Section 319
NONPOINT SOURCE PROGRAM SOGGESS STORY
Installing Best Management Practices Restored the Biological Integrity
of Orphan Creek
Watprhndv Imnrnvpd Agricultural nutrients, cattle with access to the creek or
' ' "' '"' '">>v* tributaries, and sediment erosion in pasture land contributed
nonpoint source pollution to Mississippi's Orphan Creek. Water quality monitoring conducted
in 2001 and 2003 indicated that Orphan Creek was not attaining aquatic life designated use
support, which is intended to assure that a waterbody is healthy enough to support the
propagation of fish and wildlife that use the water. As a result, the Mississippi Department of
Environmental Quality (MDEQ) added Orphan Creek to the state's 2006 Clean Water Act (CWA)
section 303(d) list for aquatic life use impairment. The Dead Tiger/Orphan Creek Nonpoint
Source Project significantly reduced sediment and nutrients entering Orphan Creek through
the implementation of best management practices (BMPs). Using the data collected in 2009,
Orphan Creek was assessed as attaining aquatic life use support as part of the 2012 CWA
section 305(b) statewide assessment process.
Problem
The Dead Tiger/Orphan Creek watershed is located
in Hancock County in south Mississippi and spans
approximately 25,146 acres (Figure 1). The water-
shed is comprised of approximately 44 percent pas-
ture land, 54 percent timber land, and two percent
wetlands, urban, and other. Orphan Creek is part
of the Upper Jourdan River Drainage Area that was
listed on Mississippi's 1998 CWA section 303(d) list
of impaired waters (Waterbody ID: MS112E). This
listing included all waters of the Upper Jourdan
River Drainage Area, which was an entire 11-digit
HUC (144,371 acres).
Biological community data are routinely used to
assess waterbodies to determine if the stream
is healthy enough to support a balanced aquatic
community. In 2001, a targeted monitoring program
was launched to collect biological community data
on all wadeable waters outside of the Mississippi
Alluvial Plain that were included in the CWA section
303(d) list. Orphan Creek was monitored as part of
that program. MDEQ collected biological commu-
nity data on Orphan Creek in 2001 and 2003. Using
MDEQ's index of biological integrity, the Mississippi
Index of Stream Quality (M-BISQ), the data from
2001 and 2003 scored 53.2 and 51.46, respectively.
According to the reference condition established for
this region from the original calibration of the index,
the scores needed to be higher than 61 to be consid-
Dead Tiger/Orphan Creek Project
Legend
BMP Location
Slate Highway
County
Figure 1. The Dead Tiger/Orphan Creek project area is
in Hancock County in southern Mississippi.
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ered attaining aquatic life use support. As such, the
waterbody failed to support its aquatic life desig-
nated use. Using those data, a 6.2-mile segment of
Orphan Creek (Waterbody ID: 203811) was placed
on the 2006 CWA section 303(d) list for aquatic life
use impairment and was subsequently selected
as a priority watershed for restoration activities by
MDEQ. In 2007, Orphan Creek data were analyzed
according to EPA's Stressor Identification Guidance.
Following this guidance, all available information
collected in that waterbody, along with information
on point and nonpoint source pollution and land use-
land cover data, were used to determine the primary
probable cause of the impairment to the stream.
Resulting from this process, sediment and nutrients
were identified as primary and secondary probable
stressors causing the aquatic life use impairment.
Sources in the problem areas included agricultural
nutrients, cattle with access to the creek or tributar-
ies, and sediment erosion in pasture land.
Project Highlights
In 2007, MDEQ partnered with the Mississippi Soil
and Water Conservation Commission and the U.S.
Department of Agriculture's Natural Resources
Conservation Service (NRCS) to implement BMPs
within the watershed. BMP installation within the
Orphan Creek subwatershed began in early 2008
and was completed later thatyear. The BMPs
included over 190 acres of nutrient management,
nearly 40 acres of pasture and hay land planting, and
over 2,800 feet of cattle fencing within the Orphan
Creek subwatershed. After addressing the causes
of pollution and demonstrating in-stream improve-
ments within Orphan Creek, BMP installation contin-
ued through 2011, comprising of a total of 43 BMPs
covering 533 acres within the much broader Dead
Tiger/Orphan Creek Watershed (Figures 2 and 3).
Results
In 2009, MDEQ returned to the original 2001 and
2003 sampling location in Orphan Creek to col-
lect biological community data. The score was
76.5. Data were also collected at two new sites on
Orphan Creek and scored 78.9 and 82. The MBISQ
was re-calibrated in 2008. As a result of the recali-
bration the threshold for attainment in this region
was 66. Using the 2009 data from the original
Figure 2. Pasture and hay
land planting established
long-term vegetation
that reduced sediment
contributions from
highly erosive areas near
Orphan Creek.
Figure 3. Cattle fencing
along Orphan Creek was
an integral part of creek
restoration in areas of
heavy cattle influence. The
new fencing prevents cattle
from accessing the creek,
alleviating direct nutrient
loads to the creek.
sampling location and the two new sites, Orphan
Creek was assessed as attaining the aquatic life use
in the 2012 CWA section 305(b) reporting cycle and
is no longer considered impaired.
Partners and Funding
Due to the high level of stakeholder interest, the
restoration of Orphan Creek was a collective
effort between the Mississippi Soil and Water
Conservation Commission, the MDEQ, the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency, the NRCS, and
the Hancock County Soil and Water Conservation
District. The total cost of the overall Dead Tiger/
Orphan Creek watershed project was $206,779,
of which $122,247 was comprised of CWA section
319 funds. Section 319 funds were expended in the
following way: $15,319 for technical assistance;
$3,273 for education and information outreach;
and $103,655 for BMP installation. Participating
state and local stakeholders contributed a total of
$84,532 towards the implementation of the water-
shed project.
UJ
O
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Office of Water
Washington, DC
EPA841-F-14-001EE
May 2014
For additional information contact:
Steven Utroska
Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality
601-961-5102 • Steven_Utroska@deq.state.ms.us
Natalie Guedon Segrest
Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality
601-961-5150 • Natalie_Segrest@deq.state.ms.us
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