Blanchard River Watershed TMDL Report

State of Ohio Environmental Protection Agency January 2009 Blanchard River Watershed TMDL Report What are the essential facts? • Ohio EPA studied the Blanchard River watershed and found water quality problems at all of the locations measured. • The watershed can make progress towards restoration with practical, economical actions. • We invite you to review the work to date. • Improving the streams depends on the participation of the watershed’s residents. What is the significance of this report? The Blanchard River Watershed TMDL Report is a tool that will include local ideas from the endorsed watershed action plan to help improve and maintain water quality and habitat in the watershed. What is a watershed? A watershed is the land area from which surface runoff drains into a specific body of water. Where is the Blanchard River streams by examining the number shed (see map). Additional water watershed? and types of fish and aquatic chemistry and bacteria data were insects in the water. An abundance collected in 2005 and 2006 to The Blanchard River water- of fish and insects that tolerate support a computer model that shed is located in portions of Allen, pollution indicates an unhealthy evaluates where the pollution Hancock, Hardin, Putnam and stream, while a large number that comes from and where pollution Wyandot counties in northwest are sensitive to pollution indicates reductions are needed. Ohio. It is a sub-watershed of the a healthy stream. Maumee River Basin that flows The conditions of the water- into the western Lake Erie basin In 2005, Ohio EPA scientists shed were compared with state and drains 771 square miles. collected comprehensive water quality goals to determine biological, chemical and physical which stream segments are An estimated 91,266 citizens data in the Blanchard River water- impaired, and how much needs to live in the Blanchard River watershed, with the most rapid growth in Hancock County, especially in the suburban Findlay area. Both the City of Findlay and Village of Ottawa pump drinking water from the river. Overall, the land use in the Blanchard River watershed is 81 percent row crop, 10 percent developed urban/residential, 6 percent forest, 3 percent pasture and grasslands and less than 1 percent open water/wetlands. How does Ohio EPA measure water quality? Ohio is one of the few states that measures the health of its Blanchard River at Riverbend Recreation Area, Hancock County (photo courtesy of Tim Powell, 2006) Division of Surface Water, 50 West Town Street, Suite 700, Columbus, Ohio 43215 (614) 644-2001 www.epa.state.oh.us Blanchard River Watershed TMDL Report be done to restore good stream habitat and water quality. A report was published in July 2007 that provides detailed information regarding the results of the study, including data from the biological surveys, water and sediment chemistry, habitat conditions and bacteria concentrations in the water. What is the condition of the Blanchard River watershed? Ohio EPA surveyed 116 sites to assess the overall water quality in this 771-square-mile watershed. The Blanchard River itself generally showed good quality, however only about 40 percent of the tributary streams met the water quality goals needed to support healthy aquatic communities. The primary reason for low sunlight from the lack of tree cover. Corps of Engineers during the quality is high algae production Excess algae and high water flood damage risk assessment. caused by excess nutrients temperatures are stressful for running off agricultural fields. Low aquatic wildlife. Eagle Creek (030), which levels of dissolved oxygen and fine includes the City of Findlay, is sediment in the streams have a The Outlet/Lye Creek (020) is impaired by nutrients from direct impact on aquatic impaired by excess nutrients, upstream sources, altered flow at organisms. Habitat and flow habitat and flow alteration and high dams and lack of stream shading. alterations from surface and bacteria. Agricultural fertilizer, These sources contribute to lower subsurface drainage practices are pesticides and failing home dissolved oxygen and high water other reasons for low water quality. sewage systems have overloaded temperature of the Blanchard River There is a human health concern streams with nitrates and in Findlay. The removal of the in most streams because of high phosphorus. Excess nutrients and Liberty Street dam in 2007 fecal coliform bacteria levels herbicides such as atrazine and increased oxygen levels and coming from poorly functioning metolachlor detected in Findlay’s eliminated temperature problems. home septic systems and manure. drinking water are attributed to nonpoint source agricultural runoff. Excessive phosphorus and The following is a summary of Bacteria levels are high down- nitrates have been observed in water quality impairments found in stream of the unsewered village of Eagle Creek and the Blanchard each watershed assessment unit Houcktown. River, especially during high flows. (watershed code provided for Load reductions are needed from each). Three dams in this watershed both agricultural and urban runoff alter the natural flow of the river. during spring and fall. The City of The headwaters area (010) Lack of shade on channelized Findlay and parts of the adjoining had many small streams impacted streams and slow water behind townships are designated for by a combination of agricultural these dams lowers the dissolved Phase 2 storm water permit practices and inadequate waste- oxygen and increases water coverage, and have begun to water treatment from Forest and temperature as the river flows into develop storm water pollution Dunkirk, and from Wharton and Findlay. The Riverside Park dam prevention plans. Patterson, which are unsewered. should be modified to alleviate Overgrowth of algae was caused these problems. This could Ottawa Creek (040) is by elevated nutrients and direct potentially be studied by the Army impaired by habitat and flow 2 Blanchard River Watershed TMDL Report alteration and nutrients. Most tributary streams have been What are the three most important “fixes” in the watershed? extensively modified for agri- ♦ Eliminate pervasive bacteria problems cultural drainage. Routine ditch o Reduce home sewage treatment system failures clean-outs and removal of stream o Ensure proper manure handling and management at bank vegetation make it hard for livestock operations pollutants to be treated by natural processes in these small streams. Unrestricted cattle access in ♦ Improve erosion and sediment control in all areas Ottawa Creek contributes to o Establish and protect riparian buffers and filter strips on all bacteria, nutrients and erosion of streams and ditches stream banks. o Use cover crops in non-growing season on farm fields o Practice conservation tillage Riley Creek (050), which o Adopt ditch maintenance that minimizes removal of includes the villages of Bluffton vegetation along the banks and allows for floodplain and Pandora, is impaired by development nutrients, habitat/flow alteration and siltation. Several lowhead ♦ Reduce the amount of nutrients getting into streams dams near Pandora impede the natural flow in Riley Creek, and o Use nutrient management techniques on cropland including cattle access leads to erosion, nitrogen and phosphorus testing indices nutrient and bacteria problems. o Introduce flow control structures in subsurface drainage Lower Little Riley Creek has systems to limit tile flow in non-growing season multiple point source discharges o Create or restore wetlands in low lying areas to store and that degrade water quality and clean polluted runoff contribute to high bacteria. Lack of water in headwater streams, high level of organic material that The TMDL report will provide especially in summer, makes it is expensive to remove from the specific numeric goals for difficult to support good aquatic life raw drinking water supply for improving the stream habitat and communities. Ottawa. The formation of reducing pollutants, including trihalomethanes, a byproduct of pathogens, phosphorus and Cranberry Creek (060) has disinfection for drinking water, is a sediment. Ohio EPA can address poor habitat along most of the human health concern. some of the problems in the tributary streams which have been Additionally, several pesticides Blanchard watershed through extensively modified and put under have been detected in the finished regulatory actions, such as permits county maintenance for agricultural water. for wastewater and storm water drainage. A flood abatement dischargers. Other actions, such project removed the trees and How will water quality get as committing to enhancing and reconstructed the channel from better? protecting riparian areas, proper Rockport to the mouth of fertilizer management and reduced Cranberry Creek in 2005. This The Blanchard River home sewage system failures, will sub-watershed had the highest watershed is included on Ohio’s be up to local residents. level of bacteria impairment and list of impaired waters. Under the high organic loads from Clean Water Act, a cleanup plan is What actions are needed to inadequately treated wastewater. required for each impaired improve water quality? watershed. This cleanup plan, The Blanchard River is known as a total maximum daily Because there are many meeting water quality standards as load (TMDL) report, calculates the reasons why streams in the it flows west from Gilboa to join the maximum amount of pollutants a Blanchard River and its tributaries Auglaize River in Dupont. water body can receive and still fail to meet water quality goals, However, excessive nutrient inputs meet standards (goals). The several actions are required to from each sub-watershed and TMDL report specifies how much improve the current condition and elevated sediment delivery from pollution must be reduced from protect the watershed in the future. Riley and Cranberry creeks various sources and recommends They should focus on reducing threaten to impact the health of the specific actions to achieve this. pollutants loads and/or increasing river mainstem and contribute to a 3 Blanchard River Watershed TMDL Report the streams’ capacity to handle the remaining pollutant loads.

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