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I NONPOINT SOURCE SUCCESS STURY
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Restoration Efforts Reduce Bacteria in the Illinois River Watershed
Waterbodies Irnoroved High bacteria ,eve,s resulted in impairment of streams in the
Illinois River Watershed and placement on Oklahoma's Clean
Water Act (CWA) section 303(d) list of impaired waters in 2002. Pollution from grazing lands, animal
waste management, urbanization, and recreation contributed to these impairments. Education and
implementing conservation practice systems (CPs) to promote better land management decreased
Escherichia coli (E. coli) and Enterococcus levels in the watershed. As a result, Oklahoma removed
E. coli impairments on four streams and the Enterococcus impairment on the lower Barren Fork from
its 2006 and 2016 CWA section 303(d) lists. The primary body contact (PBC) designated beneficial use
is now supported in five segments: Lower Barren Fork Creek (full support), Lower Flint Creek (partial
support), and Illinois River (three segments, partial support).
Problem
The Illinois River Watershed extends over 1,600 square
miles in northwest Arkansas and northeast Oklahoma
(Figure 1). The watershed attracts more than 500,000
visitors who invest an estimated $9 million annually
into the local economy. Northwest Arkansas supports
one of the nation's most rapidly growing urban areas,
while land use in the Oklahoma portion is about 48
percent hay and grazing lands and 46 percent forested.
The area also supports important poultry and cattle
industries. Eutrophication in the watershed has been a
challenge since the 1970s.
Further concerns were raised when nonpoint source
pollution contributed to listing multiple segments as
impaired for E. coli in 2002 when at least 28 percent
of individual samples violated the individual sample
maximum of 406 colony forming units per 100
milliliters (CFU/100 mL) during the recreation season.
Barren Fork Creek was listed for Enterococcus in 2002
when 50 percent of samples violated the individual
sample maximum of 108 CFU/100 mL. In 2002 the
PBC designated use was considered impaired if more
than 10 percent of samples exceeded individual
sample maximums. The assessment method changed
in 2008 and streams were considered to violate the
standard if the recreation season geometric mean
exceeded 126 CFU/100 mL for E. coli and 33 CFU/100
mLfor Enterococcus. Oklahoma added segments
OK121700030010_00 (Illinois River at Tahlequah),
OK121700030350_00 (Illinois River Stateline),
Figure 1. The Illinois River Watershed is in northeastern
Oklahoma and northwestern Arkansas.
OK121700050010_00 (Lower Barren Fork Creek), and
OK 1217000600_10 (Lower Flint Creek) to the 2002
and OK121700030080_00 (Illinois River at Chewey) to
the 2006 CWA section 303(d) lists for nonattainment
of the PBC designated beneficial use.
Legend
Delisted Segments
—	Illinois River-Tahlequah- OK121700030010_00-
Illinois River- Chewey - OK121700030080_00- 31.68
—	Illinois River Stateline- OK121700030350_00-5.18 miles
—	Barren Fork Creek- OK121700050010_00-25.15 miles
—	Flint Creek - OK121700060010_00- 7 75 miles
I Illinois River Watershed	

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Story Highlights
Results
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) CWA
section 319 projects began in 1990 that included
developing recreational user restrooms and trash
services, conducting water quality monitoring, offering
education, and implementing CPs. Through many of
these projects, landowners worked with the Delaware,
Cherokee, and Adair county conservation districts in
Oklahoma, as well as the Benton, Washington, and
Crawford county conservation districts in Arkansas,
the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Natural
Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), the Oklahoma
Conservation Commission (OCC), the Grand River
Dam Authority (GRDA), and many others to imple-
ment CPs through Oklahoma NRCS's Illinois River/
Eucha-Spavinaw Watershed Initiative Project (Initiative
Project), CWA section 319 projects, GRDA's long-term
riparian area easement program and many others.
CPs installed in the Oklahoma portion of the water-
shed between 2000 and 2018 focused on reducing
erosion and pollutant runoff from grazing lands in the
watershed. These programs focused on improving
animal waste management, protecting riparian areas
through long-term easements and stabilizing and
restoring streambanks, improving grazing and pasture
management, and updating aging and improperly
designed septic systems. Specific practices imple-
mented included prescribed grazing (57,495 acres [ac]),
nutrient management (23,707 ac), critical area planting
(19 ac), pasture and hayland planting (10,209 ac),
livestock exclusion fencing (885,234 linear feet), heavy
use area protection (246 ac), stream restoration (5,533
linear feet), wetland restoration (48 ac), and riparian
buffer installation (1,117 ac). Project partners per-
formed repairs or upkeep on 122 septic systems. Other
new practices included 178 ponds, 120 water wells,
and 91 waste storage facilities. In addition, education
and enforcement of state poultry litter regulations by
the Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food, and
Forestry worked to decrease poultry litter applica-
tion in the watershed from approximately 30,000
tons annually in 2000-2009 to 12,774 tons in 2018.
Additional similar CPs were installed in the Arkansas
portion of the watershed through NRCS, Arkansas
Department of Natural Resource CWA section 319
projects, and other partners. Partners continue to
work toward further water quality improvement in the
Illinois River Watershed.
The OCC, Oklahoma Water Resources Board (OWRB),
GRDA and the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) docu-
mented improved water quality in the Illinois River
Watershed due to installation of CPs. By the 2016
assessment, bacteria levels declined. The E. coli
geometric mean was between 39 and 112 CFU/100
mL in four segments (three on the Illinois River—at
Stateline, Chewey and Tahlequah—and one on Lower
Flint Creek), which meets the standard (i.e., less than
126 CFU/100 mL £ coli). Barren Fork Enterococcus
had dropped to a geomean of 32 CFU/100 mL, which
meets the standard (i.e., less than 33 CFU/100 mL
Enterococcus). Based on these data, Oklahoma had
removed these five segments in the Illinois River
Watershed from the CWA section 303(d) list for
E. coli or Enterococcus by 2016. Although 12 of the
22 assessed segments in the Oklahoma portion of the
watershed remain listed for Enterococcus and there-
fore only partially support their PBC beneficial use, all
but two segments in the watershed are now delisted
for E. coli. Decreasing watershed phosphorus loads
have also been documented; however, eight segments
remain impaired for phosphorus.
Partners and Funding
Projects supported by EPA CWA section 319 funding
(including nonfederal match) have invested at least
$17.7 million in the Oklahoma portion of the Illinois
River Watershed since 2000 for monitoring, outreach
and implementation. EPA CWA State Revolving Fund
Projects have invested an additional $2.05 million in
the watershed on streambank stabilization since 2002.
From 2000 to 2018, NRCS supplied more than $1.8 mil-
lion for CP implementation in Oklahoma through the
Environmental Quality Incentives Program. Additional
funds were provided for other NRCS conservation pro-
grams, including over $21 million toward the Initiative
Project, much of which was invested in the Arkansas
portion of the Illinois River Watershed. In addition,
many practices were funded by landowners based on
recommendations through NRCS general technical
assistance. Finally, the Arkansas Natural Resources
Commission has supported at least $7.7 million worth
of CWA section 319 projects in the watershed since
2010. Additional partners have contributed to water
quality improvement as well, including GRDA, OWRB,
USGS, the Cherokee Nation, and others.
^edsj^ U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
0** Office of Water
\ Washington, DC
WJ
EPA 841-F-19-001U
PRAugust 2019
For additional information contact:
Shanon Phillips
Oklahoma Conservation Commission
405-522-4728 • shanon.phillips@conservation.ok.gov

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