Nonpoint Source Success Story North Carolina Agricultural Best Management Practice Implementation Leads to Improvements in the Dan River

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^|) NONPOINT SOIREE SICEESS STORY
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Agricultural Best Management Practice Implementation Leads to
Improvements in the Dan River
Row crop production and livestock operations led to high pollutant
runoff and degraded biological conditions in the North Carolina
portion of the Dan River. As a result, two segments of the river were added to North Carolina's Clean
Water Act (CWA) section 303(d) impaired waters list for fecal coliform and biological impairment in 1998
Watershed partners implemented numerous agricultural best management practices (BMPs) that have
decreased pathogen runoff. These efforts have led to the improvement in water quality of two stream
segments; these were removed from the state's list of impaired waters in 2012.
Problem
The Dan River's headwaters span the North Carolina
and Virginia borders (Figure 1). The main stem of the
Dan River begins in North Carolina, then meanders
back and forth for its entire 221-mile length between
Virginia and North Carolina before emptying into the
Roanoke River in Virginia.
North Carolina's CWA section 303(d) iist (i.e., the
impaired waters list) denotes many streams as being
impaired by agriculture and other sources. According
to the state's 2008 CWA section 303(d) list, multiple
segments of the Dan River (a total of 38.2 miles) were
found to be impaired due to elevated levels of fecal
coliform bacteria. A water is considered impaired by
fecal coliform if the stream sample has a count of
400 colonies/100 milliliters of water in a 5-day sam-
pling window during a 30-day period.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
approved a total maximum daily load (TMDL) for the
Dan River in January 2005. According to the TMDL, a
59 percent reduction in total suspended solids distrib-
uted over both point and nonpoint sources will reduce
fecal coliform levels and achieve acceptable water
quality levels.
Project Highlights
The soil and water conservation districts (SWCDs) par-
ticipating in this project have been giving high priority
to BMP sites in subwatersheds that contain impaired
streams. The cooperation between the SWCDs,
farmers, and local and state government agencies has
Waterbodies Improved
Figure 1. The upper Dan River watershed drains portions of
North Carolina and Virginia.
played a key role in achieving the reductions need to
partially delist the Dan River.
Stokes County SWCD implemented a number of
agricultural BMPs which directly impact the Dan River.
More than 200 acres of land were improved by project
implementation. Heavy use protection (12,400 feet)
and livestock exclusion fencing (20,767 feet) were
implemented on a number of production cattle farms
North Carolina

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in the watershed (Figure 2). Watering tanks, wells and
pipelines were installed to provide water to the cattle
(previously only stream access had been provided
(Figure 3). In addition to the pasture work, a total of
3.5 acres of critical area plantings were installed and
over 35 acres of cropland was placed in sod-based
rotation (Figure 4). The CWA Section 319 Program
funded a seed project in FY2008 at a cost of $399,900;
from that, participation in the BMP implementation
skyrocketed and led to additional projects in FY2011,
FY2014 and FY2016.
Results
Of the Dan River's 38.2 impaired miles, a total of
14.2 miles were improved by local agricultural efforts
and TMDL. implementation. Fecal coliform levels are
declining and the health of the fish community is
improving. Recent sampling show small incremental
improvements in the benthic macroinvertebrate
community. In 2013 the North Carolina Benthic Index
score was 36 (fair); in 2015 the score had improved
to 44 (good-fair). The North Carolina Department of
Environmental Quality, Division of Water Resources
(DWR), expects to see additional improvement in the
2016 sampling data.
As expected, fecal coliform counts are also declin-
ing. Data collected from 2010 indicated that two
Dan River assessment units (AUs) now meet the fecal
coliform levels and are deemed safe for recreation:
AU 22-(31.5)a (4.8 miles long) and AU 22-(31.5)b
(9.4 miles long). As a result, these AUs were delisted
for fecal coliform impairment in 2012. Livestock
exclusion and plantings will continue to help control
pollution for years to come, and bacteria levels are
expected to decline further over time. DWR anticipates
additional delistings in the near future.
Partners and Funding
The water quality improvement in the Dan River can
be attributed to many stakeholders active in the
restoration effort throughout the watershed, including
the EPA, North Carolina Department of Environmental
Quality DWR, North Carolina Agricultural Cost Share
Program, and county landowners. A combined total of
$1,104,883 has been invested in the watershed with
a portion of EPA CWA section 319 funding ($694,900)
directed towards plan development and BMP
implementation.
Figure 2. Livestock exclusion fences installed in
Rockingham County.
Figure 3. Alternative water tank installed in Stokes
County.
Before

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Figure 4. A farm field, before (top) and after
(bottom) a cropland conversion BMP was applied.
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Office of Water
\ Washington, DC
J
EPA 841-F-16-001PP
PROt^° January 2017
For additional information contact:
Heather Jennings, North Carolina Department
of Environmental Quality DWR
919-807-6437 » Heather.b.jennings@ncdenr.gov
Tom Hill, North Carolina Department of Agriculture
919-715-6107 • Thomas.hill@ncagr.gov

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