Middle Fork Holston, Virginia - Nonpoint Source Success Story

Snapshot

Located approximately ten miles east of Abingdon in Washington County, Virginia, Cedar, Hall, Byers, and hutton Creeks all drain into the Middle Fork Holston River. In 1998, Cedar, Hall, Byers, and hutton Creeks were identified as impaired and placed on the 303(d) List of Impaired Waters for exceedances of the fecal coliform water quality quality standard and for general water quality impairments. An implementation plan was developed in 2001 by the Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation (VDCR), supported by EPA with Nonpoint Source Program Section 319 funding. The Holston River Soil and Water Conservation District (HRSWCD) agree to take on the responsibility of overseeing both the agricultural and residential programs during implementation in accordance to the five-year timeline. Bacteria water quality violations of the 1,000 cfu/100 ml instantaneous standard for fecal coliform were reduced by an annual average of 50% during the period of 2000 to 2004 in Hutton Creek.

Background

In 1998, Cedar, Hall, Byers, and Hutton Creeks were identified as impaired and placed on the 303(d) List of Impaired Waters for exceedances of the fecal coliform water quality standard and general water quality standard impairments. The fecal coliform Total Maximum Daily Loads (TMDLs) were approved in 2000 and the benthic TMDLs were approved in 2003. TMDLs describe the load reductions necessary to achieve water quality goals.

Land Uses

Replacing a failing septic system

The Cedar, Hall, Byers, and Hutton Creek Watersheds consist of 21,770 acres and the predominant land uses are agriculture (60%), urban and residential land (13%), and forest (18%). The total number of sheep, horses, beef cows, dairy heifers, and dairy cows in the watersheds is 6,590. There are 1,139 septic systems serving residents and businesses in the watershed.

Implementation Plan

An implementation plan was developed in 2001 by the VDCR, supported by EPA with Nonpoint Source Program Section 319 funding with the goal of achieving the required reductions and restoring these waters to full health within six to ten years. The best management practices (BMPs) identified in the plan included livestock exclusion from streams within all impairments, identifying and correcting failing septic systems and straight pipes conveying human waste to the streams, along with a 10% reduction of fecal coliform runoff from pasture and hayfields in the hutton Creek Watershed. During the development of the implementation plan, public meetings, focus groups (i.e., agricultural, residential, and government), and a steering committee allowed opportunity for public involvement.

The Holston River Soil and Water Conservation District (HRSWCD) agree to take on the responsibility of overseeing both the agricultural and residential programs during implementation in accordance to the five-year timeline. Virginia's preferred strategy for controlling nonpoint sources of pollution has been and continues to rely on voluntary efforts.

Urban Restoration Actions

Home owners in the watershed are cooperating to reduce the loading to the creek by managing their on-site wastewater treatment systems. As of December 2004, 120 septic tanks have been pumped and 16 on-site sewage disposal systems have been upgraded by either connecting to public sewer, replacing straight pipes, and by repairing or replacing failing septic systems.

Agricultural Restoration Actions

Farmers have also been busy implementing BMPs. As of December 2004, this included the installation of 14.2 miles of stream fencing (36% of the implementation plan stream fencing goal) along with livestock grazing management systems that not only include stream fencing but watering sources, travel lanes, and cross fencing for grazing paddocks. Approximately 3,588 acres of pasture have been improved, and 13 acres of riparian buffers were planted in Hutton Creek.

data plots For a number of years, USDA efforts through various programs offered by the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) have been directed toward water quality improvement in this area. Operating under the Watershed Protection and Flood Prevention Act (PL-566), NRCS established the Three Creeks watershed project in 1990 (Cedar, Hall/Byers, and Hutton). To date, 54 long-term contracts with producers have been developed to allocate approximately $555,300 to install needed BMPs. The Environmental Quality Incentive Program (EQIP) has also been used quite successfully in the watersheds. Contracts totaling approximately $1.4 million have been approved. A large percentage of these funds have been directed to several large animal waste facilities on dairy and beef operations. In addition, local efforts by the HRSWCD and USDA partners have successfully enrolled over 9 producers in the Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program (CREP) by providing $101,822 in funding. This is a federal/state effort administered by the USDA Farm Service Agency and the VDCR. This program has been used to establish fenced riparian buffers along streams in the watersheds. From the start of the implementation project in September 2001 through December 2004, $607.068 from Section 319 funding has been spent, $282,068 for technical assistance/educational activities and $325,000 for installation of BMPs. During this time, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Tennessee Valley Authority have provided $23,111 in BMP funding. Additional nonpoint source management program funding has been earmarked to complete implementation of the Middle Fork watershed plan. After five years of continuous implementation, the status of implementation will be assessed to determine if additional funding is needed to attain water quality standards.

Results

The Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) monitors the impaired streams through the agency's ambient monitoring program. This monitoring is used to gauge the success of the implementation. Bacteria water quality violations of the 1,000 colony-forming units/100 ml instantaneous standard for fecal coliform were reduced by an annual average of 50% during the period of 2000 to 2004 in Hutton Creek. The plot below illustrate DEQ's monitoring in the Byers, Cedar, and Hutton Creek watersheds for the period of 2000 through 2004. Although monitoring frequency has varied throughout this period, it can be seen that extreme high fecal coliform values have decreased in all three watersheds since the beginning of implementation efforts in 2001. Continued monitoring will be needed to establish a statistically-significant trend in violation rates and to verify a sustained decrease in fecal coliform concentrations, but initial results show implementation is improving water quality.

Mid-Atlantic Nonpoint Source Pollution Initiative

EPA Region 3
Philadelphia, PA 19103
EPA/903/F/05/004D
May 2005

For more information on nonpoint source pollution, TMDLs and restoration practices, please check out EPA's Region 3 Nonpoint Source Program web page.

Partnerships and Coordination

Clean Water Cooperator for Three Creeks TMDL Implementation Project

Natural Resources Conservation Service
Tennessee Valley Authority
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Virginia Department of Health
Virginia Department of Environmental Quality
Holston River Soil and Water Conservation District
Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Region 3

Contact Information

Anthony Summitt (anthony.summitt@vaswcd.org)

Shauna Russell (shauna.russell@va.nacdnet.net)
276-628-8187

Holston River Soil and Water Conservation District
448 Commerce Drive
Abingdon, VA 25211

Fred Suffian (suffian.fred@epa.gov)
215-814-5753
U.S. EPA Region 3
1650 Arch Street
Philadelphia, PA 19103

Charles Lunsford (charles.lunsford@dcr.virginia.gov)
804-786-3199
Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation
203 Governor Street
Suite 213
Richmond, VA 23219-2094

Ken Carter (Ken.Carter@va.usda.gov)
804-287-1690
Natural Resource Conservation Service

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