Partnership efforts kept 54,000 pounds of phosphorus on land and out of local waters in 2023
MADISON, WI—In 2023, the Yahara Watershed Improvement Network (Yahara WINS) celebrated its seventh successful year, preventing 54,541 pounds of phosphorus from entering area water bodies in the 536-square-mile Yahara River Watershed. The 20-year plan aims to reduce algae blooms and address other water quality issues linked to excessive phosphorus in the region’s surface waters through low-cost methods and partnerships.
About Yahara WINS:
- Grants and cost-share fund projects and methods to reduce phosphorus sources, such as agricultural runoff and urban stormwater, each year.
- The initiative’s key strategy is a watershed adaptive management approach, which is more effective and cost-efficient than individual solutions because it requires all phosphorus sources to work together to reduce their impact.
- Madison Metropolitan Sewerage District leads this collaborative effort, with county conservation departments and Yahara Pride Farms as key partners.
“Each year, the program has achieved higher-than-expected phosphorus reductions for the watershed, and 2023 proved to be another successful year because of a strong network of committed partners,” says Martye Griffin, Yahara WINS president and Director of Ecosystem Services, Madison Metropolitan Sewerage District. “It’s important work that will continue to deliver on its goal to keep phosphorus out of local waterways, thanks to everyone who sits at the table.”
Yahara WINS began in 2012 as a pilot and transitioned to a full-scale implementation in 2017. 2023 marked the seventh full year of the initiative, which has exceeded its reduction goals every year since its inception.
“Soil health conservation practices are a mainstay on our sixth-generation family farm,” says Luke Laufenberg, owner of Laufenberg Farms and Yahara WINS participant. “Through the Yahara Pride Farms and Yahara WINS partnership, we can implement conservation practices to keep our fields green — with no exposed soil — to prevent erosion to local waters and maintain soil health for future generations on the farm.”
The Yahara River watershed, covering parts of Columbia, Dane, and Rock counties, flows into the Mississippi River and Gulf of Mexico. Excess phosphorus in these waters harms quality, aquatic life, and public health and can reduce property values and recreational use. This buildup worsens problems for communities and ecosystems downstream.
Read more about Yahara WINS’s 2023 accomplishments.