RUDSDALE CREEK CATCHMENT

Transcription

1 The RVCA produces individual reports for 14 catchments in the Tay River Subwatershed. Using data collected and analysed by the RVCA through its watershed monitoring and land cover classification programs, surface water quality conditions are reported for Rudsdale Creek along with a summary of environmental conditions for the surrounding countryside every six years. This information is used to help better understand the effects of human activity on our water resources, allows us to better track environmental change over time and helps focus watershed management actions where they are needed the most. The following pages of this report are a compilation of that work. For other Tay River Catchments and the Tay River Subwatershed Report, please visit the RVCA website at Inside 1. Surface Water Quality Conditions 2 Rudsdale Creek 2 2. Riparian Conditions 5 Overbank Zone 5 Shoreline Zone 6 Instream Aquatic Habitat 7 3. Land Cover Stewardship & Protection 13 Catchment Facts and Opportunities The creek flows through the OMYA Canada site which is one the largest industrial complexes in the Tay River Subwatershed The Highway 7 corridor bisects the catchment Although there are occasional severances in the catchment area, there are no significant development pressures. Mississippi-Rideau Source Protection Assessment Report indicates that the shallowest upper bedrock aquifer is highly vulnerable to land-use activities due to thin soil cover Situated in part of the Algonquin Highlands, an ancient geologic region of hilly bedrock made up of such Precambrian rocks as marble, conglomerates, and dark or colour banded granite-like rocks. An area of younger sandstone is located within the southern section of the catchment. A veneer of glacial drift (glacial till, sand etc.) overlies the bedrock except in the southern part of the catchment where bedrock is overlain by larger expanses of glacial till and clay 100% of the catchment falls within Tay Valley Township, Drains 62 sq. km of land or 7.7% of the Tay River Subwatershed and 1.5% of the Rideau Valley Watershed Dominant land cover is woodland (52%) followed by crop and pastureland (28%), wetland (10%), grassland (5%), settlement (3%), roads (1%) and water (1%) Riparian buffer (30 m. wide along both sides of Rudsdale Creek) is comprised of woodland (41%), wetland (33%), crop and pastureland (18%), grassland (5%), settlement (2%) and roads (1%) Contains a cool/warm water baitfish and recreational fishery with 21 fish species Water quality rating along Rudsdale Creek is fair MOE well records indicate there are 348 private water wells or 8% of all wells in the Tay River Subwatershed Ducks Unlimited Canada holds four Permits to Take Water to store surface waters for wetland habitat Fourteen stewardship (landowner tree planting/clean water) projects have been completed Continue to use the Development, Interference with Wetlands and Alterations to Shorelines and Watercourses Regulation (Ontario Regulation 174/06 under Section 28 of the Conservation Authorities Act) to regulate watercourse alterations Target riparian restoration at sites identified in this report (as shown in Figures 25 and 29) and explore other restoration and enhancement opportunities along Rudsdale Creek, including the section flowing through the OMYA site Refer to the Existing Conditions and Trends in the Tay River Watershed (2000) and the Tay River Watershed Management Plan (2002) for more issues and action opportunities

2 RUDSDALE CREEK SURFACE WATER QUALITY CONDITIONS Page 2 Introduction RVCA has adopted the Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment Water Quality Index (CCME WQI) to provide an overall measure of surface water quality in Tay River catchments using a rating for water quality ranging from Very Poor, Poor, Fair, Good to Very Good. WQI scores for lakes and streams are based on how often, how many and by how much sample results for each parameter exceed established water quality guidelines. In applying the CCME WQI, the RVCA has selected five parameters that are available for all lakes in the Tay Subwatershed: total Kjeldahl nitrogen (TKN), total phosphorus (TP), ph (acidity), water clarity (Secchi depth) and dissolved oxygen (for fish habitat). Assessment of streams is based on 21 parameters available for all Tay watercourses including nutrients (total phosphorus, total Kjeldahl nitrogen, nitrates), E. coli, metals (like cadmium and copper) and additional chemical/physical parameters (like alkalinity, chlorides, ph and total suspended solids). Nutrients Total phosphorus (TP) is used as an indicator of excessive nutrient loading which may result in abundant vegetation growth and impact dissolved oxygen levels. Fifty percent of samples analyzed for TP exceeded the PWQO of mg/l, the average concentration of TP in the creek is mg/l (75th percentile mg/l), (Fig. 2). This data shows that total phosphorus concentrations are frequently high in the creek; which indicates excessive nutrient enrichment and may result in negative impacts to the aesthetic and environmental quality of Rudsdale Creek. 1) Rudsdale Creek Water Quality Surface water quality conditions in Rudsdale Creek are monitored through the RVCA s Surface Water Quality Program and Benthic Invertebrate Monitoring Program (at Christie Lake Road Crossing) (see Fig. 1 for their location). The water quality rating for Rudsdale Creek is Fair using the Water Quality Index and is based on data for nutrients, E. coli, metals and additional chemical/physical parameters. Figure 2. Rudsdale Creek total phosphorus concentrations Total Kjeldahl nitrogen (TKN) is used as a secondary indicator of excessive nutrient loading which can result in abundant vegetation and depleted oxygen levels. The majority of samples (ninety-two percent) analyzed for TKN exceeded RVCA's guideline of 0.50 mg/l with an average concentration of mg/l (75th percentile 1.01 mg/l), (Fig. 3). Given the potential for TKN concentrations Figure 1. Rudsdale Creek water quality rating Figure 3. Rudsdale Creek total Kjeldahl nitrogen concentrations

3 RUDSDALE CREEK SURFACE WATER QUALITY CONDITIONS Page 3 to be high it is important that measures are taken to reduce overall contributions to Rudsdale creek. The combination of available phosphorus and excessive nitrogen increase the potential for abundant vegetation and algae blooms leading to depleted oxygen and these species die off and decay, which may impact aquatic life in the stream. E. coli E. coli is used as an indicator of bacterial pollution from human or animal waste; in elevated concentrations it can pose a risk to human health. Thirty-three percent of samples (Fig. 4) analyzed exceeded the PWQO of 100 colony forming units/100 mililitres (CFU/100ml). The average count is above this guideline at 118 CFU/100ml (geometric mean 57 CFU/100ml). This data shows that bacterial counts in the creek can be quite variable and that high levels do occasionally occur. Efforts should be made to reduce runoff that may be contributing to excessive E. coli levels to improve the overall health of the creek. Figure 5. Iron concentration in Rudsdale Creek Figure 6. Copper concentrations in Rudsdale Creek Figure 4. E.coli concentrations in Rudsdale Creek Metals Of the metals routinely monitored in Rudsdale Creek, iron (Fe) and copper (Cu) both reported concentrations above their respective PWQO. In elevated concentrations these metals can have toxic effects on aquatic species and be harmful to human health. Seventy-five percent of samples (Fig. 5) analyzed for iron exceeded the PWQO of mg/l with an average concentration of 1.11 mg/l (75th percentile mg/l). Thirty-four percent of copper samples (Fig. 6) exceeded the PWQO of mg/l with an average concentrations of mg/l (75th percentile mg/l). The high concentrations of Fe and occasional elevated Cu indicates that there may be some instance of pollution upstream that could be contributing to these elevated levels of metal. If possible efforts should be made to reduce sources of upstream loadings. Benthic Invertebrates Freshwater benthic invertebrates are animals without backbones that live on the stream bottom and include crustaceans such as crayfish, molluscs and immature forms of aquatic insects. Benthos represent an extremely diverse group of aquatic animals and exhibit wide ranges of responses to stressors such as organic pollutants, sediments and toxicants, which allows scientists to use them as bioindicators. As part of the Ontario Benthic Biomonitoring Network (OBBN), the RVCA has been collecting benthic invertebrates at one location on Rudsdale Creek since Monitoring data is analyzed and the results are

4 RUDSDALE CREEK SURFACE WATER QUALITY CONDITIONS Page 4 presented using the Family Biotic Index, Family Richness. and percent Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera and Trichoptera. The Hilsenhoff Family Biotic Index (FBI) is an indicator of organic and nutrient pollution and provides an estimate of water quality conditions for each site using established pollution tolerance values for benthic invertebrates. FBI results for Rudsdale Creek show that it has Poor to Fair water quality conditions for the period from 2005 to 2010 (Fig. 7) and scores an overall Fair surface water quality rating using a grading scheme developed by Conservation Authorities in Ontario for benthic invertebrates. Figure 8. Surface water quality conditions in Rudsdale Creek based on Family Richness Figure 7. Surface water quality conditions in Rudsdale Creek based on the Family Biotic Index Family Richness measures the health of the community through its diversity and increases with increasing habitat diversity suitability and healthy water quality conditions. Family Richness is equivalent to the total number of benthic invertebrate families found within a sample. Figure 9. Surface water quality conditions in Rudsdale Creek using the EPT Index Using Family Richness as an indicator, Rudsdale Creek is reported to have water quality ranging from Poor to Fair (Fig. 8). Ephemeroptera (Mayflies), Plecoptera (Stoneflies), and Trichoptera (Caddisflies) are species considered to be very sensitive to poor water quality conditions. High abundance of these organisms is generally an indication of good water quality conditions at a sample location. With the EPT indicator, Rudsdale Creek is reported to have Poor water quality conditions (Fig. 9) from 2005 to Overall Rudsdale Creek has a water quality rating of Fair from 2005 to Benthic sampling site replicate two on Rudsdale Creek, this image was captured in spring of 2009.

5 Page 5 2) a. Overbank Zone Riparian Buffer along Rudsdale Creek and Other Catchment Lakes and Tributaries Figure 10 shows the extent of the naturally vegetated riparian zone in the catchment, 30 metres either side of all waterbodies and watercourses. Results from the RVCA s Land Cover Classification Program show that 79 percent of streams, creeks and lakes are buffered with woodland, wetland and grassland; the remaining 21 percent of the riparian buffer is occupied by settlements and crop and pastureland. a minimum 30 metre wide vegetated buffer along at least 75 percent of the length of both sides of rivers, creeks and streams. Figure 11 demonstrates the buffer conditions of the left and right banks separately. The majority of Rudsdale Creek had a buffer of greater than 30 meters: 93 percent of the right bank and 97 percent of the left bank. Percentage (%) Rudsdale Creek Buffer Evaluation Left Bank Right Bank 0 0 5m 5 15m 15 30m >30m Buffer Width (m) Figure 11. Vegetated buffer width along Rudsdale Creek Land Use beside Rudsdale Creek Figure 10. Catchment land cover in the riparian zone Data from the RVCA s Macrostream Survey Program (Stream Characterization) is used in this section of the report and is generated from an assessment of 88 (100 metre long) sections along Rudsdale Creek. Riparian Buffer along Rudsdale Creek The RVCA s Macrostream Survey Program identifies nine different land uses beside Rudsdale Creek (Fig. 12). Surrounding land use is assessed from the beginning to the end of each 100 metre long survey section and up to 100 metres either side of the creek. Land use beyond this area is not surveyed, but is nonetheless part of the subwatershed and will influence the health of the creek. Natural areas made up 91 percent of the stream, characterized by wetland, forest, scrubland and meadow. The remaining land use consisted of residential, pasture, active agriculture, infrastructure, and industrial. Rudsdale Creek Adjacent Landuse The riparian or shoreline zone is that special area where the land meets the water. Well-vegetated shorelines are critically important in protecting water quality and creating healthy aquatic habitats, lakes and rivers. Natural shorelines intercept sediments and contaminants that could impact water quality conditions and harm fish habitat in streams. Well established buffers protect the banks against erosion, improve habitat for fish by shading and cooling the water and provide protection for birds and other wildlife that feed and rear young near water. 38% 3% 2% 12% 2%2% 19% 22% Active Agriculture Pasture Residential Forest Scrubland Meadow A recommended target (from Environment Canada s Guideline: How Much Habitat is Enough?) is to maintain Figure 12. Land use alongside Rudsdale Creek

6 Page 6 2) b. Shoreline Zone Erosion Erosion is a normal, important stream process and may not affect actual bank stability; however, excessive erosion and deposition of sediment within a stream can have a detrimental effect on important fish and wildlife habitat. Bank stability indicates how much soil has eroded from the bank into the stream. Poor bank stability can greatly contribute to the amount of sediment carried in a waterbody as well as loss of bank vegetation due to bank failure, resulting in trees falling into the stream and the potential to impact instream migration. Figure 13 shows the bank stability of the left and right banks along Rudsdale Creek. Figure 14. Undercut streambank along Rudsdale Creek Figure 13. Erosion along Rudsdale Creek Streambank Undercutting Undercut banks are a normal and natural part of stream function and can provide excellent refuge areas for fish. Figure 14 shows that Rudsdale Creek has several locations with identified undercut banks. Stream Shading Grasses, shrubs and trees all contribute towards shading a stream. Shade is important in moderating stream temperature, contributing to food supply and helping with nutrient reduction within a stream. Figure 15 shows the stream shading locations along Rudsdale Creek. Figure 15. Stream shading along Rudsdale Creek Human Alterations Figure 16 illustrates the classes of anthropogenic alterations observed along Rudsdale Creek. Of the 88 sections sampled, 64 percent of the creek remained without any human alteration. Sections considered natural, but with some anthropogenic changes made up 35 percent of the sections sampled, and 1 percent accounted for sections that were considered altered

7 Page 7 but still had natural features. There were no sections identified as highly altered along Rudsdale Creek. Rudsdale Creek Anthropogenic Changes 1% 35% Not Altered Altered (Natural) 64% Altered (altered) Figure 16. Alterations to Rudsdale Creek Overhanging Trees and Branches Figure 17 shows that the majority of Rudsdale Creek has varying levels of overhanging trees and branches. Overhanging branches and trees provide a food source, nutrients and shade. Figure 18. Instream woody debris The image above is a wetland feature on Rudsdale Creek. 2) c. Instream Aquatic Habitat Habitat Complexity Figure 17. Overhanging trees and branches along Rudsdale Creek Instream Woody Debris Figure 18 shows that the majority of Rudsdale Creek has varying levels of instream woody debris in the form of trees and branches. Instream woody debris is important for fish and benthic habitat, by providing refuge and feeding areas. Streams are naturally meandering systems and move over time, there are varying degrees of habitat complexity, depending on the creek. A high percentage of habitat complexity (heterogeneity) typically increases biodiversity of aquatic organisms within a system. Eighty-nine percent of Rudsdale Creek was considered heterogeneous, as shown in Figure 19. Instream Substrate Diverse substrate is important for fish and benthic invertebrates habitat because some species have specific

8 Page 8 Rudsdale Creek Instream Habitat Complexity 11% Homogenity Heterogenity 89% Figure 19. Instream habitat complexity in Rudsdale Creek. substrate requirements and for example will only reproduce on certain types of substrate. Figure 20 indicates a wide variety of substrate can be found along Rudsdale Creek. The dominant substrate consisted of silt at twenty-nine percent. 7% 13% 29% Rudsdale Creek Instream Substrate 6% 6% 8% 4% 4% 23% Figure 20. Instream substrate in Rudsdale Creek Bedrock Boulder Cobble Gravel Sand Silt Clay Muck Boulders create instream cover and back eddies for large fish to hide and/or rest out of the current. Cobble provides important over wintering and/or spawning habitat for small or juvenile fish. Cobble can also provide habitat conditions for benthic invertebrates that are a key food source for many fish and wildlife species. Figure 21 shows where cobble and boulder substrate is found in Rudsdale Creek. Instream Morphology Pools and riffles are important features for fish habitat. Riffles are areas of agitated water and they contribute higher dissolved oxygen to the stream and act as spawning substrate for some species of fish, such as walleye. Pools provide shelter for fish and can be refuge pools in the summer if water levels drop and water temperature in the creek increases. Pools also provide Figure 21. Instream cobble and boulder habitat along Rudsdale Creek important over wintering areas for fish. Runs are usually moderately shallow, with unagitated surfaces of water and areas where the thalweg (deepest part of the channel) is in the center of the channel. Figure 22 shows that Rudsdale Creek morphology is fairly uniform; Four percent pools, six percent riffles and ninety percent runs. Rusdale Creek Instream Morphology 90% 4% 6% Figure 22. Instream morphology in Rudsdale Creek Types of Instream Vegetation Pools Riffles Runs The majority of Rudsdale Creek had a high diversity of instream vegetation as seen in Figure 23. The dominant vegetation types recorded at thirty-four percent consisted of narrow emergent, while submerged vegetation was recorded at thirty-one percent. Algae was recorded at 17 percent. Seven percent recorded

9 Page 9 floating vegetation, while robust emergents were recorded at five percent. Free floating vegetation and broad-leaved emergents made up the remainder at six percent Rudsdale Creek Types of Instream Vegetation Riparian Restoration Figure 25 depicts the locations where various riparian restoration activities can be implemented as a result of observations made during the stream survey assessments. 17% Narrow Emergent 34% Broad Emergent Robust Free Floating Floating 31% 7% 3% 3% 5% Submerged Algae Figure 23. Instream vegetation types in Rudsdale Creek. Amount of Instream Vegetation Instream vegetation is an important factor for a healthy stream ecosystem. Vegetation helps to remove contaminants from the water, contributes oxygen to the stream, and provides habitat for fish and wildlife. Too much vegetation can also be detrimental. Figure 24 demonstrates that Rudsdale Creek has a healthy abundance of instream vegetation for most of its length. Seventy-five percent of the stream is considered to have common and normal levels of instream vegetation. Nine percent of the surveyed areas had extensive levels (choked with vegetation). These areas were primarily associated with beaver ponds, and eight percent of the system had rare or no instream vegetation observations recorded. 37% 8% Rudsdale Creek Instream Vegetation Abundance 6% 2% 9% Extensive (choked) Common (>50% Vegetation) Normal (25 50% Vegetation) Low (<25% 38% Vegetation) Rare (few) None Figure 24. Vegetation abundance in Rudsdale Creek Figure 25. Riparian restoration opportunities Invasive Species Invasive species can have major implications on streams and species diversity. Invasive species are one of the largest threats to ecosystems throughout Ontario and can outcompete native species, having negative effects on local wildlife, fish and plant populations. Sixty percent of the sections surveyed along Rudsdale Creek have invasive species (Fig. 26). The species observed in Rudsdale Creek is European frogbit (Hydrocharis morsus-ranae). Thermal Classification Temperature is an important parameter in streams as it influences many aspects of physical, chemical and biological health. Three temperature dataloggers were deployed in Rudsdale Creek from April to late September 2009 (Fig. 27) to give a representative sample of how water temperature fluctuates. Many factors can influence fluctuations in stream temperature, including springs, tributaries, precipitation runoff, discharge pipes and stream shading from riparian vegetation. Water temperature is used along with the maximum air temperature (using the Stoneman and Jones method) to classify a watercourse as either warmwater, coolwater or cold water. Analysis of the

10 Page 10 data collected indicates that Rudsdale Creek is a coolwater system. Figure 27. Temperature dataloggers along Rudsdale Creek Figure 26. Invasive species along Rudsdale Creek Fish Sampling Fish sampling sites located along Rudsdale Creek are shown in Figure 28. The provincial fish codes shown on the map below are listed (in Table 1) beside the common name of those fish species identified in Rudsdale Creek. Table 1. Fish species observed in Rudsdale Creek. Bakil BnDac BnShi BnMin BrMin banded killifish blacknose dace blacknose shiner bluntnose minnow brassy minnow BrS BrBul CeMud CeSto CoShi brook s ckleback brown bullhead central mudminnow central stoneroller common shiner CrChu FhMin GoShi HhChu HY351 creek chub LnDac fathead minnow NRDac golden shiner Pumpk hornyhead chub RoBas darter spp WhSuc Figure 28. Fish species observed along Rudsdale Creek Migratory Obstructions longnose dace northern redbelly dace pumpkinseed rock bass white sucker It is important to know locations of migratory obstructions because these can prevent fish from accessing important spawning and rearing habitat. Migratory obstructions can be natural or manmade, and they can be permanent or seasonal. There are three within the Rudsdale Creek catchment at the time of the survey (Fig. 29): a beaver dam, a perched culvert and a large berm.

11 Page 11 Beaver dams are considered to be migratory obstructions, there were two on Rudsdale Creek. Figure 29. Migratory obstructions in Rudsdale Creek Water Chemistry During the macrostream survey, a YSI probe is used to collect water chemistry, as follows: Dissolved Oxygen is a measure of the amount of oxygen dissolved in water. The lowest acceptable concentration of dissolved oxygen is 6.0 mg/l for early stages of warmwater fish and 9.5 mg/l for cold water fish (CCME, 1999). A saturation value (concentration of oxygen in water) of 90% or above is considered healthy. Conductivity is the ability of a substance to transfer electricity. This measure is influenced by the presence of dissolved salts and other ions in the stream ph is a measure of relative acidity or alkalinity, ranging from 1 (most acidic) to 14 (most alkaline/ basic), with 7 occupying a neutral point. A giant berm found in the headwaters of Rudsdale Creek 2009 data for these three parameters is summarized in Table 2. Table Water chemistry collected along Rudsdale Creek Month Range DO (mg/l) DO (%) Conduc vity (µs/cm) ph June 09 low high A beaver lodge along Rudsdale Creek

12 LAND COVER Page 12 3) Land Cover Woodland is the dominant land cover type in the catchment as shown in Table 3 and displayed in the land cover map on the front cover of the report. figure referred to in the Environment Canada Guideline that is considered to be the minimum threshold for supporting edge intolerant bird species and other forest dwelling species in the landscape. Table 3. Catchment land cover type Cover Type Area (ha) Area (% of Cover) Woodland Crop & Pasture Wetland Grassland Settlement Roads 86 1 Water 60 1 Woodland Cover The Rudsdale Creek catchment contains 3208 hectares of woodland (Fig.30) that occupies 52 percent of the drainage area. This figure is greater than the 30 percent of woodland area required to sustain forest birds, according to Environment Canada s Guideline: How much habitat is enough? When forest cover declines below 30 percent, forest birds tend to disappear as breeders across the landscape. One hundred and seven (52%) of the 204 woodland patches in the catchment are very small, being less than one hectare in size. Another 70 (34%) of the wooded patches ranging from one to less than 20 hectares in size tend to be dominated by edge-tolerant bird species. The remaining 27 (14%) of woodland patches range between 21 and 528 hectares. Nineteen of these patches contain woodland between 20 and 100 hectares and may support a few area-sensitive species and some edge intolerant species, but will be dominated by edge tolerant species. Figure 30. Catchment woodland cover and forest interior Most patches (102) have less than 10 hectares of interior forest, 69 of which have small areas of interior forest habitat less than one hectare in size. Conversely, three patches have greater than 50 hectares of interior forest (at 56, 57 and 79 hectares respectively). Conversely, eight (4%) of the 204 woodland patches in the drainage area exceed the 100 plus hectare size needed to support most forest dependent, area sensitive birds. Four of these woodlands (from 100 to 200 ha.) are large enough to support approximately 60 percent of edge-intolerant species. The other four patches top 200 hectares, which according to the Environment Canada Guideline will support 80 percent of edge-intolerant forest bird species (including most area sensitive species) that prefer interior forest habitat conditions. Forest Interior The same 204 woodlands contain 119 forest interior patches (Fig.30) that occupy 11 percent (682 ha.) of the catchment land area. This meets the ten percent Figure 31. Pre-settlement and present day wetland cover

13 STEWARDSHIP AND PROTECTION Page 13 4) Stewardship and Protection The RVCA and its partners are working to protect and enhance environmental conditions in the Tay River Subwatershed. Rural Clean Water Projects Figure 32 shows the location of all Rural Clean Water Projects in the Rudsdale Creek drainage area. From 2005 to 2010, landowners completed 7 projects including 2 well decommissionings and 5 well upgrades. The total project cost is $8,779 with $4,404 of that amount funded by grant dollars received from the RVCA. Total project value is $63,435 with fundraised dollars contributing $32,990 of that amount. No trees were planted in the drainage area under the program from 2005 to Valley, Stream, Wetland and Hazard Land Regulation Limit and Source Water Protection Zones An extremely small area of the catchment (at less than 1 percent) is within the regulation limit of Ontario Regulation 174/06 (Fig. 33), giving protection to wetland areas and river or stream valleys that are affected by flooding and erosion hazards. Figure 33. RVCA regulation limits Figure 32. RVCA stewardship program project locations Prior to 2005, the RVCA completed 4 projects in the area consisting of 2 septic system repairs/ replacements, 1 well upgrade and 1 manure storage project. Total project cost is $23,512 with RVCA grant dollars contributing $7,346 towards that amount. Tree Planting Projects The location of tree planting projects is also shown in Figure 32. From 1984 to 2004, 30,400 trees were planted at 3 project sites through the RVCA Tree Planting Program. Within the regulation limit, development and site alteration require RVCA permission. The alteration to waterways provision of Ontario Regulation 174/06 applies to all watercourses. Also within the catchment drainage area is the Intake Protection Zone for Perth s water treatment plant. Zones where new policies will give protection to local municipal drinking water are shown in Figure 45 (zones scored eight to ten). Please refer to the Mississippi-Rideau Source Protection Plan at to see what activities are regulated in these areas.