Surface Geology and
Soils
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The Chippewa Flowage area is covered with thick (approximately 100 feet) glacial deposits in the form of ground moraine, pitted outwash, and interlobate moraines. Kettle lakes are common. The glacial sediment is largely sand and gravely sand, locally with very minor amounts of finer grained matrix material. A thin layer of loess mantles these glacial deposits in the eastern part of the flowage area. The unconsolidated sandy glacial materials lack cohesive properties, and are easily eroded when exposed to wind and water. In general, sandy loam (Pence-Padus) and loamy sand (Crivitz-Vilas) soils cover the western part of the flowage area, giving way to silt loam soils (Stambaugh-Goodman) in the eastern part. In low areas widely distributed throughout the region, poorly-drained silt loam soils are underlain by coarse sandy loam subsoil. Wetlands filled with 20 inches or more of organic matter and supporting largely sphagnum or leatherleaf vegetation are common. (Chippewa Flowage Joint Agency Management Plan, August 2000) |