U.S. Department of the Interior U.S. Geological Survey

Transcription

1 Evaluation of stream quality and relations between stream biological conditions and environmental variables in urbanizing watersheds of northeastern Kansas Teresa Rasmussen, U.S. Geological Survey, Lawrence, Kansas Barry Poulton, U.S. Geological Survey, Columbia, Missouri Jennifer Graham, U.S. Geological Survey, Lawrence, Kansas U.S. Department of the Interior U.S. Geological Survey Great Plains Bioassessment Symposium, August 10, 2011

2 In Johnson County, Kansas population growth and identification of impairments has led to increasing interest in stream quality Human and environmental health Drinking water supply Recreation Aesthetic value National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permitting point and nonpoint sources 303(d) listings primarily related to excessive nutrients, sediment, bacteria Total maximum daily loads (TMDLs) Nutrients Indicator bacteria Sediment Dissolved oxygen Chloride Biology

3 Cooperative water-quality program between the USGS and Johnson County Public Works (Stormwater/Wastewater), General objectives: Characterize and document quality of Johnson County streams Monitor changes in stream quality Provide information for developing effective water- quality management plans Help meet requirements of the Clean Water Act More specifically: Identify chemical and sediment source areas Estimate chemical concentrations and loads Evaluate effects of urbanization on stream quality Characterize urbanization effects on sediment transport Describe effects of wastewater effluent and treatment upgrades on stream biological communities Characterize relations between environmental variables and stream biological communities

4 Watersheds in Johnson County, Kansas Areas ranging from 10 to 200 km 2 Similar topography and soils Headwaters included Urban, urbanizing, and rural land uses Some streams affected by wastewater discharge

5 Widespread water and streambed-sediment sampling to describe watersheds and identify contaminant sources, Collected 2 synoptic baseflow samples from about 45 stream sites (Nov 2002, July 2003) and stormflow samples at 6 sites Measured streamflow, suspended sediment, dissolved solids and major ions, nutrients, indicator bacteria, pesticides, wastewater compounds, pharmaceuticals Collected streambed sediment samples from 15 sites

6 General characterization of watersheds and contaminant sources Storm runoff was the largest source of indicator bacteria Indicator bacteria densities during baseflow were larger in urban areas upstream from wastewater discharges than in rural areas During baseflow, urban streams had the largest number of pesticides and rural streams had the largest concentrations of pesticides During baseflow wastewater discharges were the primary source of contaminants including nutrients, dissolved solids, pesticides, and wastewater indicator compounds Concentrations of nutrients, some metals, and wastewater-indicator compounds in sediment were largest directly downstream from wastewater discharges Streamflow in 6 watersheds was comprised of at least 50% wastewater effluent during baseflow Lee and others,

7 Continuous waterquality monitoring to compute chemical concentrations and loads Monitors installed at downstream site in the 5 largest watersheds representing urban, urbanizing, and rural watersheds

8 Continuous water-quality monitoring Example: Computed suspended sediment concentration (SSC), Mill Creek Continuously measure streamflow and in-stream specific conductance, ph, temperature, turbidity, and dissolved oxygen Collect discrete water samples throughout range of conditions and analyze for sediment, nutrients, bacteria, major ions Develop regression models for sediment, nutrients, bacteria, major ions Provide continuous concentrations and loads based on in-stream sensor measurements and regression models

9 Continuous monitoring provides real-time information about contaminant concentrations and probability of exceeding established water-quality criteria The probability of exceeding primary contact criteria for E. coli was nearly 100% during four runoff events in June

10 Continuous monitoring describes variability in water quality During a 3-day storm runoff period in June 2005, over 50% of the total annual sediment load occurred in the Blue River. Rasmussen and others,

11 Continuous monitoring quantifies water-quality concentrations, loads, and yields At least 90% of the sediment transported in the county s 5 largest watersheds during occurred in less than 2 percent of the time (during large streamflows). The largest sediment yield occurred in the most urban watershed (Indian Creek). Blue Cedar Indian Kill Mill Rasmussen and others,

12 Continuous monitoring provides real-time information for evaluating biological conditions During , DO was less than 5 mg/l during less than 5% of the time at all 5 sites except Blue (8%) and Indian (15%). KDHE criterion Rasmussen and others,

13 Nutrient load, tons Continuous monitoring provides basis for comparing loading sources During , at least 1/3 of the Blue River annual TN load and 2/3 of the Indian Creek TN load originated from WWTFs. Blue River Indian Creek TN TP TN TP Less than 3% of the annual indicator bacteria load in the Blue River and Indian Creek originated from wastewater discharge. Rasmussen and others,

14 Focused studies have improved understanding of particular stream issues Sediment transport in Mill Creek Larger, extended turbidity conditions occurred at sites affected by construction Despite existing controls, substantially larger sediment yields occurred downstream from construction Sediment concentrations at construction-affected sites were larger during both stormflow and low-flow conditions Johnson County s oldest and most urban watershed transported double the sediment of similar-sized urbanizing and nonurban watersheds because of increased runoff and streambed and bank erosion Lee and others,

15 Focused studies have improved understanding of particular stream issues Effects of wastewater effluent on the Blue River Nutrient concentrations in the upper Blue River downstream from wastewater discharge decreased by 30 to 50 percent after nutrient removal was added to the treatment process Despite decreases in nutrient concentrations, nutrient concentrations were still 4 to 15 times larger downstream from the WWTF than upstream during below-normal and normal streamflows (about 75% of the time) Abundance of aquatic organisms tolerant of degraded water-quality conditions increased downstream from the WWTF As shown by stream metabolism, the effects of wastewater discharge in the upper Blue River did not cause persistent declines in overall stream health Graham and others,

16 Biological monitoring to characterize stream health and evaluate relations between environmental factors and stream condition Collect data every 2-3 years at 20 sites representing: 11 largest watersheds 9 rural sites 11 urban sites 1 state reference site 8 sites affected by wastewater 7 sites with streamflow gages

17 Biological, chemical, and physical factors used to characterize and evaluate streams Macroinvertebrate and periphyton communities Land use/land cover Habitat variables Streamflow metrics Continuous water-quality data Suspended sediment Nutrients Dissolved solids and major ions Indicator bacteria Pesticides Wastewater-indicator and other organic compounds

18 Several factors related to urbanization were important in explaining biological stream condition As percent impervious surface increased, biological quality decreased Rural sites contained more diversity and urban sites had more pollution-tolerant insects Sites were distinctly different on the basis of land use Poulton and others,

19 Important factors in explaining biological stream condition Environmental factors most strongly correlated (Spearman, p<0.001) with favorable metric scores included: Amount of upstream urbanization (-) Dissolved solids in stream water (-) Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in streambed sediment (-) Habitat measures related to healthy buffer conditions (+), substrate diversity (+), and sediment deposition (-) Rasmussen and others,

20 Important factors in explaining biological stream condition Other environmental factors correlated with favorable invertebrate metric scores (Spearman, p<0.05) included: Nutrient concentrations in water and sediment (-) Streamflow metrics related to magnitude and duration of low flow conditions (-), frequency and duration of pulses (-), magnitude and rate of change (-) Total habitat score (+) Periphyton data helped characterize stream conditions but did not clearly differentiate between sites because: Periphyton community differences were relatively small Similar substrate composition and light availability Rasmussen and others,

21 Important factors in explaining biological stream condition 85 percent of the variance in invertebrate communities may be explained by specific conductance of stream water, upstream impervious surface area, and stream sinuosity (according to Primer s BEST feature) Rasmussen and others,

22 Important factors for improving stream quality Stream management practices that may be most important for preserving or improving stream quality in Johnson County, Kansas include: Protecting stream corridors Improving streambed conditions by reducing sediment in streams Taking measures to reduce the effects of impervious surfaces

23 References Graham, J.L., Stone, J.L., Rasmussen, T.J., and Poulton, B.C., 2010, Effects of wastewater effluent discharge and treatment facility upgrades on environmental and biological conditions of the upper Blue River, Johnson County, Kansas and Jackson County, Missouri, January 2003 through March 2009: U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Report , 85 p. Lee, C.J., Mau, D.P., and Rasmussen, T.J., 2005, Effects of point and nonpoint sources on water quality and relation to land use in Johnson County, northeastern Kansas, October 2002 through June 2004, USGS Scientific Investigations Report , 104 p. Lee, C.J., Rasmussen, P.P., Ziegler, A.C., and Fuller, C.F., 2009, Transport and sources of suspended sediment in the Mill Creek Watershed, Johnson County, northeast Kansas, , USGS Scientific Investigations Report , 52 p. Lee, C.J., and Ziegler, A.C., 2010, Effects of urbanization, construction activity, management practices, and impoundments on suspended-sediment transport in Johnson County, northeast Kansas, February 2006 through November 2008: U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Report , 54 p. Poulton, B.P., Rasmussen, T.J., and Lee, C.J., 2007, Assessment of biological conditions at selected stream sites in Johnson County, Kansas, and Cass and Jackson Counties, Missouri, 2003 and 2004, USGS Scientific Investigations Report , 68 p. Rasmussen, T.J., Ziegler, A.C., and Rasmussen, P.P., 2005, Estimation of constituent concentrations, densities, loads, and yields in the lower Kansas River, northeastern Kansas, using regression models and continuous water-quality monitoring, January 2000 through December 2003, USGS Scientific Investigations Report , 117 p. Rasmussen, T.J., Lee, C.J., and Ziegler, A.C., 2008, Estimation of constituent concentrations, loads, and yields in streams of Johnson County, northeast Kansas, using continuous water-quality monitoring and regression models, October 2002 through December 2006, USGS Scientific Investigations Report , 103 p. Wilkison, D.H., Armstrong, D.J., Norman, R.D., Poulton, B.C., Furlong, E.T., and Zaugg, S.D., 2006, Water quality in the Blue River Basin, Kansas City metropolitan area, Missouri and Kansas, July 1998 to October 2004, USGS Scientific Investigations Report , 170 p.

24 For more information Teresa Rasmussen (785)