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              Section 319
              NDNPDINT SOURCE PROGRAM SUCCESS STURY
 Stream Restoration Efforts on Upper Cedar Creek Reduce Impacts
 of Acid Mine Drainage

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                                 m'ne drainage (AMD) from historical mining sites has
                             degraded water quality in Cedar Creek in central Missouri for
years. Even though the mines were closed and reclamation projects were completed on
704 acres of watershed land, approximately 4 miles of Upper Cedar Creek continued to suf-
fer from AMD and remained on the state's 303(d) list of impaired waters due to high sulfates
and low pH. After streambank restoration projects and the construction of passive treatment
wetlands, the creek was removed from the state's 303(d) list and now meets water quality
standards for both pH and sulfates.


Problem

Prior to 1977 and the passage of the Surface
Mining Control and Reclamation Act, coal strip
mining operations disturbed nearly 2,000 acres
of the  Cedar Creek watershed. AMD, gener-
ated as runoff drained over pyrite-rich soil
exposed during the mining process, severely
degraded water quality in the creek. Between
1948 and 1980 periodic discharges of AMD
and acidic sediments into the creek resulted in
numerous fish kills.

By 1990 the Missouri Land Reclamation
Program (LRP) had completed reclamation
projects on 704 acres of land in the Cedar
Creek  watershed. The reclamation projects
revegetated and stabilized large areas of the
Upper Cedar Creek watershed. However, a
few remaining areas of barren acidic spoil and
eroding streambanks continued to contribute
acidic  sediments and AMD to the Upper Cedar
Creek  watershed. Flooding in the 1990s further
contributed to AMD problems by damaging
significant portions of streambanks, caus-
ing additional acid-forming materials to be
exposed and more sediment to enter the creek.
Although water quality greatly improved in
the 1990s, approximately 4 miles of the creek
remained on the state's 303(d) list of impaired
waters due to high sulfates and low pH.
                                          Acidity, sulfates, and metals are removed from AMD as it
                                          flows through layers of limestone rock and compost in the
                                          passive treatment wetland cells.
                                          Project Highlights
                                          The Missouri LRP used section 319 funding in
                                          coordination with funding from the U.S. Office
                                          of Surface Mining (OSM) Abandoned Mine
                                          Land Clean Streams Initiative to complete the
                                          cooperative reclamation project to address
                                          the remaining water quality problems at Cedar
                                          Creek. In 2001 to 2002, six passive treatment
                                          wetlands and alkaline-producing cells were
                                          constructed to treat AMD by adding alkalinity
                                          and removing dissolved metals and sulfates,
                                          and four acid ponds were amended and

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Native trees and grasses are thriving along sections of
restored streambank.
     neutralized. Streambank restoration projects
     further added to the health and renewal of the
     creek. Project partners planted approximately
     200,000 native trees and shrubs and helped
     repair 2,700 linear feet of eroding streambank
     at 16 restoration sites. Sixty-six acres were
     amended and seeded with native grasses for
     erosion control and wildlife habitat enhance-
     ment. Additional native grass plantings are
     planned for the coming years.
     Results
     Data collected over the course of the 4-year
     restoration project indicate Cedar Creek is now
     meeting water quality standards for both pH
     and sulfates. Dissolved oxygen  concentrations
     have also improved over time, and fewer occur-
     rences of dissolved oxygen below 5 mg/L
                                                    occurred in 2001 and 2002. Alkalinity showed
                                                    the greatest increase at sites downstream
                                                    of the restoration site, suggesting that the
                                                    constructed wetlands are neutralizing the acid
                                                    seeps. Native trees and grasses are thriving,
                                                    and wildlife are returning to the restoration
                                                    site and  downstream areas. As a result of the
                                                    successful cooperative reclamation project,
                                                    the creek has been removed from the state's
                                                    303(d) list of impaired waters.
                                                    Partners and Funding
                                               Project partners included Missouri Department
                                               of Natural Resources Water Protection
                                               Program (WPP), Boone County Soil and Water
                                               Conservation District, OSM, U.S. Department
                                               of Agriculture Natural  Resources Conservation
                                               Service, U.S. Geological Survey, Missouri
                                               Department of Conservation, U.S. Environmental
                                               Protection Agency, the Columbia Audubon
                                               Society, and private landowners. Construction
                                               costs of the restoration project totaled
                                               $354,094. The LRP received $150,000 in
                                               section 319 grant funds from the WPP and
                                               $204,094 from the OSM Abandoned Mine
                                               Land Clean Streams Initiative to fund the con-
                                               struction of six wetland cells and restoration of
                                               streambank areas.

                                               Maupin Road Bridge Sample Site

Before Project
After Project
PH(s.u.)
5.7
6.8
Alkalinity
(meqCaCO/L)
24.3
75.8
Acidity
(meqCaCO/L)
17.8
-57.4
'.    U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
 \   Off ice of Water
 a   Washington, DC

     EPA841-F-05-004T
     September 2005
                                                    For additional information contact:
                                                    Gregory Anderson
                                                    Missouri Department of Natural Resources
                                                    573-751-7144  •  greg.anderson@dnr.mo.gov

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