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second edition • Nebraska Pond Management • 59 To correct a muddy water problem, the cause has to first be determined. Take a sample of pond water in a clear glass jar and set it on a shelf. If after one week the water is fairly clear and mud has settled to the bottom, the main cause of the problem is likely due to either soil erosion, wave action in shallow water, livestock, or an overpopulation of carp, bullheads, or even channel catfish; however, if the mud remains suspended, the problem is soil chemistry. Often the problem is a combination of several factors. In some cases the soil particles will stay suspended indefinitely. Muddiness due to Soil Erosion The best way to keep pond water clear is to prevent or reduce the amount of soil entering the pond from the watershed. This can be done by grading and terracing the land above the pond, installing sediment retention basins or soil traps at the pond inlet, routing muddy water around the pond through diversion ditches, and establishing buffer strips around the pond and in waterways leading into it. It is much easier to limit soil erosion and prevent excessive surface runoff than it is to remove sediment once it has entered the pond. Reporting Excessive Runoff Problems: If a landowner is experiencing excessive sediment runoff from a neighbor's property that may be in violation of Nebraska's Erosion and Sediment Control Act, the local NRD or NRCS offices should be contacted. If the excessive sediment runoff and/or suspected associated pesticides cause further environmental damages, such as crop loss or a fish kill, the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Plant Industry Section should be contacted within 24 to 48 hours at 402-471-2394. The Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality's Agricultural Section should be contacted at 402-471-4239 when problems arise from excessive runoff containing livestock waste. Muddiness due to Wind and Animal Activity If wind is causing shoreline erosion and waves are stirring-up bottom sediments in shallow-water areas, windbreaks should be planted to block prevailing summer winds and protect shorelines. Establish emergent aquatic vegetation, such as rushes, sedges, and cattails, and water-tolerant grasses, such as prairie cordgrass and switchgrass, along the shoreline and in shallow water areas, or by the dam if erosion is occurring there. These plants will facilitate healing of the shoreline and, in time, eliminate erosion. Rock rip-rap may have to be used along the dam if erosion is severe. Some of the shallow-water problems, including those on mudflats, can be resolved or avoided by deepening these areas, preferably during construction. Cover crops, such as millet, oats, or sorghum, can be planted in shallow areas or on excavated banks following construction or a drawdown to hold the soil in place during the filling process. Turbid or muddy water in ponds is often the result of cattle activity in the pond or feeder stream. Cattle trample shoreline areas, causing the banks to erode. They also wade in shallow water, which destroys fish spawning and nursery areas and stirs up the mud. See page 23 on how to resolve water quality problems and habitat degradation associated with livestock watering. When carp or bullheads are overpopulated, their feeding activity stirs up the bottom sediments. Eliminating the carp or bullheads and restocking with appropriate species will alleviate the problem. See page 55 for information regarding removal or control of unwanted fish species.