Biological Assessment of the Rocky Gorge, Hammond Branch, and Dorsey Run Watersheds, Howard County, Maryland
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Biological Assessment of the Rocky Gorge, Hammond Branch, and Dorsey Run Watersheds, Howard County, Maryland Spring 2003 Index Period Tiber Branch UT to Patapsco River UT to Dorsey Run January 2004 Biological Assessment – Rocky Gorge, Dorsey Run, Hammond Branch – Spring 2003 Final Report Biological Assessment of the Rocky Gorge, Hammond Branch, and Dorsey Run Watersheds, Howard County, Maryland Spring 2003 Index Period Prepared for: Howard County, Maryland Department of Public Works Stormwater Management Division 6751 Columbia Gateway Dr., Ste. 514 Columbia, MD 21046-3143 Prepared by: Tetra Tech, Inc. 10045 Red Run Blvd., Ste. 110 Owings Mills, MD 21117-6102 ii Biological Assessment – Rocky Gorge, Dorsey Run, Hammond Branch – Spring 2003 Final Report Acknowledgement The principal authors of this report are Kristen L. Pavlik and James B. Stribling, both of Tetra Tech. They were also assisted by Erik W. Leppo. This document reports results from three of the six subwatersheds sampled during the Spring Index Period of the third year of biomonitoring by the Howard County Stormwater Management Division. Fieldwork was conducted by Tetra Tech staff including Kristen Pavlik, Colin Hill, David Bressler, and Jennifer Pitt. All laboratory sample processing was conducted by Carolina Gallardo, Shabaan Fundi, Curt Kleinsorg, Chad Bogues, Joey Rizzo, Elizabeth Yarborough, Jessica Garrish, Chris Hines, and Sara Waddell. Taxonomic identification was completed by Dr. R. Deedee Kathman and Todd Askegaard; Aquatic Resources Center (ARC). Hunt Loftin, Linda Shook, and Brenda Decker (Tetra Tech) assisted with budget tracking and clerical support. This work was completed under the Howard County Purchase Order L 5305 to Tetra Tech, Inc. The enthusiasm and interest of the staff in the Stormwater Management Division, including Howard Saltzman and Angela Morales is acknowledged and appreciated. Their dedication to a complete characterization of the condition of County streams ensures the continuation and success of the Howard County Stream Biomonitoring Program. The appropriate citation for this report is: Pavlik, K.L., and James B. Stribling. 2004. Biological Assessment of the Rocky Gorge, Dorsey Run, and Hammond Branch Watersheds, Howard County, Maryland. Prepared by Tetra Tech, Inc., Owings Mills, MD for Howard County, Department of Public Works. Stormwater Management Division. Columbia, MD. January 2004. For more information, please contact: Howard Saltzman Angela Morales Stormwater Management Division Howard County Department of Public Works 6751 Columbia Gateway Dr., Suite 514 Columbia, Maryland 21046 410-313-6444 iii Biological Assessment – Rocky Gorge, Dorsey Run, Hammond Branch – Spring 2003 Final Report Abstract Stream biota rely on the quality of physical habitat, hydrology, and water chemistry for their survival and reproduction. Human activities, such as land cover alteration, can affect abiotic stream conditions, which, in turn, can influence biotic communities. Thus, many biological monitoring and assessment programs, including Howard County, use composite biological indicators both as a measure of stream ecological response to land cover conversions, and as an overall portrayal of water resource integrity. Several indicators (benthic macroinvertebrates, physical habitat quality, sediment particle size distribution, and channel size/shape) were sampled or measured at 30 stream sites in the Rocky Gorge, Dorsey Run, and Hammond Branch subwatersheds (10 sites in each) in Howard County, Maryland during March 2003. Sampling site locations were selected at random and were pre- stratified by subwatershed and stream order. Benthic macroinvertebrates were collected using Maryland Biological Stream Survey (MBSS) methods (multihabitat, 20 ft²). This document reports the sampling and assessment results for all three subwatersheds, as well as composite assessments for watershed-scale biological and habitat assessments from the previous two years of sampling (2001, 2002). Individual site assessments from the Rocky Gorge, Dorsey Run, and Hammond Branch stream sites are also included. Watershed comparisons were made between the 12 (of 15) total subwatersheds sampled to date. iv Biological Assessment – Rocky Gorge, Dorsey Run, Hammond Branch – Spring 2003 Final Report Table of Contents Acknowledgement........................................................................................................................ iii Abstract......................................................................................................................................... iv Table of Contents ...........................................................................................................................v List of Tables ................................................................................................................................ vi List of Figures............................................................................................................................... vi Acronyms ..................................................................................................................................... vii Executive Summary................................................................................................................... viii I. Program Overview...................................................................................................................1 Introduction..............................................................................................................................2 Background ........................................................................................................................2 Purpose of Biological & Physical Habitat Assessment...................................................3 Participating Agencies.......................................................................................................4 Methods.....................................................................................................................................4 Network Design ..................................................................................................................4 Field Sampling & Laboratory Processing .......................................................................6 Data Analysis......................................................................................................................9 Watershed Assessments...................................................................................................10 Quality Assurance/Quality Control................................................................................10 II. Subwatershed Site Assessments............................................................................................15 Metric Selection......................................................................................................................16 Subwatershed Results............................................................................................................17 General Overview ............................................................................................................17 Rocky Gorge.....................................................................................................................19 Dorsey Run .......................................................................................................................22 Hammond Branch............................................................................................................26 Watershed Comparisons .......................................................................................................29 III. Conclusions & Recommendations........................................................................................30 IV. Literature Cited .....................................................................................................................33 V. Appendices..............................................................................................................................37 Appendix A Benthic Macroinvertebrate Taxa List Appendix B Biological Metrics Appendix C Channel Cross Sectional Area Appendix D Field Audit Reports Appendix E Physical Habitat Metrics Appendix F Station Locations Appendix G Wolman Pebble Count Appendix H Water Chemistry v Biological Assessment – Rocky Gorge, Dorsey Run, Hammond Branch – Spring 2003 Final Report List of Tables Table 1. Howard County sampling schedule .........................................................................5 Table 2. Total habitat scores ..................................................................................................8 Table 3. Taxonomic references............................................................................................11 Table 4. Relative Percent Difference (RPD) calculations of biological scores ...................13 Table 5. Relative Percent Difference (RPD) calculations of physical habitat scores ..........14 Table 6. Means of biological and physical habitat scores....................................................17 Table 7. Summary of biological and habitat scores for Rocky Gorge.................................19 Table 8. Summary of biological and habitat scores for Dorsey Run ...................................23 Table 9. Summary of biological and habitat scores for Hammond Branch.........................26 List of Figures Figure 1. Patapsco and Patuxent Rivers