Section 319
NONPOINT SOURCE PROGRAM SUCCESS STORY
Agricultural BMPs Reduce Chlordane and Sediment in Pigeon Creek
WatPrhndv Imnrnvpd P'9eon Creek, in southwestern Indiana, was impaired for
chlordane and other priority pollutants from use of these chem-
icals on agricultural lands with poor stream buffers and high historic soil loss. Indiana placed
32 miles of this waterbody on its 303(d) list in 1996 and again in 1998 based on fish tissue
data collected. Installing best management practices (BMPs) such as vegetated buffers and
conservation tillage, combined with landowner education, produced a measurable improve-
ment in water quality. As a result, Indiana removed Pigeon Creek from the 303(d) list in 2002.
Problem
The Pigeon Creek watershed lies within Posey,
Warrick, Gibson, and Vanderburgh counties in
southwestern Indiana. The creek flows south to
the Ohio River, where its waters enter upstream
of the city of Evansville's drinking water intake.
Agriculture is the watershed's main land use.
Crops in this watershed were historically treated
with chlordane to control insects. Even though
use of chlordane was prohibited in the early
1980s, high levels of this chemical persist in the
sediments in Pigeon Creek and its tributaries.
Because these chemicals form a strong bond
with soil, Indiana Department of Environmental
Management (IDEM) and local watershed
groups have identified erosion from agricultural
lands as the chief source of these pollutants.
The allowable threshold level of chlordane at
the time that the original samples were col-
lected would have been the U.S. Food and
Drug Administration's (FDA's) action level for
chlordane, which is the total of all isomers with
results > 0.02 milligrams per liter. The value
cited for fish tissue in the FDA's handbook,
Action Levels for Poisonous or Deleterious
Substances in Human Food and Animal Feed, is
0.3 parts per million (ppm), which was current
as of August 2000.
Project Highlights
Resources Conservation Service (NRCS)
and the Vanderburgh County Soil and Water
District (SWCD) to develop a watershed plan
for the portion of Pigeon Creek in Vanderburgh
County. The partners received Clean Water Act
(CWA) section 319 funding to support projects
on Pigeon Creek and its tributaries, including
enhanced watershed planning, education, and
installing BMPs such as filter strips, grassed
waterways, field buffers, and conservation
tillage.
From 1997 through 2001 the partners installed
more than 50 BMPs designed to reduce soil ero-
sion in the Pigeon Creek watershed. These land
treatment measures have significantly reduced
the amount of contaminant reaching the stream,
allowing the legacy sources to be covered by
cleaner sediments from other points in the
watershed, moved naturally, or degraded over
time. Locally led efforts continue to address
sediment loading to streams in the Pigeon
Creek watershed.
Results
In 1997 the Citizens for the Improvement of
Pigeon Creek cooperated with the Natural
In 2002 IDEM assessed water quality in Pigeon
Creek to determine whether a total maximum
daily load (TMDL) was still needed. IDEM
further analyzed Pigeon Creek in 2005. IDEM
compared the 1992 and 2005 data to the cur-
rent FDA action level for chlordane (see table).
-------
Table 1. Comparison of fish tissue chlordane isomer levels taken from channel catfish
sampled in Pigeon Creek at Kleymyer Park, Evansville, Indiana. The sample point is
near the lowest point of the Pigeon Creek watershed.
Parameter
Chlordene, Alpha-
Chlordene, Gamma-
Nonachlor, cis-
Nonachlor, trans-
Oxychlordane
Total chlordane residue
FDA action level for
chlordane*
September 1992 sample results
(wet weight)
.082 ppm
.056 ppm
.055 ppm
.11 ppm
.012 ppm
.315 ppm
.3 ppm
August 2005 sample results
(wet weight)
,014ppm
.004 ppm
.009 ppm
.032 ppm
.001 ppm
.060 ppm
.3 ppm
Reduction
83%
93%
84%
71%
92%
81%
-
* Maximum concentration of allowable levels of chlordane residue in edible portions of fish tissue.
Using the FDA action levels for determining
impairment, the results indicated that Pigeon
Creek was no longer impaired for chlordane.
Therefore, the data indicated that chlordane
and priority organic pollutant levels had
dropped to levels sufficient to remove Pigeon
Creek from the 303(d) list for both parameters.
The reductions in chlordane and other prior-
ity organic pollutants can be attributed to the
efforts in this watershed to address sedimen-
tation from erosion of croplands, which is the
primary source of these pollutants. The BMPs
in 1999 resulted in an estimated soil savings
of 584 tons per year. Chlordane levels in fish
tissue dropped significantly, including levels of
chlordane breakdown isomers, further indicat-
ing that the sources of chlordane were suc-
cessfully addressed by installing agricultural
BMPs.
The Pigeon Creek Watershed Management
Plan is addressing other water quality impair-
ments in addition to those associated with
chlordane and priority organic pollutants. IDEM
and the local watershed group will continually
assess progress on the status of these other
impairments and determine what further work
is needed.
Partners and Funding
This project was supported by $171,990 from
two CWA section 319 grants (awarded in 1997
and 1999). Landowners and partner agencies
within the watershed contributed an additional
$42,997 in matching funds, in-kind services,
and materials. Partners for the CWA section
319 grants included the Vanderburgh, Warrick,
Gibson, and Posey County SWCDs, as well as
the Four Rivers Resource Conservation and
Development office. These partners helped
to select sites for BMP installation, conduct
education and outreach activities, and offer
technical support. Monitoring and assessment
of water quality in 2002 was funded by $78,001
from a CWA section 205(j) grant to IDEM's
Assessment Branch. The Indiana Department
of Natural Resources, through the Lake and
River Enhancement program, funded planning
and BMP installation projects amounting to
$270,000 in state funds. The NRCS greatly
assisted this project by allocating $135,000
each year for the years of 1997, 1998, and 1999
through the Environmental Quality Incentives
Program.
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Office of Water
Washington, DC
EPA841-F-07-001FF
December 2007
For additional information contact:
Andrew Pelloso
Indiana Department of Environmental Management
317-233-2481
apelloso@idem.in.gov
------- |