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I NONPOINT SOURCE SUCCESS STURY
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Honey Creek, E. coli
1200
E
§ 1000
I
o 800
uj 600
i
2008	2010	2012	2014	2016
Note: Boxplots Indicate the interquartile range (25th-75th percentile) and median of the data.
Figure 2. Monitoring data indicate that bacteria levels
in Upper Honey Creek have declined.
From 2006 to 2014, landowners installed CPs to
address pollution from agricultural areas, including:
•	Pasture and grassland CPs: Riparian area protection
(384 acres) through livestock exclusion; alterna-
tive water supplies (includes 48 ponds, 222 water
tanks, 6,300 linear feet of pipeline, and 76 wells);
grass planting (1,268 acres); cross-fencing (350,397
linear feet); forage harvest management (81 acres);
prescribed grazing (2,820 acres); upland wildlife
habitat management (142 acres); and integrated
pest management (2,370 acres).
•	Animal waste management CPs: Application of
alum to poultry litter (88 times) to reduce soluble
phosphorus in applied litter by up to 25 percent;
four "cakeout" storage facilities to temporarily
house poultry waste; five mortality composters;
heavy use area protections (238 areas); 25 winter
feeding/cattle waste storage facilities, poultry litter
transported out of the watershed (26,627 pounds),
poultry litter relocated to low-phosphorus water-
shed areas (134,888 pounds); eight comprehensive
nutrient management plans; and nutrient manage-
ment (3,103 acres).
Additional CPs included stream channel and riparian
wetland restoration along approximately 3,600 feet of
stream, eight agricultural energy management plans,
herbaceous weed control, additional pest manage-
ment, and replacement of 16 improperly functioning
septic systems.
Results
Through its statewide NPS ambient monitoring pro-
gram, the OCC documented improved water quality
in Honey Creek due to landowners implementing CPs.
The installed grazing and animal waste management
CPs worked to decrease erosion and reduce bacteria.
In 2012, water quality monitoring showed that bacteria
concentrations had decreased to a geometric mean
of 63 CFU, which meets the water quality standard.
This decreasing trend has continued through 2014 and
2016 (see Figure 2). On the basis of these data, the
Upper Honey Creek segment was removed from the
Oklahoma CWA section 303(d) list for E. coli in 2012,
resulting in the partial attainment of its primary body
contact designated use. Upper Honey Creek remains
listed as impaired for Enterococcus bacteria.
Monitoring data also suggest improvements in lower
Honey Creek that will hopefully allow for the future
delisting and development of success stories that
document full support of both segments' primary body
contact beneficial use.
Partners and Funding
Through a series of EPA CWA section 319 projects,
the EPA, OCC, and Oklahoma's Office of Secretary
of Energy and Environment invested approximately
$4,133,803 of section 319 and required matching dol-
lars in the watershed for program management, water
quality monitoring, and installation of CPs. Using CWA
section 319 ($1,362,879) and matching state dollars
($817,566), plus matching dollars from landowners
($1,340,940), more than $3.29 million has been invest-
ed in CPs alone through the CWA section 319 pro-
gram. Education efforts were supplemented through
the Oklahoma Blue Thumb Program. Approximately
$500,000 in EPA CWA section 319 supports statewide
education, outreach and monitoring efforts through
the Blue Thumb program. The OCC LLCS program
provided $10,933 in state funding for CPs in this
watershed through the Delaware County Conservation
District; landowners contributed $19,296 in match-
ing funds. NRCS spent approximately $475,000 for
implementation of CPs in the watershed through NRCS
EQIP. Landowners provided a significant percentage of
funding toward CP implementation as well.
^edsj^ U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
0** Office of Water
^ Washington, DC
WJ
EPA 841-F-16-001Z
pro^° October 2016
For additional information contact:
Shanon Phillips
Oklahoma Conservation Commission
405-522-4500 • shanon.phillips@conservation.ok.gov
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