Wildcat Creek (Kansas)
Encyclopedia
The Wildcat Creek is a creek
in Riley County, Kansas
, which occasionally floods.
Not to be confused with Wildcat Creek in Kokomo, Indiana
, which also occasionally floods. Both locations feature golf courses bearing the creek's name.
, on June 16, 2010 that were surpassed on June 2, 2011, damaging homes, appartments, businesses, and recreational complexes in each instance.
The following appears in the Urban Waters Capacity-Building Grant Application submitted to the EPA’s Targeted Watersheds Grant Program by Wildcat Creek Watershed Council (recently formed):
Stream
A stream is a body of water with a current, confined within a bed and stream banks. Depending on its locale or certain characteristics, a stream may be referred to as a branch, brook, beck, burn, creek, "crick", gill , kill, lick, rill, river, syke, bayou, rivulet, streamage, wash, run or...
in Riley County, Kansas
Riley County, Kansas
Riley County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kansas. The county's population was 71,115 for the 2010 census. The largest city and county seat is Manhattan. The county is part of the Manhattan, Kansas, Metropolitan Statistical Area.Riley County is home to two of Kansas' largest...
, which occasionally floods.
Not to be confused with Wildcat Creek in Kokomo, Indiana
Kokomo, Indiana
Kokomo is a city in and the county seat of Howard County, Indiana, United States, Indiana's 13th largest city. It is the principal city of the Kokomo, Indiana Metropolitan Statistical Area, which includes all of Howard and Tipton counties....
, which also occasionally floods. Both locations feature golf courses bearing the creek's name.
Issues
Record flooding levels occurred within the city limits of Manhattan, KansasManhattan, Kansas
Manhattan is a city located in the northeastern part of the state of Kansas in the United States, at the junction of the Kansas River and Big Blue River. It is the county seat of Riley County and the city extends into Pottawatomie County. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 52,281...
, on June 16, 2010 that were surpassed on June 2, 2011, damaging homes, appartments, businesses, and recreational complexes in each instance.
The following appears in the Urban Waters Capacity-Building Grant Application submitted to the EPA’s Targeted Watersheds Grant Program by Wildcat Creek Watershed Council (recently formed):
- Wildcat Creek WatershedDrainage basinA drainage basin is an extent or an area of land where surface water from rain and melting snow or ice converges to a single point, usually the exit of the basin, where the waters join another waterbody, such as a river, lake, reservoir, estuary, wetland, sea, or ocean...
is located in Riley County, KansasRiley County, KansasRiley County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kansas. The county's population was 71,115 for the 2010 census. The largest city and county seat is Manhattan. The county is part of the Manhattan, Kansas, Metropolitan Statistical Area.Riley County is home to two of Kansas' largest...
and covers 99.5 square miles (257.7 km²) The targeted area of this application is 8 square miles (20.7 km²) within the city limits of Manhattan, KansasManhattan, KansasManhattan is a city located in the northeastern part of the state of Kansas in the United States, at the junction of the Kansas River and Big Blue River. It is the county seat of Riley County and the city extends into Pottawatomie County. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 52,281...
, with an urban population densityPopulation densityPopulation density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
of 7,000 to 8,000 persons per square mile. Rapid development in the urban area has resulted in substantial erosionErosionErosion is when materials are removed from the surface and changed into something else. It only works by hydraulic actions and transport of solids in the natural environment, and leads to the deposition of these materials elsewhere...
, impaired water qualityWater qualityWater quality is the physical, chemical and biological characteristics of water. It is a measure of the condition of water relative to the requirements of one or more biotic species and or to any human need or purpose. It is most frequently used by reference to a set of standards against which...
, endangeredEndangered speciesAn endangered species is a population of organisms which is at risk of becoming extinct because it is either few in numbers, or threatened by changing environmental or predation parameters...
aquatic species and caused property damage and habitat loss. Many of the urban residents live in apartments or mobile homeMobile homeMobile homes or static caravans are prefabricated homes built in factories, rather than on site, and then taken to the place where they will be occupied...
parks and are directly impacted by adverse water quality, flooding, and lowered property values.
- Wildcat Creek has documented water quality problems. The watershed is listed as impaired (303d Kansas report) for nutrients (phosphorusPhosphorusPhosphorus is the chemical element that has the symbol P and atomic number 15. A multivalent nonmetal of the nitrogen group, phosphorus as a mineral is almost always present in its maximally oxidized state, as inorganic phosphate rocks...
), bacteriaBacteriaBacteria are a large domain of prokaryotic microorganisms. Typically a few micrometres in length, bacteria have a wide range of shapes, ranging from spheres to rods and spirals...
, and low levels of dissolved oxygen. In addition, Wildcat Creek and its tributaries are habitat for the Topeka ShinerTopeka ShinerTopeka Shiner is a species of ray-finned fish in the genus Notropis.The Topeka Shiner is a type of minnow that does not grow longer than a few inches. This minnow is a shiny silver color its main physical characteristic is the black colored stripe that runs along the side of the body.The Topeka...
, which is an endangered fish species that requires very specific water quality conditions for its survival. Flooding in the urban portions of the watershed has increased from a 1 in 20 year occurrence to almost an annual event. In 2010, a major flood event caused serious damage to and threatened human health of residents of lowest income and most vulnerable residents of the watershed. With the rapid rate of urbanizationUrbanizationUrbanization, urbanisation or urban drift is the physical growth of urban areas as a result of global change. The United Nations projected that half of the world's population would live in urban areas at the end of 2008....
in the rural upstream areas watershed, it is expected that flooding frequency will increase unless a plan is developed and implemented.