Abstract

The Rogue River is located in west central lower Michigan and is a major tributary of the Grand River. The Rogue River Watershed refers to all the land that is drained by the Rogue River. This area is 167,625 acres and includes portions of Kent, Montcalm, Muskegon, Newaygo, and Ottawa counties. The City of Rockford and Cedar Springs, and the villages of Sparta, Kent City, Sand Lake, and Casnovia are within the Rogue River Watershed boundaries. The Rogue River is fed by wetlands, county drains, lakes, and both warm and cool-cold water tributaries. The cool-cold water tributaries help to sustain trout and other cool-cold water species in the southern section of the Rogue River. The land use in the southern section of the watershed is urban and rural areas with pastureland, upland crops, and forestland. Muckland crops dominate the northern part of the watershed. Changes in land use from rural to urban have created concern for the Rogue River Watershed. This concern was addressed January 1, 1999 with the partnership between Grand Valley Metro Council and the Annis Water Resources Institute to create a watershed management plan for the Rogue River Watershed.

Keywords

Rogue River, Kent County, Montcalm County, Muskegon County, Newaygo County, Ottawa County, Rockford, Cedar Springs, Village of Sparta, Village of Kent City, Village of Sand Lake, Village of Casnovia, Michigan, Watershed

Disciplines

Natural Resources Management and Policy

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