Non-Point Pollution
When settlers moved into Wisconsin, many had to farm on ground that was not like what they were used to. Many planted up and down the hills like they had in the old country and let their livestock graze on the hillside. There’s more rain here, so, unfortunately, a lot of dirt was washed off the hills and into streams below.

As dirt is washed into streams, it brings with it contaminants like excess nutrients, pesticides, and other chemicals that were in the field. This pollutes streams and other surface waters and can soak into the groundwater, too. Also, the excess soil fills the streams and makes them too warm and too shallow for the trout that originally lived there. Scientists and land managers call this “non-point pollution” because the pollution happens over a wide area.

There are some methods of farming on hills that farmers now use to stop this kind of pollution.
• Contour Farming means planting crops across hillsides instead of up and down. As the water flows down the hill, it is slowed and caught by the strips of plants. In up-and-down planting, the water washes down the hill in the furrows between rows.

• Stripcropping combines contour farming with crop rotation. Alternating strips of two different kinds of crops are planted along the hillside. One kind is usually corn or soybeans, which use many nutrients, and the other strip is often oats, grass, or hay that act as buffers to soak up nutrients and catch the water.

• Stream Bank Fencing helps to keep livestock out of streams. When too many animals walk into the stream bank, their hooves tear up the ground and cause erosion.

• Terraces are like a series of platforms that are built down the side of the hill from soil. They help break up long slopes and runoff water is slowed and caught to decrease erosion.

• If cattle or sheep have eaten all the grass off a hillside leaving dirt exposed to erosion, trees and strong grasses are often planted in strips to hold the soil better.

The DNR has been working since the 1930s to rebuild the streams that have been destroyed by non-point pollution. They’ve built up the sides of the streams to make them more like they were at the time of settlement, allowing more brook and brown trout to find their homes there. Though the DNR began by stocking the streams with baby trout, some of the streams that have been almost finished are self-sufficient now. This means all the trout are naturally reproducing at the site. One thing the DNR is still providing is habitat cover. These are wooden structures that are placed along the banks of the stream to allow fish a safe place out of the current to rest and eat.

Did you know you may be helping with these projects? That’s right, if you’ve bought a Trout Stamp for your fishing license, you’re helping to fund these kinds of projects. All the money raised by the stamps goes back into the stream in the form of habitat restoration!