The Kiefer Creek Watershed
Background
The Kiefer Creek Watershed is a 6.7 square mile tributary watershed of the Meramec River Basin, located in the South West of St. Louis County. Kiefer Creek spans the transition between the intensive suburban development typical to St. Louis County and the rural Ozark hills that surround most of the Meramec River. Both landscapes play a significant role in the current condition of the watershed.
Prior to the 19th century, the Kiefer Creek watershed was largely undeveloped and the creek remained pristine. Since that time the Kiefer Creek watershed has experienced increases in population and developed land. However, relative to other watersheds in the St. Louis County area, Kiefer Creek remains fairly undeveloped.
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On the northern end of the watershed, Manchester Road forms a thick belt of asphalt and commercial development. The middle of the watershed is home to around 4000 families, a city park and a conservation area. The lower watershed is dominated by Castlewood State Park with adjacent historic developments dating back to the pre-World War II Era. |
Learn more about the history of the Castlewood and Kiefer Creek area!
Water quality
In 2010 Kiefer Creek was added to the 303(d) List of Impaired Waters of Missouri due to high levels of bacteria, and in 2012 Kiefer Creek was listed as impaired for chloride as well. Under the EPA’s Clean Water Act, an impaired waterway is one that is “too polluted or otherwise degraded to meet the water quality standards set by states, territories or authorized tribes.”
Several segments of the Meramec have also been identified as Impaired Waters, for high lead concentrations in sediment, and for bacteria and mercury contamination. |
castlewood state park
If you are from the St. Louis area, then there is a good chance that you have spent some time in the Kiefer Creek Watershed without realizing it. Kiefer Creek flows through the heart of Castlewood State Park, a natural recreation resource cherished by the St. Louis community for over 100 years. Every year over 500,000 visitors make their way to Castlewood State Park. Thousands of these visitors play and swim in Kiefer Creek - The clear waters of can be very inviting on a hot summer day! |
The Long Road to Watershed Protection
Over the past four decades we have seen the implementation of the Clean Water Act and significant increases in water quality protection, as well as advances in the science that support these protections. In 2010 Kiefer Creek was added to the 303(d) List of Impaired Waters of Missouri due to high levels of bacteria that can make the creek unsafe for recreational use, and in 2012 'impairment of aquatic life' due to acute chloride levels was also assigned to Kiefer Creek.
However, while science has increasingly shown that the majority of our pollution comes from non-point sources, the protections have been primarily limited to point source discharges. In the Kiefer Creek Watershed there are very few point source discharges and they are unlikely to be responsible for the high bacteria levels in the creek.
However, while science has increasingly shown that the majority of our pollution comes from non-point sources, the protections have been primarily limited to point source discharges. In the Kiefer Creek Watershed there are very few point source discharges and they are unlikely to be responsible for the high bacteria levels in the creek.
This website and other efforts related to the Kiefer Creek Restoration Project are partially funded by the Environmental Protection Agency Region 7 through the Missouri Department of Natural Resources, under Section 319 of the Clean Water Act. MoDNR Subgrant G13-NPS-01.