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Reducing Erosion Improves Water Quality in the West Fork and East
Fork Point Remove Watersheds
WaterbodieS Improved High ,evels of turbidity due to surface erosion had impaired
Arkansas' West Fork and East Fork Point Remove watersheds.
The Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ) added three stream segments (38,6
miles total) to the 2014 Clean Water Act (CWA) section 303(d) list of impaired waters. All three
stream segments were listed for turbidity impairment from a surface erosion source. Watershed
partners initiated implementation of agricultural best management practices (BMPs) to reduce
sediment runoff. In-depth monitoring was also conducted through the Arkansas Natural Resources
Commission's (ANRC) CWA section 319 program. The turbidity levels in the West Fork Point Remove
(AR-3F-11110203-016 and AR-3F-11110203-017) and East Fork Point Remove (AR-3F-11110203-014)
watersheds have declined, prompting ADEQ to propose removing these three segments from the
draft 2018 CWA section 303(d) list of impaired waters.
Problem
The West Fork and East Fork of Point Remove Creek
emerge In the northernmost portion of the Lake
Conway-Polnt Remove Watershed and flow southward
(Figure 1). Land use in the Lake Conway-Point Remove
Watershed is predominately forested,, especially in the
headwater (northern) portion of the basin. Pastures
are distributed in a mosaic fashion throughout the
forested areas and agricultural land use constitutes
much of the southern portion of the basin. The West
Fork Point Remove Creek Watershed is the most
sizable of the subwatersheds in the northwestern
portion of the Lake Conway-Point Remove Watershed.
Approximately 90 percent of the West Fork Point
Watershed is forest and pastureiand. The East Fork
comparatively is comprised of about 77 percent forest
and pastureiand use. The area also supports numerous
natural gas weils.
Runoff from forested areas, pasturelands and gas
well areas were contributing excess turbidity in these
watersheds. ADEQ's assessments determined that
reach 017 (14.4 miles) and reach 016 (3.3 miles) of the
West Fork Point Remove Watershed and reach 014
(20.9 miles) of the East Fork Point Remove Watershed
were not meeting the state's water quality standard
for turbidity. The water quality standard for turbidity
Lake Conway Point Remove
East Fork
West Fork
Figure 1. The Lake Conway-Point Remove Watershed is
in central Arkansas.
in the Arkansas River Valley Region states that values
should not exceed 21 nephelometric turbidity unit
(NTU) during base flows (June to October) in more
than 20 percent of samples and not more than 40
NTUs during all flow conditions in more than 25 percent
of samples taken in not less than 24 monthly samples.
These segments were placed on the 2014 and 2016
CWA section 303(d) lists of impaired waters for not
meeting the Regulation 2 standards for turbidity.

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Pt Remove MRBI Project
Planned or Applied Practices
2013-2018
¦-&NRCSI
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I - I Pt Remove Projact eourri.
East Fork and West Fork Point Remove Watersheds Turbidity (NTU)
Exceedances
State limit for exceedant
ll
2013
¦ Ea st Fork ¦ West Fork
Figure 2. NRCS MRB! projects and practices implemented
within the Lake Conway-Point Remove Watershed.
Story Highlights
Multiple CWA 319 section grants have supported
work completed in the Lake Conway-Point Remove
Watershed, including use of a no-till drill on farmland
within the watershed to reduce erosion; installation
of irrigation best management practices, which
resulted in a reduction of an estimated 230 tons/year
of sediment/siltation; completion of assessments; and
education efforts.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture Natural Resources
Conservation Service (NRCS) has implemented
several agricultural projects and practices including
tallwater recovery, cover crops, and nutrient manage-
ment within the watershed using programs like the
Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQ.IP)
and the Mississippi River Basin Heaithy Watersheds
Initiative (MRBI) (Figure 2). The Lake Conway-Point
Remove Watershed Alliance has also contributed
to the success of these watersheds reaching water
quality standards.
Results
Partners have used CWA section 319 funds provided
by ANRC and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
(EPA) Region 6 to assess water quality in the Lake
Conway-Point Remove Watershed. In 2011, the ANRC
and Equilibrium (a nonprofit organization) collected
and analyzed 1,831 samples. They began another
water quality monitoring project in 2015 and have
analyzed 2,049 total samples to date. These data
demonstrated that turbidity levels in the West Fork
Figure 3. Monitoring data for the East Fork and West
Fork Point Remove watersheds.
and East Fork Point Remove segments have declined
over time. Additionally, in 2017 the ANRC and the Lake
Conway-Point Remove Watershed Alliance initiated a
monitoring and assessment project on the major tribu-
taries in the Lake Conway-Point Remove Watershed
to help develop a nine-element watershed-based plan.
These data have also shown lowered turbidity levels in
the West Fork and East Fork Point Remove segments.
The 2018 ADEQ water quality assessment indicates
that the West Fork Point Remove Watershed (segment
017 and segment 016) and East Fork Point Remove
Watershed (segment 014) now meet the state's water
quality standard for turbidity (Figure 3). Therefore,
ADEQ has proposed removing these three reaches
from the draft Arkansas 2018 CWA section 303(d) list
of impaired waters for turbidity.
Partners and Funding
Many partners have contributed to the improve-
ment of the West Fork and East Fork Point Remove
Watershed segments. The NRCS invested funds
through the EQIP and MRBi programs into pollution
control practices in the watershed. ANRC provided
$1,370,918 in EPA CWA section 319 funds to support
water quality improvement and assessment projects,
including numerous projects led by the nonprofit
Equilibrium. Other partners have invested money,
resources, and in-kind match, including Lake Conway-
Point Remove Alliance, Point Remove Wetlands
Reclamation and irrigation District, the Conway County
Conservation District and local landowners.
0
PRO^°
s
©
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Office of Water
Washington, DC
EPA 841-F-19-001X
October 2019
For additional information contact:
Robbie Alberson
Arkansas Natural Resources Commission
501-682-3917 • Robbie.Alberson@arkansas.gov
Tony Ramick
Arkansas Natural Resources Commission
501-682-3914 • tony.ramick@arkansas.gov

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