Section 319
NQNPOINT SOURCE PROGRAM SUCPE8S STDRY
Using Best Management Practices Restores Aquatic Habitat
Waterbody Improved L°W dissolved oxygen levels and poor biological integrity
scores in Smith Creek prompted North Carolina to add a seg-
ment of the creek to its 2004 Clean Water Act (CWA) section 303(d) list of impaired waters.
Using CWA section 319 and state funding, the Warren County Soil and Water Conservation
District worked with landowners to install best management practices (BMPs) along Smith
Creek, including conservation tillage, livestock exclusion fencing, heavy-use area protection
and cropland conversion. Such nonpoint source pollution control efforts restored aquatic
habitat along Smith Creek, allowing North Carolina to remove the 1.6-mile segment from its
CWA section 303(d) list of impaired waters in 2008.
Problem
Smith Creek, a tributary to the Roanoke River, flows
through Warren County in the central piedmont
region of North Carolina. After monitoring showed
that biological impairment and low dissolved
oxygen prevented Smith Creek from meeting its
aquatic life designated use, North Carolina added
a 1.6-mile creek segment (from Cabin Branch to
SR1208) to the state's 2004 CWA section 303(d)
list of impaired waters. North Carolina identified
the pollution source as erosion and sedimentation
from livestock grazing practices, which allow direct
stream access, and agricultural crop production
without proper management plans in place.
Project Highlights
Warren County Soil and Water Conservation District
wrote and implemented 24 BMP contracts between
July 2005 and September 2008, which helped
improve a total of 753 acres in the watershed.
BMPs included converting 43 acres of cropland
to grassland; stabilizing 3,000 feet of roadway;
installing 24,000 feet of livestock-exclusion fencing
that prevents stream access and provides a buffer
between pastureland and Smith Creek (Figure 1);
and adding more than 18 water troughs (alternative
watering facilities) that provide drinking water to
cattle. Farmers also constructed stream crossings
and stock trails that support alternative grazing
practices. The trails provide a means for moving
cattle from one pasture to another, which allows
grasses to regenerate and pastures to stabilize
when not in use (Table 1).
Figure! Livestock-exclusion fencing protects Smith Creek.
Table 1. BMPs installed in the Smith Creek watershed
BMP installed
Farm Road Stabilization
Livestock Exclusion Fencing
Water Troughs
Wells
Heavy-use Area
Stream Crossings
Stock Trail
Cropland Conversion
Size/unit
3,000ft
24,000ft
18 units
7 units
4 units
2 units
2 units
43 ac
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Results
Partners and Funding
The North Carolina Division of Water Quality
Environmental Sciences Section routinely monitors
watersheds across the state using ambient stations,
as well as macroinvertebrate and fish sampling. The
agency collected biological monitoring data that
showed water quality markedly improved between
May 2002 (rated fair) and June 2007 (rated good-fair)
(see Table 2). The principal metrics used to denote
water quality improvement include increases in the
total macroinvertebrate families (or genera) and the
increased species richness of mayflies, stoneflies
and caddisflies (collectively referred to as EPT—short
for the order names Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera and
Trichoptera). Because the three EPT taxa are particu-
larly sensitive to pollutants, evidence of increased
species richness indicates improving water quality
and biological integrity. On the basis of the data,
North Carolina removed a 1.6-mile segment of Smith
Creek from the 2008 CWA section 303(d) list of
impaired waters.
Table 2. Benthic sampling data for Smith Creek
The North Carolina Division of Soil and Water
Conservation, in partnership with Warren County
Soil and Water Conservation District, wrote a
thorough nine-element watershed management
plan outlining management measures for the con-
tinued success of the Smith Creek watershed. The
partners submitted the watershed management
plan (dated October 2007) to the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency Region 4.
Approximately $180,000 in CWA section 319
grant funds supported water quality improve-
ment projects in Smith Creek. The North Carolina
Agricultural Cost Share Program provided an addi-
tional $121,000 in match contribution, for a total of
$300,000 applied in the Smith Creek watershed.
Assessment unit
23-10C
23-10C
23-10C
23-10C
23-10C
23-10C
23-10B
Date
08/15/1984
07/18/1986
07/12/1989
08/22/1994
07/16/1999
04/23/2004
04/26/2004
EPT sample
12
10
12
6
12
10
22
Bioclassification
Fair
Fair
Fair
Fair
Fair
Fair
Good-Fair*
*A more intense study covering a larger watershed
showed significant improvement.
UJ
O
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Office of Water
Washington, DC
EPA841-F-09-001Z
September 2009
For additional information contact:
Heather Boyette
North Carolina Division of Water Quality
919-807-6437 • heather.boyette@ncdenr.gov
Julie Henshaw
North Carolina Department of Environment
and Natural Resources
919-715-9630 • julie.henshaw@ncdenr.gov
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