Section 319
NONPOINT SOORCE PROGRAM SOCCESS STORY
Using a Diverse Watershed Approach Reduces Sedimentation
\A/citprhnrl\/ lmnrn\/prl ^ast channelization of streams and eroding agricultural areas
contributed sediment to the North Fabius River. Fisheries data
indicated that the high sediment levels impaired the river's warm-water aquatic life designated use. As
a result, in 1998 the Missouri Department of Natural Resources (MDNR) added an 82-mile segment
of the river to the Clean Water Act (CWA) section 303(d) list of impaired waters for sediment. MDNR
worked with state and local partners to install best management practice (BMPs) that reduced
sedimentation. Water quality improved, prompting MDNR to remove the 82-mile segment of the North
Fabius River from the state's list of impaired waters in 2008.
Problem
The long, narrow, 940-square-mile North Fabius
River watershed includes 2,290 miles of streams
that drain portions of nine counties in southeastern
Iowa and northeastern Missouri (Figure 1). The
North Fabius River originates in southeast Iowa's
Appanoose County and flows southeastward into
Missouri, eventually merging with the South Fabius
River in northeastern Marion County to form the
Fabius River. The Fabius River then flows only 3.5
miles before it empties into the Mississippi River.
Agriculture is the dominant land use; 32 percent
of land is in cultivated crops and 44 percent in
pastureland.
Eroding agricultural land is a major source of the
sediment in the North Fabius River watershed.
Farmers sometimes plant row crops directly next
to the edge of stream banks and drainage chan-
nels. This practice eliminates riparian vegetation,
allowing stream banks to erode. Furthermore, the
loss of riparian shade leads to higher summer water
temperatures and loss of habitat. The past channel-
ization of larger northern Missouri streams, such as
those in the North Fabius watershed, also causes
sedimentation problems.
A change in the historical distribution in fish
populations in the North Fabius River led MDNR to
conclude that the sediment load in the river was
impairing aquatic habitat. Few sediment data were
available to directly document sediment impacts on
the North Fabius River, so MDNR staff members, in
consultation with the U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA), used their best professional judg-
ment based on general fisheries data and the nega-
tive effects of sediment on fish. Based on these
concerns, MDNR added an 82-mile segment of the
North Fabius River to the CWA section 303(d) list of
impaired waters in 1998.
Figure 1.
The North Fabius
River watershed
is in northeastern
Missouri.
Project Highlights
Watershed partners have conducted numerous efforts
to reduce sedimentation in the watershed. In 2004 the
Schuyler and Scotland Soil and Water Conservation
Districts (SWCDs) each began a seven-year, $750,000
Agricultural Nonpoint Source Special Area Land
Treatment (AgNPS SALT) project in the South, Middle
and North Forks of the North Fabius River to implement
agricultural BMPs. From 2003 through 2008, the MDNR
Soil and Water Conservation Program funneled more than
$3.9 million toward supporting the SWCDs' efforts to help
landowners install about 743 practices in the watershed.
With funding support from two CWA section 319
projects, the Schuyler and Scotland SWCDs have
been working to improve watershed planning, educate
stakeholders and implement BMPs to help improve
water quality. In April 2007 the SWCDs and their part-
ners began developing an EPA nine-element watershed
management plan for the Middle Fabius and North
Fabius rivers. The partners also launched a North Fabius
Watershed Improvement Project to educate landowners
and encourage implementation of BMPs. Project part-
ners hosted numerous field days/demonstrations and
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workshops for landowners, developed and distrib-
uted almost 8,000 brochures and newsletters, and
aired 12 public service announcements.
The watershed improvement project also benefit-
ted from the efforts of the U.S. Department of
Agriculture's Natural Resources Conservation
Service (NRCS) to help landowners implement
BMPs through the Environmental Quality Incentives
Program (EQIP). During the project period, NRCS
provided technical assistance and/or funding for
more than 1,900 water quality-related practices on
over 31,600 acres using EQIP.
Through these many different programs, landown-
ers have implemented numerous BMPs, including
terraces (Figure 2), filter strips, grassed waterways,
riparian buffers, shoreline protection, critical area
planting, grade stabilization structures and nutrient
management plans. These practices have treated
more than 10,400 acres and prevented approxi-
mately 488,000 tons of soil from entering the North
Fabius River.
Figure 2. A terrace system protects a field from
erosion.
Results
In 2006 MDNR selected 16 sites for water qual-
ity sampling and biological assessment. MDNR
analyzed water quality samples for temperature,
dissolved oxygen, specific conductance, pH,
chloride, total phosphorus, ammonia nitrogen,
nitrate, nitrite, total nitrogen and turbidity. For the
biological assessment of stream health, MDNR used
the Semi-quantitative Macroinvertebrate Stream
Bioassessment Project procedure. The procedure
relies on four metrics: taxa richness (TR), biotic index
(Bl), Shannon Diversity Index (SDI), and total num-
ber of taxa found from the orders Ephemeroptera,
Plecoptera, and Trichoptera (EPTT). Calculating these
metrics provides a Multimetric Macroinvertebrate
Stream Condition Index (MSCI) score. MSCI sustain-
ability scores of 16 to 20 are considered fully sustain-
ing aquatic life.
The 2006 samples showed that all the assessed
North Fabius River sites achieved a MSCI score of
fully sustaining (see Table 1). On the basis of these
results, MDNR removed the North Fabius River
from the state's list of impaired waters in 2008.
Table 1. Metric values and stream condition
indices. Spring 2006 sampling season
Station
2
3
4
5
6 (a)
6(b)*
7
8
9 (a)
9(b)*
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
TR
64
70
59
64
69
63
67
64
62
68
63
71
73
70
62
73
60
EPTT
11
13
16
19
19
15
13
10
7
10
11
10
13
14
14
13
11
Bl
6.51
6.55
6.00
5.98
6.43
6.28
6.74
6.85
6.71
7.09
6.77
7.06
6.82
6.96
6.91
7.06
7.04
SDI
2.52
2.8
2.48
2.79
2.54
2.70
2.92
2.92
3.17
2.92
2.89
2.83
3.29
3.14
2.73
2.71
2.29
MSCI
20
20
20
20
20
20
20
20
18
20
20
20
20
20
20
20
20
Sustainability
Full
Full
Full
Full
Full
Full
Full
Full
Full
Full
Full
Full
Full
Full
Full
Full
Full
* Duplicates
Partners and Funding
Watershed partners included the Schuyler and
Scotland SWCDs, NRCS, University of Missouri-
Columbia Extension, Missouri Stream Team,
Missouri Department of Conservation and MDNR.
The MDNR Soil and Water Conservation Program
provided more than $3.9 million to the SWCDs to
install BMPs. The Schuyler and Scotland SWCDs
each conducted a $750,000 AgNPS SALT project.
Funding for these restoration efforts included a
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) educa-
tion grant of $5,000 and a total of $410,000 in EPA
CWA section 319 funding.
UJ
O
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Office of Water
Washington, DC
EPA841-F-10-001DD
September 2010
For additional information contact:
Colleen Meredith
Missouri Department of Natural Resources
573-751-7143 • colleen.meredith@dnr.mo.gov
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