Pierce County 2010 Surface Water Report Card
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Transcript of Pierce County 2010 Surface Water Report Card
Pierce County Surface Water Management
Water Health Report Card and Stormwater Monitoring Results
Carla Vincent, Diane Klavano & Berl Eldridge
Monitoring Components
• Water Quality Monitoring
• Biological Monitoring (Aquatic Insects)
• Annual Water Quality Report Card
National Pollutant Discharge and Elimination System (NPDES) – Municipal Stormwater Discharge Monitoring
Water Quality Monitoring
• Collect monthly water samples from 60+ streams each year
• Analyze in field and lab
• Tells current conditions
• Helps identify where to focus resources & improvement efforts
• Use data in annual WQ Report Card
Test for Conventional WQ Parameters
• Phosphorus & Nitrogen • Total Suspended Solids
(TSS) • Turbidity • Fecal coliform bacteria • Dissolved Oxygen (DO) • pH • Temperature • Conductivity
Nisqually Watershed WQ Sampling Sites
Stream Monitoring Stations (MS) in Nisqually Watershed
• Horn Creek
• Lacamas Creek
• Lynch Creek
• Ohop Creek
• Tanwax Creek
Water Quality Index A TOOL USED TO COMPARE & REPORT COMPLEX WATER QUALITY MONITORING DATA
• Based on Ecology model
• Uses eight parameters to calculate WQI: temperature, pH, FC, DO, TSS, turbidity, total phosphorus, total Kjeldahl nitrogen
Pierce County Water Quality Index
Ecology has a rating curve for each parameter –
score based on where results are on curve Rating for temperature, pH, FC, DO is based on
state standards required to maintain beneficial uses, such as recreation, drinking water, and aquatic habitat (WAC 173-201A):
If no state standard, based on historic background
conditions in our region.
1. Convert each measurement to common scale;
2. Aggregate these into single monthly score; 3. Average twelve monthly scores
Steps:
Results:
Unitless number ranging from 1 to 100
Higher number
indicates better water quality.
• ≥80 Met expectations for water quality – lowest concern
• 40 – 80 marginal concern
• <40 Did not meet expectations – highest concern
Stream results www.piercecountywa.org/wqws
Overall Score 41 = MODERATE Blue = Good pH, temperature, turbidity, total suspended solids Yellow = Moderate Fecal, phosphorus Red = Poor nitrogen Three years of data available –annual scores on chart
Using Biological Indicators to Measure Stream Health
Benthic Index of Biotic Integrity (BIBI)
Collect & count the number & type of bugs living in the bottom of the stream
The number & type of bugs present indicate stream health
Great candidates for biological monitoring…
Benthic Macro invertebrates
Heptageniidae sp. (Mayfly larva)
Hydropsyche sp. (Caddis fly larva)
Perlodidae sp. (Stonefly larva)
(bottom-dwelling) (visible to naked eye) (no backbones)
Good Indicators of Water Quality
• Limited migration patterns–good indicators of local conditions
• Indicate effects of human impacts
• Easy to sample
• Many types, can classify by sensitivity to pollutants
The Tolerance Index (0 – 10)
most pollution sensitive e.g. Stoneflies
0 10
most pollution tolerant e.g. Midges & Leeches
Require high DO, clear water, rocky cobble substrate
Contain hemoglobin, tolerate lower DO, prefer soft substrate, less sensitive to toxins
Macro invertebrate Sampling: The Basics • Site selection & assessment – subset
of sites sampled annually
• Organism collection and preservation – Standardize habitat type – Standardize sampling method – Surber sampler
• Identification (Done in the lab) – Sample size – Fixed-count subsamples vs. “whole samples”
• Calculation (Done by the lab) – Select metrics – Calculate IBI score (0-50) – Compare to reference score
www.pugetstreambenthos.org
Repository of data from many jurisdictions
in Puget Sound – look under
Pierce County - Watershed Health Monitoring
BIBI Results
Nisqually Watershed BIBI Scores – From Pugetsoundbenthos.org
www.piercecountywa.org/wqws
• Assigns “grades” to 30+ streams in Pierce County where both WQI and BIBI data are available
• Grades are based on average of WQI and BIBI, adjusted if on Clean Water Act 303(d) list of impaired waters
Pierce County Surface Water Report Card
• Initial stream grade = Average of WQI and BIBI (adjusted to 0-100 scale)
• Reduced 1/3 grade for each factor on 303(d) list
• Often more than one factor that drives grade down.
Report Card Stream Grades
• Fennel Creek (upper & lower) – P & N,
• Diru Creek – P & N, fecal, BIBI is “poor”
• Rody Creek - P, BIBI is “poor”
• Swan Creek – P & N, fecal, pH, 303(d) listing
What Drives Grades Down (Examples)
Horn C-
Lacamas C+
Lynch B
Ohop C+
Tanwax C
Grades are FAIR to GOOD
2010 Grades – Nisqually Watershed
2010 Monitored Lakes
Thanks to the City of Lakewood Volunteer Lake Monitoring Program, Pierce Stream Team, UW-Tacoma, & Tacoma Pierce County Health Dept (SWM grant funded)
Lake Health Parameters
Final lake grade is average of a number of grades:
National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) – Phase 1 Municipal Stormwater Permit
• Part of federal Clean Water Act
• Administered by Ecology
• Annual Report due March 30 each year
Conventional
Total suspended solids Turbidity Conductivity Chloride Biochemical Oxygen Demand Hardness
Nutrients
Total phosphorus Orthophosphate Total Kjeldahl nitrogen Nitrate/nitrite
Metals
Zinc Lead Copper Cadmium Mercury
Other
Phthalates PCBs Phenol Total petroleum hydrocarbons Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons Fecal coliform Fish toxicity tests Surfactants Pesticides & Herbicides
Things Being Monitored in Stormwater
• Purpose: characterize effects of different land uses on stormwater runoff
• Low density residential – Lake Sylvia, west of Gig Harbor
• Commercial - 112th near Canyon Road – Summit View area
• High density residential - Collinswood – South Hill area
Outfall Monitoring (3 sites)
Automated sampler
High Density Residential Site 2010 – 2011 Wet Season Results
Conventional ParametersBOD (mg/L) Not detected - 3.3Chloride (mg/L) 5.5 - 8.0 yesTotal Hardness (mg/L) 18.1 - 44.2Total Suspended Solids (mg/L) 2.4 - 20.0Conductivity (umhos/cm) 99 - 130Turbidity (NTU) 1.6 - 6.1 yesSurfactants (mg/L) 0.08 - .13Metals (dissolved - not adjusted for hardness)Cadmium (µg/L) .02 - .08 yesCopper (µg/L) 1.4 - 2.3 yesLead (µg/L) .07 - .13 yesZinc (µg/L) .90 - 4.2 yesMercury (µg/L) Not detectedNutrientsOrthophosphate, as P (mg/L) .01 - .03Total Phosphorus (mg/L) 0.02 - .05TKN (mg/L) Not detected - 8.0Nitrate/Nitrite (mg/L) Not detected - .70
Herbicides & Pesticides (ug/L) Meets State WQ Std? 2,4-D, MCPP, Triclopyr, Diazinon, and Prometon Not detected Dichlobenil (ug/L) Not detected - 0.17 Malathion (ug/L) Not detected – 0.08 Chlorpyrifos Not detected yes
Other bis(2-Ethylhexyl)Phthalate (ug/L) 2.2B - 27.8 B Found in associated
blank - possible contamination
Other phthalates (ug/L) Not detected Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (ug/L) Not detected Pentachlorophenol--SIM (ug/L) Not detected yes
High Density Residential Site 2010 – 2011 Wet Season Results
• Monitoring effectiveness of different stormwater treatment technologies
• Monitoring 2 wetpond systems (Sunrise, Crimson Plats)
• Monitoring 2 ConTech Stormfilter systems (Canyon, Magnolia Plat) – 2 media types
• Comparing TSS, phosphorus, copper, zinc at inlet & outlet
Best Mgt. Practices Monitoring (4 sites)
• Effects of road salt on chloride levels – sampling in Kapowsin, Squally & Fennel Creeks (Puyallup Watershed)
• Effects of salmon carcass placement on benthic abundance/water quality – sampling on Little Mashel Creek (Nisqually Watershed), Kapowsin Creek.
• Working with Puyallup & Nisqually tribes
Program Effectiveness Monitoring (2 sites)
• Sprinker Recreation Area 2008 Green Infrastructure Project (Chambers-Clover Watershed)
• Study compares storm event peak flow rates & runoff volumes from permeable pavement vs. impermeable pavement + rain gardens
Flow reduction monitoring (1 site)
Water Quality Monitoring
• Water Quality Monitoring – Freshwater Streams & Lakes
• Biological Monitoring (Aquatic Insects)
• NPDES Projects Monitoring
• Public Information & Education
• NPDES Compliance
• Pollution Source Identification
• Status & Trends in Water Quality
• Strategic Planning
Resources & Contacts
www.piercecountywa.org/wqws
Carla Vincent, Water Quality Scientist
(253)798-2467 [email protected]
Berl Eldridge, Water Quality Specialist
(253)798-2248 [email protected]
Diane Klavano, Water Quality Specialist
(253)798-6822 [email protected]