA) Lakes Partnership is a coalition of academic, advocacy and regulatory entities focused on ensuring effective conservation of the State's natural and water resources. This report summarizes a successful application of the Partnership concept through a case study describing the process that led to the development and implementation of a River Protection Plan for the Mukwonago River Watershed. In addition to the actions of individual landowners, a planning programme sponsored by special purpose units of government, funded in part by the State of Wisconsin and in part by non‐governmental organizations, and conducted by a regional planning authority in partnership with local universities and governmental agencies led to the development of the Mukwonago River Watershed Protection Plan, the contents of which were validated and guided by stakeholders through a Watershed Team and ad hoc Advisory Group. The Watershed Team secured and provided in part the necessary financial support for the conduct of the planning programme, while the Advisory Group identified concerns and validated recommended responses to address the shared issues of concern. The resulting watershed protection plan sets forth a strategy for the maintenance and protection of the high‐quality water resources of the Mukwonago River Basin.

Water quality and trophic state of a tropical urban reservoir for drinking water supply (Juiz de Fora, Brazil)

“…In summary, for the conservation and recovery of the Dr. João Penido Reservoir watershed, we highlight the participation of all stakeholders within the concept of unified environmental management of the basin (Pinder 2013, Thornton et al 2013a, 2013b. A wide variety of stakeholders should create collective actions and favorable conditions within the watershed that can guarantee a successful result in the proposed actions (Thornton et al 2013b). Pinder (2013) corroborates this idea and states that education is the foundation for change initiatives to protect and recover these environments.…”

River Basin Organization development in southeastern Wisconsin

“…Nevertheless, two key aspects have been especially instrumental in moving these watershed partnerships from planning to implementation, namely effective information exchange (learning) based on appropriate scientific and technical information and the emergence of a champion to spearhead the projects (see Thornton et al . ). In other words, unless the stakeholders can understand the basis of the water quality impairments and habitat degradation within their watershed, they cannot take action to fix the problems.…”

“…This report was intended to complement contributions on stakeholder participation in lake management in Wisconsin (Thornton ) and on the Mukwonago River Protection Plan (Thornton et al . ). A stakeholder is defined as an individual, group or institution, either governmental or non‐governmental organizations, with an interest or stake in a decision‐making process or project (SADC ).…”

“…Watershed partnerships in the southeast are evolving towards integrated planning efforts and project implementation at larger scales as exemplified by the case study on the Mukwonago River watershed (Thornton et al . ), as well as by the recent development of the Southeastern Wisconsin Watershed Trust and the Southeastern Wisconsin Fox River Commission. Hence, although the southeast region is in the process of developing Watershed/River Basin Organizations to address water quality and environmental degradation issues, the appropriate structure, form and function of such organizations remain unknown.…”

Stakeholder participation in lake management in Wisconsin (USA)

“…This article reviews the mechanisms available to stakeholders for managing lakes and reservoirs in the State of Wisconsin and complements contributions on the Wisconsin Lakes Partnership and river basin organizations (Slawski ). This article also forms the foundation for a more general discussion of stakeholder participation in the State of Wisconsin as exemplified by the case study on the Mukwonago River watershed (Thornton et al ., ).…”