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Conservation Practices Improve Water Quality in Brazil treek

Waterbody Improved LoW c"sso'vec' oxV§en (DO) concentrations resulted in impairment

of Brazil Creek and placement on Oklahoma's Clean Water Act
(CWA) section 303(d) list of impaired waters in 2002. Pollution from crop, grazing and forested lands
contributed to this impairment. Implementing conservation practice systems (CPs) to promote
better land management decreased runoff of sediment, nutrients, and other oxygen-demanding
substances and resulted in improved oxygen levels. As a result, Oklahoma removed the DO
impairment from Brazil Creek in 2008 from its CWA section 303(d) list.

Problem

The Brazil Creek Watershed covers approximately
156,448 acres (ac) in Haskell, Latimer, and LeFlore
counties in Oklahoma (Figure 1). The improved portion
of Brazil Creek drains from the creek's headwaters
near the town of Red Oak in Haskell County to the
confluence with the Poteau River near the town of
Shady Point in Leflore County. Land use in the water-
shed is about 38 percent grazing lands (managed
pasture and rangeland), and 57 percent forested and
shrubland. Less than one percent of the watershed is
in cropland. The watershed is also home to more than
30 contracted poultry growing operations, producing
around 3.3 million broilers per year, the majority of
which were built between 1998 and 2005. The primary
agricultural products from the watershed are broiler
chickens, cattle and hay. In addition, a significant
number of natural gas wells exist in the upper portion
of the watershed.

Water quality monitoring conducted between the iate
1990s and the m!d-2000s determined that challenges
with grazing lands, animal waste, and forest manage-
ment contributed to a 2002 listing of the 17.83-mile
stream as being Impaired by low DO. Data showed that
16 percent of samples were below the DO standard.
A waterbody is considered Impaired for DO if more
than 10 percent of samples fall below the "not attain-
ing" criteria of 5.0 milligrams per liter (mg/L) from
April 1 through June 15 or below 4.0 mg/L during the
remainder of the year. A waterbody is considered fully
supporting if less than 10 percent of samples have DO
values less than the "attaining" of 6 mg/L from April 1
through June 15 or below 5.0 mg/L the remainder of

Figure 1. I he Brazil Creek watershed is in southeastern
Oklahoma.

the year. A waterbody that falls between these two
cases is considered undetermined. Based on these
results, Oklahoma added segment 220100030010_00
to the CWA section 303(d) lists In 2002 for nonattain-
ment of the Warm Water Aquatic Community (WWAC)
beneficial use.

Story Highlights

More than 110 landowners In the watershed worked
with the Haskeli, Latimer, and LeFiore county conser-
vation districts; the Natural Resources Conservation
Service (NRCS); and the Oklahoma Conservation
Commission (OCC) to implement CPs through
Oklahoma NRCS's Environmental Quality Incentives
Program (EQIP), Conservation Stewardship Program
(CStwP), and general conservation technical assistance

Legend

¦it Towns

Monitoring Site

Brazil Stream Order

Brazil Creek Watershed

County Boundaries

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program, and through the OCC's State Cost Share
Program (SCSP). From 2002 to 2020, landowners
improved grazing and animal waste management,
which reduced runoff of sediment, nutrients and other
pollutants by increasing vegetative cover and reducing
bare soil and by protecting animal waste from runoff.

Landowners implemented riparian forest buffers (143
ac), brush management (1,053 ac), cover crops (67 ac),
critical area planting (12 ac), fencing (90,887 feet [ft]),
forage harvest management (121 ac), firebreak (12,693
ft), heavy use area protection (1,707 square feet), her-
baceous weed control (55 ac), comprehensive nutrient
management plans (13 plans), nutrient management
(1,328 ac), pasture and hayland planting (1,126 ac),
pest management (739 ac), ponds (33 ponds), animal
mortality/composting structures (7 structures), pre-
scribed burning (150 ac), prescribed grazing (3,091 ac),
seasonal high tunnels (2 tunnels), tree planting (18 ac),
roofs and covers (2 systems), upland wildlife habitat
management (17 ac), waste facilities (13 structures),
waste recycling (709 tons), watering facility (1 tank),
water well (1 well), and well decommissioning (1
well). In addition, at least 1,028 acres were enrolled
in CStwP, which facilitated additional practices to
improve animal waste; grazing management; and soil,
nutrient, and energy management.

Results

The OCC documented improved water quality in
Brazil Creek due to installation of CPs through its
statewide nonpoint source Rotating Basin Ambient
Monitoring Program. By 2008, the DO concentra-
tions had improved such that less than 10 percent of
the measured values were below the "not attaining"
criteria (Figure 2). More than 10 percent of samples
were below the "attaining" criteria; therefore, Brazil
Creek is considered undetermined with respect to
DO. However, many streams in this portion of the
ecoregion are considered undetermined for DO; it is
believed to be a naturally occurring condition. Brazil
Creek is now considered to be a category 2 stream;
attainment of its WWAC beneficial use is undeter-
mined due to DO, although fully supported for all
other WWAC parameters and all other assessed uses.

Brazil Creek Dissolved Oxygen

% exceeds: 16.3 17.1 11.1 9.5 5.3 5.0	4.:

I I I «

* * I	I

4-4

2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014 2016 2018 2020 2022 2024

Figure 2. Levels of DO in Brazil Creek improved with
the installation of CPs.

Partners and Funding

The OCC monitoring program is supported by U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA's) CWA
section 319 funding at an average annual statewide
cost of $1 million. Approximately $500,000 in EPA 319
funds support statewide water quality educational
efforts through Blue Thumb. Approximately $376,519
of these federal and state matching funds have been
devoted to Brazil Creek.

From 2002 to 2020, NRCS invested a minimum of
$361,000 for CP implementation in Oklahoma through
EQIP; additional financial assistance was provided
through CStwP. In addition, many practices were
funded by landowners based on recommendations
through NRCS general technical assistance. Finally, the
OCC; Haskell, Latimer, and LeFlore county conservation
districts; and landowners funded more than $115,163
worth of CPs (at least $56,462 of which was funded by
landowners through the SCSP).

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U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Office of Water
Washington, DC

EPA 841-F-22-001W
November 2022

For additional information contact:

Shanon J Phillips

Oklahoma Conservation Commission
405-522-4728 • shanon.phillips@conservation.ok.gov

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