The Lambert Creek subwatershed is the largest of VLAWMO's six subwatersheds. The headwaters of Lambert Creek - also known as County Ditch 14 - are both Whitaker Pond in White Bear Township and Goose Lake in the City of White Bear Lake. The Creek is 4.2 miles long and flows into East Vadnais Lake. The drainage authority designation for the Creek was transferred from Ramsey County to VLAWMO in 1986.
Lambert Creek historically consisted of a network of wetlands, streams, and shallow lakes. From the turn of the century to the 1970's, this network was largely converted to agricultural ditches including five branch ditches. Some wetlands and shallow lakes such as Lambert Lake were intentionally drained in the pursuit of development. In the case of Lambert Lake, development efforts proved to be unsuccessful and the effort was abandoned. Today VLAWMO works closely with its municipal partners and member communities to maintain and retrofit this drainage system that was built for agriculture but now functions as an urban drainage system. Examples of these efforts include surveys, cleaning, bank restorations, floodplain and upstream storage improvements, and dredging when necessary.
Visit our watershed history page for more on Lambert Creek and ditch history in the watershed.
Lambert Creek's culverts and structures are too small for passage by small recreational watercraft.
Catchment Area
3,658 acres
Location
White Bear Lake, White Bear Township, Gem Lake, Vadnais Heights
