Water-Quality Assessment of the Kentucky River Basin, Kentucky: Nutrients, Sediments, and Pesticides in Streams, 1987-90
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WATER-QUALITY ASSESSMENT OF THE KENTUCKY RIVER BASIN, KENTUCKY: NUTRIENTS, SEDIMENTS, AND PESTICIDES IN STREAMS, 1987-90 By Kirn H. Haag and Stephen D. Porter U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY Water-Resources Investigations Report 94-4227 Louisville, Kentucky 1995 U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR BRUCE BABBITT, Secretary U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY Gordon P. Eaton, Director For additional information write to: Copies of this report can be purchased from: District Chief U.S. Geological Survey U.S. Geological Survey Earth Science Information Center District Office Open-File Reports Section 2301 Bradley Avenue Box 25286, MS 517 Louisville, KY 40217 Denver Federal Center Denver, CO 80225 CONTENTS Page Abstract................................................................ 1 Introduction............................................................ 2 Purpose and scope.................................................. 3 Surface-water-quality issues in the Kentucky River Basin........... 4 Acknowledgments.................................................... 5 Description of the Kentucky River Basin................................. 5 Physiography and topography........................................ 7 Climate and hydrology.............................................. 7 Population and land use............................................ 9 Water use.......................................................... 14 Constituent sources and effects on surface-water quality................ 14 Nutrients.......................................................... 14 Sediments.......................................................... 15 Pesticides......................................................... 16 Assessment approach..................................................... 16 Design of field investigations..................................... 17 Methods of sample collection and processing........................ 23 Methods of laboratory analyses..................................... 24 Methods of data analysis and storage............................... 24 Quality assurance.................................................. 25 Compilation and analysis of ancillary data......................... 25 Assessment of nutrients, sediments, and pesticides in streams........... 27 Nutrients.......................................................... 27 Basin-scale distribution...................................... 27 Spatial and temporal distribution........................ 28 Estimation of nutrient loads and yields.................. 28 Relation of nutrients to discharge, other constituents, season, and atmospheric deposition..................... 37 Discharge and other constituents.................... 37 Season.............................................. 44 Atmospheric deposition.............................. 44 Subbasin-scale distribution................................... 45 Relation of nutrients to point-source discharges......... 45 Relation of nutrients to land use and soils.............. 62 Relation of nutrients to ground-water sources of constituents........................................... 68 Relation of nutrients to phytoplankton populations in the main stem.......................................... 72 Relation of nutrients to phytoplankton populations in tributary streams...................................... 82 Seasonal nutrient-phytoplankton relations................ 84 Temporal trends in nutrient concentrations.................... 84 Suspended sediments................................................ 88 Spatial and temporal distribution............................. 88 Estimation of suspended-sediment loads and yields............. 91 Relation of suspended-sediment concentrations to discharge.... 91 Relation of suspended-sediment concentrations to other constituents................................................ 98 iii CONTENTS--Continued Page Relation of suspended-sediment concentrations during low flow to land use and point sources.......................... 98 Temporal trends in suspended-sediment concentrations.......... 98 Pesticides......................................................... 102 Spatial distribution.......................................... 102 Detection in water samples............................... 102 Accumulation in streambed sediments ...................... 113 Occurrence of pesticides in fish and macroinvertebrate tissue...................................................... 117 Relation of pesticides to land uses and other human activities.................................................. 118 Agricultural land use.................................... 118 Urban land use........................................... 119 Summary and conclusions ................................................. 126 References cited........................................................ 129 ILLUSTRATIONS Figure 1. Map showing Kentucky River Basin............................. 6 2. Map showing physiographic regions of the Kentucky River Basin...................................................... 8 3. Graph of daily mean discharge and instantaneous discharge at time of sampling for the Kentucky River at Lock 2, April 1987 through March 1990.............................. 10 4. Flow-duration curves of discharge of the Kentucky River at Lock 2................................................. 11 5- 8. Maps showing: 5. Population, by county, In the Kentucky River Basin, 1990............................................ 12 6. Changes in population in counties in the Kentucky River Basin from 1980 to 1990.......................... 13 7. Location of fixed stations in the Kentucky River Basin.................................................. 18 8. Location of synoptic sites in the Kentucky River Basin sampled during August 24-28, 1987, and August 8-12, 1988...................................... 22 9. Boxplots of annual summary of total phosphorus and total nitrogen concentrations in the Kentucky River at Lock 2 and in Elkhorn Creek at Frankfort, Ky., April 1987-March 1990...................................... 33 10-14. Graphs showing: 10. Variations In mean monthly discharge and mean monthly total phosphorus concentration in the North Fork Kentucky River at Jackson, 1987-90.................... 39 11. Variations In mean monthly discharge and mean monthly total nitrogen concentration In the Kentucky River at Lock 2, 1987-90.................................... 40 Iv ILLUSTRATIONS--Continued Page 12. Relation between flow duration and total phosphorus concentration at the fixed stations in the Kentucky River Basin, 1987-90......................... 41 13. Relation between flow duration and nitrate nitrogen concentration at the fixed stations in the Kentucky River Basin, 1987-90......................... 42 14. Relation between flow duration and total nitrogen concentration at the fixed stations in the Kentucky River Basin, 1987-90......................... 43 15-27. Maps showing: 15. Instantaneous discharge from wastewater-treatment plants in the Kentucky River Basin, August 1991....... 54 16. Instantaneous loads of ammonia nitrogen from wastewater-treatment plants in the Kentucky River Basin, August 1991.............................. 55 17. Concentrations of total phosphorus at synoptic sites in the Kentucky River Basin, August 8-12, 1987........ 56 18. Concentrations of total ammonia nitrogen at synoptic sites in the Kentucky River Basin, August 8-12, 1987..................................... 57 19. Concentrations of dissolved nitrite plus nitrate nitrogen at synoptic sites in the Kentucky River Basin, August 8-12, 1987.............................. 58 20. Percentage of total stream discharge attributable to wastewater-treatment-plant discharge in subbasins of the Kentucky River Basin, August 1987.............. 59 21. Percentage of total nitrogen load attributable to wastewater-treatment-plant discharge in the Kentucky River Basin, August 1987..................... 60 22. Harvested cropland, by county, in the Kentucky River Basin, 1988........................................... 63 23. Numbers of beef cattle, by county, in the Kentucky River Basin, 1988..................................... 64 24. Tobacco production, by county, in the Kentucky River Basin, 1988........................................... 65 25. Sales of nitrogen fertilizers, by county, in the Kentucky River Basin, 1988............................ 66 26. Sales of phosphorus fertilizers, by county, in the Kentucky River Basin, 1988........................ 67 27. Characteristic phosphorus content of soils in the Kentucky River Basin.................................. 70 28. Graph of smoothed mean chlorophyll a and total phosphorus concentrations in the Kentucky River. Data points are means of values for August 1987 and August 1988............ 73 29. Graph of smoothed mean chlorophyll a and nitrite plus nitrate nitrogen concentrations in the Kentucky River. Data points are means of values for August 1987 and August 1988............................................ 74 ILLUSTRATIONS--Continued Page 30. Diagram showing location of major tributaries, navigation locks, and municipal wastewater-treatment plants (WWTP) with respect to the main stem of the Kentucky River............................................. 75 31-35. Graphs showing: 31. Smoothed mean chlorophyll a concentration and mean turbidity in the Kentucky River. Data points are means of values, for August 1987 and August 1988....... 76 32. Smoothed mean algal cell density and mean chlorophyll a concentration in the Kentucky River. Data points are means of