Get to know South Burlington’s waterbodies

Lake Champlain is certainly South Burlington’s aquatic gem, but how much do you know about our city’s other waterbodies — the streams and rivers that feed Lake Champlain?

Potash Brook is perhaps South Burlington’s flagship stream. Its watershed is almost exclusively within the city. Forty-three percent of South Burlington’s land area drains to Potash Brook, from the University Mall to the golf course and from the airport to the lakeshore. The main stem of Potash Brook flows along Kennedy Drive and I-189, with numerous tributaries from the north and south. It enters Lake Champlain in Queen City Park.

There are many places to see Potash Brook and its tributaries. Perhaps the most scenic is the hiking trail at University of Vermont’s East Woods Natural Area along Swift Street.

This is an urban stream, and its water quality reflects that. Potash Brook is most affected by stormwater runoff. It also has high levels of bacteria, specifically E. coli. The exact source of this is not known, but leaking septic tanks and dog poop are suspects.

In addition, Potash Brook was recently found to have high levels of chloride from road salt. Even though road salt is only used in winter, chloride is now found in the water year-round. The city is using new technology to keep roads safe while reducing salt use. Residents and businesses are also encouraged to apply salt or ice melt carefully, using only as much per square foot as the packaging directs.

Muddy Brook forms South Burlington’s western border with Williston. It is 5.7 miles in length and drains into the Winooski River northeast of the airport. Muddy Brook provides important habitat for birds and is a suspected movement corridor for animals like bobcats, coyotes and otters.

Muddy Brook’s watershed is less developed than Potash Brook’s, but there is still concern about stormwater and chloride. In addition, it has high levels of nutrients and toxins, likely from agricultural runoff.

Take a walk along Muddy Brook at the Muddy Brook Wetland Reserve and the adjacent Goodrich Property off Van Sicklen Road.

Centennial Brook is another tributary to the Winooski River. The main stem of the brook is just on the other side of the border with Burlington, but much of its headwaters are in South Burlington’s Chamberlin neighborhood. As this is a rather densely developed area, Centennial Brook is impacted by stormwater runoff and chloride.

You can visit Centennial Brook in Centennial Woods Natural Area, which is owned by the University of Vermont and straddles the Burlington and South Burlington border.

The Winooski River itself forms the northern boundary of South Burlington. The river is approximately 90 miles long, from its headwaters east of Montpelier to its mouth at Lake Champlain.

South Burlington has a relatively small reach of the Winooski, only about 5.5 river miles. There are two publicly accessible places to see the Winooski River in South Burlington: Muddy Brook Park and Winooski Gorge Natural Area, both owned by the Winooski Valley Park District.

The Winooski River is not considered to have water quality impairments, though this doesn’t mean it is in perfect shape. It is dammed in several places to generate electricity and several towns — including South Burlington — release treated water from wastewater facilities to the Winooski.

Bartlett Brook is in the southwest corner of the city and flows into Shelburne Bay. Though its watershed is only a tenth of the size of Potash Brook, a greater proportion of Bartlett Brook’s land area is developed. As a result, it suffers from stormwater impairments and flooding concerns.

Since stormwater is such a widespread problem in our city, South Burlington established Vermont’s first stormwater utility in 2005 to improve water quality through infrastructure and biomimicry projects across the city.

Residents can help by keeping grass 3 inches or taller; raise your lawnmower’s blade if necessary. Longer grass has deeper roots which soak in more water. Don’t mow in wetlands or along stream banks and consider planting trees or a raingarden instead of grass.

South Burlington also contains a few tributaries that flow to streams in other towns. East of Bartlett Brook is a tributary to Munroe Brook in Shelburne. East of that are two unnamed streams that flow south to Shelburne Pond, which is part of the Muddy Brook watershed. A small corner of South Burlington is in the Englesby Brook watershed, the rest of which is in Burlington.

Finally, we come to Lake Champlain. South Burlington has 2.3 miles of lakeshore, but the only place that is publically accessible is at Red Rocks Park. You can swim at the beach or enjoy great views from the hiking trails.

Lake Champlain provides drinking water for most South Burlington residents. Champlain Water District pumps water from Shelburne Bay and provides treated drinking water to South Burlington and eight other nearby cities and towns.

There are several water quality concerns in Lake Champlain, including coliform bacteria, chloride and emerging contaminants such as PFAS. The most significant issue, though, is high levels of phosphorous which lead to cyanobacteria blooms in warm, shallow bays.

South Burlington is rather lucky that Shelburne Bay is cold and deep, so cyanobacteria blooms are less frequent here than other parts of Lake Champlain. Still, the beach and drinking water are monitored for cyanobacteria in the summer.

Take some time this summer to visit South Burlington’s waterbodies and appreciate the beauty, habitat, and ecosystem services they provide to the city.

Katherine Boyk is a member of South Burlington’s Natural Resources and Conservation Committee and works for the Vermont Rural Water Association. Clean & Green is a regular feature, initiated and managed by the South Burlington Energy Committee, and will feature a variety of perspectives from members of city committees and commissions, city staff and outside organizations on environmental issues facing the city.