Poskin Lake Management Study

Poskin Lake Management Study

image courtesy of Barb Van Sickle

Poskin Lake is a 150-acre lake located in Town of Clinton, Barron County just north of the Village of Poskin, WI. The lake is approximately 30 ft deep with an average depth of 16-ft. It is unique in that it is the only lake in an otherwise dry area of Barron County. The Vermillion River, with its headwaters in northern Barron County, flows through Poskin Lake on its way to the Yellow River Flowage, Yellow River, and into the Red Cedar River. The water level in Poskin Lake is maintained by a low (1 ft) dam on the Vermillion River outlet on the east side of the lake. The watershed for Poskin Lake is very large at almost 20 sq. miles or an 85/1 watershed to lake ratio. Direct overland runoff comes from an area that is just over 2 sq. miles or a 9/1 ratio. In 1962, 65% of the direct drainage area was under farming practices. The entire Vermillion River direct drainage area is almost 30 sq miles of which farming in the early sixties accounted for 70% of the land use. This area of Barron County is still heavily farmed today and includes row crops and large livestock operations.

Poskin Lake Map Poskin Lake is fully developed on three sides. In the last few years much of the remaining undeveloped shoreline has been purchased and several new real estate development areas opened. Water quality has been a concern for quite some time. Water clarity in the lake is only 2-4ft in the summer, and the lake has high nutrient values as evidenced by the greening of the water early in the season due to high levels of algae growth. Aquatic vegetation seems to mostly disappear through the late season except for abundant coontail and small patches of floating leaf plants. Curly-leaf pondweed, an aquatic invasive plant species is present in some abundance, but Eurasian water milfoil (EWM) is not known to be present. The latter could change soon, as Lower Vermillion Lake, upstream of Poskin Lake on the Vermillion River, documented EWM in 2008.

These concerns and others prompted the Poskin Lake Association to apply for Wisconsin lake management planning grant support to begin a two year, three-phased lake management study scheduled for completion in 2010. Funding for the study was awarded in April 2009 covering 75% of the total study cost.

The goals of the study are:

To better understand the lake and its issues
To determine the underlying causes of water quality degradation
To determine how this degradation is influenced by natural and human activity
To determine if anything can be done to reverse, arrest, or slow down continued degradation
To make appropriate management recommendations for maintaining or improving the lake

There are many opportunities for lake property owners and lake users to become involved in the activities accompanying this lake study. The Poskin Lake Association is responsible for funding the remaining 25% of the total study costs. Volunteer time is important for the successful completion of this study and offsets much of these associated costs. For more detail about the lake study or to learn more about volunteer opportunities please view the slide presentation included, or contact one of the people listed on this page.

Public Project Documents: