Rathbun Lake Watershed

Rathbun Lake and Watershed

Rathbun Lake is the primary source of water for the Rathbun Regional Water Association. Rathbun Regional Water Association is the largest rural water system in system in Iowa providing drinking water daily to 80,000 people in southern Iowa and northern Missouri.

Rathbun Lake also provides recreational opportunities for one million visitors annually, flood damage reduction for downstream land, fish and wildlife habitat in the lake and on adjacent public land, and is home to Honey Creek Resort State Park. In addition, the 11,000 acre lake provides downstream water quality improvement, storage for supplementing navigational flows, and water for the Iowa Department of Natural Resources' Rathbun Fish Hatchery.

Rathbun Lake is located on the Chariton River in south central Iowa. The Rathbun Lake watershed includes more than 354,000 acres. The US Army Corps of Engineers developed the lake in the late 1960s. The Corps of Engineers is responsible for managing Rathbun Lake, associated lake facilities, and adjacent public land.

Project Partners

Rathbun Land and Water Alliance members and partners include the following individuals, agencies and organizations:  Landowners in the Rathbun Lake Watershed; CoBank; Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship’s Division of Soil Conservation; Iowa Department of Natural Resources; Iowa State University; Iowa Watershed Improvement Review Board; Southern Iowa Development and Conservation Authority; US Army Corps of Engineers; US Environmental Protection Agency; USDA Farm Service Agency; USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service; Appanoose, Clarke, Decatur, Lucas, Monroe, and Wayne Soil and Water Conservation Districts; Appanoose, Clarke, Decatur, Lucas, Monroe, and Wayne Counties; Iowa Farm Bureau at the state and county levels; and Rathbun Regional Water Association.