For this article we will look at the misunderstood muskrat; what risks they pose and some strategies to discourage them from taking up residence. This information should be useful for HOA’s, private pond owners, or pond designers.
Stormwater ponds are inviting features for wildlife including the muskrat. The adult muskrat is usually from 18” to 24” in length including their tail. This rodent is dark tan to reddish brown in color. With their webbed back feet and a laterally flattened rudder like tail, they are well adapted to life in the water. 

The muskrat’s mouth also has some interesting adaptations. The teeth sharpen against each other and are well suited for gnawing and cutting vegetation like cattails. The mouth is valvular, so they close their lips behind their teeth and gnaw submerged vegetation without taking in water. They can stay underwater for as long as 20 minutes.   
Muskrats are most active at night, but you can see signs of them during the day. They will often burrow holes under the water surface. The holes will connect to bank dens and chambers. They also use vegetation to build huts.

While these activities are good for creating wildlife habitat and for clearing vegetation, they can cause problems in man-made ponds. Damage caused by muskrats is primarily due to their burrowing habits. One problem resulting from their burrowing includes the creation of soft areas in the bank that can collapse. They can also compromise dam walls leading to dewatering of the pond.
Prevention can be the best method to limit damage caused by muskrats. The dam should be built at a 3 to 1 slope with the outer face of the dam having a 2 to 1 slope. The dam should have a top width of at least 10 feet. Walking the bank of the pond or basin, look for the burrows and other signs of them. Riprap applied along the bank and extending underwater can help discourage burrowing. Removing their food source, cattails, can deprive them of a favorite food source and encourage them to move on. If all else fails, you can hire a wildlife management company to trap and remove them. Traps will need to be checked daily making this option expensive. Prevention is likely the most cost-effective management strategy for muskrats.

Article written by Travis Luncan, Urban Technician

References
Montana’s Official State Website, Montana Field Guide. Common Muskrat- Ondatra zibethicus https://fieldguide.mt.gov/speciesDetail.aspx?elcode=AMAFF15010 

​Do you have work that needs completed on your property but don’t know where to go, or who to call to do the work? Maybe you need underground french drains to be installed in your backyard. Or you have an area of trees that needs cleared. Or maybe you just need a surveyor to come out and locate your property lines. Whatever the work that needs to be done is, we at Warren County SWCD may be able to help guide you in the right direction when searching for someone to do the work.
 
               Located on our website, we have a contractors list that consists of people and companies that can do a variety of types of jobs depending on your needs. Listed are contacts in these categories of work:

• Drainage Systems
• Drainage Materials Dealers
• Erosion Control Blankets and Other Products
• Earth Moving
• Environmental Consulting
• Fencing
• Land Management
• Grassed Waterway
• Plants
• Ponds
• Seeding
• Spill Cleanup/Response Companies
• Streambank Solutions
• Surveyors and Engineers

 
To find the list, locate our website, and under the Services you will find a Contractor List tab. Below is a visual:

​This list consists of local/regional people and companies who have reached out to our office and asked to be added to the list. We can direct you to a certain section if needed, however we cannot specifically recommend one company over another to complete a certain type of work.
 
 If you have any questions or need some guidance navigating the list, please feel free to reach out. Or if you are a contractor that would like to be added to the list, we would be happy to add you. Our office can be reached by phone at (513) 695-1337 or by email at [email protected]. 

                       
                                                  April 2026 Conservation Connection                          
                                                                Pollution Prevention
                                                      Travis Luncan, Urban Technician
 
 
Pollution Prevention begins at home. Prior to the start of mowing season is a great time to review household chemical safe use and disposal. In this article we will look at proper handling of gasoline and engine oil.  It’s important to know how to safely handle and dispose of household hazardous chemicals to protect yourself and the environment.
 
Fuel and motor oil should be handled as household hazardous waste. These chemicals can pose a personal exposure risk or cause contamination of water resources from improper disposal. The place to start is with pollution prevention. Here are some things to consider with gasoline and other fuels.
 
Shelf-Life :          Gas will not keep forever so only buy what you need in the immediate future. At the end of the season be sure to use all gasoline or add the appropriate fuel stabilizer.

​Flammability:      Do not store fuel inside your home, keep fuel away from potential ignition sources. Gasoline has a flashpoint of -49°F, meaning it is very easy to ignite, even at low temperatures. 

Weather conditions can be dangerous at this time of year. Flooding can happen as late winter and early spring bring increased precipitation. Rain-on-snow events can be particularly devastating. Accumulated snow on the ground is like a bank of stormwater just waiting to be unleashed. Warm rain events will melt the accumulated snow and cause a large amount of water to run off the surface, especially if the ground is still frozen and water can’t soak in. With this sudden release of combined rainwater and snowmelt, you can expect certain areas to flood. Low-lying areas next to streams, storm sewers, and low spots in your yard can become inundated.

Ohio has a particularly fraught history of flooding. The Great Flood of 1913 caused widespread destruction and loss of life in the Miami Valley region. Around 428 people died, around 65,000 people were left homeless, and over 20,000 buildings and homes were destroyed. The Miami Conservancy District (MCD) was established after the flood, and they established the Flood Protection System. This system resulted in dams and levees being constructed along the Great Miami River. Flood plains adjacent to the Great Miami River were also placed into a conservation easement, keeping development outside of the flood plain to let the spongy floodplains do what they do best, store flood waters. Check out their website here for more history and the work they do with flood protection. The MCD also has a free, online flipbook of historic photos titled: “A Flood of Memories: Images from the 1913 Flood and Today.” which can be viewed here.

The flood of 1937, known as “Black Sunday”, saw the same amount of rain that fell during the 1913 Great Flood, with the rainfall spread out over twelve days rather than five. The MCD dams and levees that were built after the 1913 flood operated as designed, but there was still massive flooding in the Ohio River and Cincinnati was hit hard. PBS recounts the 1937 flood with a documentary which can be viewed here. This flood ravaged the city. Around 350 people died, and millions were left homeless in the tri-state area. After the rain fell, temperatures dropped, and six inches of snow fell. As the flooded city froze, frost-heaved gas pipes and soaked coal piles failed to provide much-needed heating to residents. This flood gained national attention which led to more flood control guidelines.

The Army Corps of Engineers eventually built flood-mitigating parks along the river front to help with flood control. Today, the stadiums and The Banks district along the riverfront are elevated above the 1937 flood line by sitting atop parking garages that act as sponges by storing water during floods.

Today, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) provides guidance on flooding. This past year, FEMA updated their flood maps as flood zones can change over time. They notified residents by mail if they were affected by this change. Check out this FEMA flood zone map to determine if you are in an area prone to flooding.
Even if you are just outside of a flood zone, it might be a good idea to purchase flood insurance, just in case. Meteorologists have recorded rainfall amounts since the 1800s in the U.S. and are reporting changes in rainfall patterns over the past few decades. Rain events are increasing in frequency and severity due to climate change. It is raining more often, and more rain is falling in a shorter amount of time, leading to flash flood type rain events. Areas that didn’t flood before might be prone to flooding now.

Are you in a flood zone and want to build a structure? You may need a flood permit to do that. Warren County SWCD houses the County's Floodplain Administrator. If you are considering a construction project (house, shed, barn, fence, septic, pool, or even a grading only project) and are unsure if you need a Flood Permit, please visit our website here to submit a Floodplain Determination Request Form. We can also help potential buyers if flood insurance will be required at a property that they are looking to purchase. 
With tax season upon us, I remember when Benjamin Franklin said: “In this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes”. But maybe a third thing can be true, Ohio Floods. Driving conditions can be dangerous this time of year, with ice and flooding out there. Check out the National Weather Service Radar here so you can plan ahead and be prepared. When in doubt, turn around, don’t drown!

Article by Urban Specialist Justin Bedocs

Drainage issues in Ohio are very common issues to have. Especially during spring months, Warren County can see a substantial amount of rainfall, and all that rain doesn’t disappear, it all goes somewhere. Many urban areas have stormwater structures on and around the road to transport the water to streams and rivers. Rural roads may have a ditch right next to the road to take the water away. Storm sewers and roadside ditches that convey water within the right-of-way are generally maintained by the county or municipalities. Private property however does not get the luxury of well-maintained stormwater infrastructure. In locations that have a high grade, such as a hill, the water can move off-site quickly downhill. Areas that have low grades are not necessarily able to transport the water as quickly, and without any structure to convey the water, may sit and pond in certain areas. This may be the case with your backyard. The water may have no good place to go, and so it sits in one area and causes ponding in the yard, making use of that part of the yard difficult. Fortunately, there are different ideas and solutions that may help with this type of drainage issue. In this article, we will look at one option specifically: native, water loving plants.
 
First let’s discuss why native, water loving plants are a good option to help drain some of the wet areas in a yard. For one obvious reason, the plants love water! These types of plants can absorb and hold onto extra water that is sitting around in an area. For the issue of standing water, this is great because the plants will be able to soak up some of that extra water. How much water will depend on the species and density of what is planted. Only planting one or two may soak up some water, while dedicating a large area to planting many plants may help soak up most of the wet spot entirely.
 
The other great benefit that water loving plants bring to wet areas is their deep root system. The native plants to this area of Ohio have nice and deep root systems. This means that the roots spread deeper into the ground than most other plant species. Why is this a benefit to water quality and infiltration? Plants with deep root systems are able to spread their roots down into the soil and cover a fairly large surface area. The action of the roots cutting through the soil creates pathways and large pores in the soil for water to flow down into. The deep root systems do an amazing job of creating infiltration into the ground. In normally wet areas of a yard for example, the plants and their root systems create paths into the ground that allow water to drain downward. This feature may be the best benefit and resource to use to help with a wet area in a yard.
​
In general, native plants provide many environmental benefits other than just water infiltration. On top of the benefits to helping with the drainage of wet lying areas, native plants are an attractive plant for other native organisms that benefit the environment. The native plants contribute to the biodiversity of an area by providing food for other organisms, moving nutrients throughout the soil, and even providing shelter and habitat for other organisms. In conclusion, native plants absorb water, create pathways in the ground for infiltration, and are great for the biodiversity and creating a healthy environment. So, if there is a wet spot in the back corner of your yard that tends to puddle for a few days, planting natives might be a great option for you!
 
Listed below are links to websites that can be used to point you in the right direction to find the right native plant to get for your goals. For more information feel free to reach out to our office at (513) 695-1337.  
 
Plant Finder.org - https://nativeplantfinder.nwf.org/
Ohio Division of Natural Resources (ODNR) Native Plant Lists - ODNR Native Plant List
Ohio Native Plant Month.org - https://www.ohionativeplantmonth.org/