Mitchell City Council to hear update on Firesteel watershed work

Mar. 3—MITCHELL — The Mitchell City Council will be provided an update Monday about the ongoing work taking place in the Firesteel watershed to curb Lake Mitchell's algae issues.

City officials said the update will entail a number of items related to the Firesteel watershed, including the wetland project that's slated to begin this summer. The council will meet at 6 p.m.

As the council has been discussing the proposed Lake Mitchell dredging project over the past few months, several council members opposed to dredging have cited a lack of progress in the Firesteel watershed as a key reason they can't get behind a dredging project. Visible signs of progress in the watershed are a few months away from taking shape, as long as the wetland project begins early this summer as planned.

Multiple Lake Mitchell studies have shown the 350,000-acre watershed is a major contributor to the lake's ongoing algae woes.

City leaders are well aware of the impact that the Firesteel watershed has on the lake's water quality. In 2019, the city made a $4.1 million land purchase along a portion of Firesteel Creek near Lake Mitchell with the goal to build a series of wetlands aimed at reducing the phosphorus and sediment flowing into the lake.

While the start date for the wetland project took longer than initially expected, Mayor Bob Everson is confident the 35-acre wetland will significantly reduce runoff from entering nearby Lake Mitchell.

The council awarded a $583,997 bid in July to a Nebraska-based construction company that will be tasked with building the cattail-filled wetland, which will include three sediment traps.

Council members opposed to the dredging project such as Kevin McCardle and Dan Sabers have been vocal supporters of the wetland project. They both have said more work is needed in the Firesteel watershed before considering a multimillion-dollar lake dredging project.

In addition to the wetland, a wildlife biologist has been seeking out landowners in the watershed who are interested in turning some of their agricultural land along the creek into wetlands or grasslands. The city was awarded a $1 million federal grant to incentivise landowners to reduce crop production or cattle grazing in the Firesteel watershed.

McCardle said he hopes to hear an update on the progress being made by the city's grant administrator, Steve Donovan. The most recent update Donovan gave the council took place in October.

A growing number of Mitchell residents have also asked the council about the city's progress on the Firesteel watershed.