Pittsburgh District August 2006
Mahoning River, Ohio Environmental Dredging Draft Feasibility Study and Environmental Impact Statement Trumbull and Mahoning Counties
APPENDIX G HYDROLOGY Table of Contents Subject Page No.
1.0 REFERENCES...... 1 2.0 INTRODUCTION...... 1 2.1 Background...... 1 2.2 Study Area...... 2 3.0 HYDROLOGY...... 2 3.1 Basin Characteristics ...... 2 3.2 Climatology ...... 2 3.2.1 General Description ...... 2 3.2.2 Precipitation Data...... 3 3.2.3 Air Temperature Data...... 5 3.3 Past Studies ...... 5 3.4 Stream Gage Records ...... 6 3.5 Historical Flooding ...... 6 3.6 Flood Protection Measures...... 6 3.7 Hydrologic Analysis ...... 7 3.7.1 Flow Frequency...... 7 3.7.2 Flow Duration ...... 8 3.8 Sedimentation...... 9
TABLES
TABLE 1 – Stream Characteristics of Mahoning River and Major Tributaries …….. .. 6 TABLE 2 – Annual Precipitation Summary for Representative Stations ………..……... 7 TABLE 3 – Monthly Precipitation Summary for Representative Stations …………….. 8 TABLE 4 – Monthly Snowfall Summary for Representative Stations ……………….… 8 TABLE 5 – Annual Temperature Summary for Representative Stations…………..…… 9 TABLE 6 – Average Monthly Temperature Summary for Representative Stations……. 9 TABLE 7 – Pertinent Data of Stream Gaging Stations on the Mahoning River….…... 10 TABLE 8 – USACE Pittsburgh District Upstream Reservoirs ………..…………...… 11 TABLE 9 - Flow Frequency Peak Discharges Summary for the Mahoning River….… 11 TABLE 10 - Annual Flow Durations for the Mahoning River ………………………... 12
FIGURES
FIGURE 1 – Flow frequency curves for the Mahoning River …………………………..12 FIGURE 2 – Annual flow duration curves for the Mahoning River …………………....13
PLATES
PLATE 1 – General Location Map….………………………………………………. 14
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1.0 REFERENCES
United States Water Resources Council, “Guidelines For Determining Flood Flow Frequency - Bulletin 17B of the Hydrology Committee”, September 1981.
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Office of the Chief Engineers, EM 1110-2-4000, “Sedimentation Investigations of Rivers and Reservoirs”, October 1995.
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Pittsburgh District, “Report on Feasibility Study on the Removal of Bank and River Sediments in the Mahoning River”, June 1976.
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Pittsburgh District, “Mahoning River Environmental Dredging Reconnaissance Study”, May 1999.
U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development Federal Insurance Administration, “Flood Insurance Study - City of Youngstown, Ohio, Mahoning and Trumbull Counties”, January 1977.
U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development Federal Insurance Administration, “Flood Insurance Study - City of Warren, Ohio, Trumbull County”, August 1977.
U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development Federal Insurance Administration, “Flood Insurance Study - City of Niles, Ohio, Trumbull County”, December 1977.
U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development Federal Insurance Administration, “Flood Insurance Study -Village of Lowellville, Ohio, Mahoning County”, September 1990.
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Pittsburgh District, “Flood Plain Information – Mahoning River and Crab Creek, Mahoning County, Youngstown-Campbell-Struthers-Lowellville”, June 1972.
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Pittsburgh District, “Flood Plain Information – Mahoning River, Trumbull County, Niles-McDonald-Girard-Weathersfield Township”, June 1972.
United States Department of Agriculture, Natural Resources Conservation Service, Engineering Field Handbook, Chapter 16, “Streambank and Shoreline Protection”, December 1996.
2.0 INTRODUCTION
2.1 Background
The Mahoning River Environmental Study addresses problems and opportunities for ecosystem restoration related to contaminated sediments in the lower Mahoning River, located in northeastern Ohio. A reconnaissance level study was completed in May 1999 titled “Mahoning River Environmental Dredging Reconnaissance Study – Trumbull and Mahoning Counties, Ohio” by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Pittsburgh District Office. This appendix will discuss the hydrologic investigations performed for this feasibility report.
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2.2 Study Area
The Mahoning River has a drainage area of 1,132 square miles covering parts of northeastern Ohio and west central Pennsylvania. About 1,085 square miles, or 96% of the drainage basin, is in the Ohio counties of Ashtabula, Geauga, Trumbull, Portage, Mahoning, Stark and Columbiana, and the remaining 4% drains Lawrence County in Pennsylvania. This study area consists of the reach that flows north through the community of Leavittsburg and the City of Warren, then turns south passing through Niles, McDonald, Girard, Youngstown, Campbell, Struthers, and Lowellville, near the Ohio-Pennsylvania border. PLATE 1 shows a general map of the study area.
3.0 HYDROLOGY
3.1 Basin Characteristics
The Mahoning River is 108 miles long and begins about twelve miles southeast of Alliance, Ohio in Columbiana County. It then flows generally northward towards Warren, Ohio where it continues through the communities of Warren, Niles and Youngstown, Ohio and then into Pennsylvania. Twelve miles after it crosses the Pennsylvania-Ohio state line, it joins the Shenango River to form the Beaver River. The drainage areas, stream lengths, and slopes of the Mahoning River and its major tributaries are shown in Table 1.
Table 1. Stream Characteristics of Mahoning River and Major Tributaries
Stream Name Basin Stream Stream Area Length Slope Square Miles Feet per miles mile Mahoning River 1132.0 108.0 5 Hickory Run 27.2 9.8 45 Yellow Creek 39.4 10.3 28 Crab Creek 21.1 7.4 44 Mill Creek 78.4 19.2 20 Meander Creek 85.8 21.8 30 Mosquito Creek 138 32.5 6 Duck Creek 33.1 13.9 16 Eagle Creek 110 20 13 West Branch 109 26.7 11 Kale Creek 25.6 11.4 16 Mill Creek 32.2 10.9 18 Deer Creek 38.4 11.5 12 Beech Creek 31.7 10.9 22
3.2 Climatology
3.2.1 General Description
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The climate for the Mahoning River basin is temperate with seasonal variations in temperature. Weather is usually moderate but may have frequent and rapid changes. The basin is in a region of variable frontal air mass activity subject to polar, tropical, continental and maritime air masses. Frequent and rapid changes in weather occur due to the passage of fronts associated with low-pressure areas. The prevailing wind direction is from the west. Storms typically follow a west to east route with the exception of tropical storms moving from south to north.
Storms can be classified as either summer type or winter type. Summer type storms typically occur from May to October and can be characterized as relatively short duration, high intensity storms over a small area. Winter type storms typically occur from November to April and produce less intense rainfall for a longer duration over a sizable area. Measurable precipitation occurs on about 150 days per year and averages approximately 37 inches yearly.
Summer months are characterized by warm, humid weather moderated by elevation and orographically induced clouds. Air temperatures can range from lows below zero degrees in the winter months and exceeding ninety degrees in the summer months. Snowfall can be frequent and heavy during the winter months. Snowfall ranges from a minimum of zero to 58 inches per year. The last frost typically occurs between late in the month of April and mid May depending on elevation.
3.2.2 Precipitation Data
Normal annual precipitation is uniform over most of the basin with an average range of 35 to 39 inches per year as measured at various published National Weather Service (NWS) precipitation stations located near and around the Mahoning River basin. Official NWS stations used were the Canfield 1 S, Hiram, Mineral Ridge Water Works, Warren 3 S and Youngstown WSO AP precipitation gages. An annual summary of representative precipitation stations is presented in Table 2 below:
Table 2. Annual Precipitation Summary for Representative Stations (inches)
Station Years Period Minimum Normal Maximum Minimum Normal Maximum of of Precip. Precip. Precip. Snowfall Snowfall Snowfall Record Record Canfield 82 1917- 24.3 35.2 49.9 0.0 25.9 55.7 1998 Hiram 103 1900- 25.5 39.0 53.0 15.9 52.5 100.8 2002 Mineral 61 1940- 23.6 35.3 44.9 4.9 37.4 70.8 Ridge 2000 Warren 67 1936- 23.1 36.5 49.2 4.1 40.3 77.4 2002 Youngstown 55 1948- 23.8 37.6 48.6 34.0 58.1 91.3 2002
Normal monthly precipitation varies in a consistent pattern over most of the basin with July typically being the wettest month and February the driest. Normal monthly precipitation
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measured at the Youngstown station varies between 4.0 inches in July to 2.2 inches in February. A monthly precipitation summary of representative NWS stations is presented in Table 3.
Table 3. Monthly Precipitation Summary for Representative Stations (inches)
Station Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Canfield Min 0.4 0.2 0.9 0.4 0.4 0.8 0.8 0.4 0.4 0.2 0.7 0.0 Avg 2.2 1.8 2.9 3.1 3.7 3.8 3.9 3.1 3.0 2.6 2.7 2.3 Max 7.7 4.8 5.8 7.8 10.5 8.6 11.8 8.2 7.8 8.4 9.9 6.0 Hiram Min 0.9 0.5 0.2 0.7 0.5 0.5 0.3 0.5 0.5 0.3 0.7 0.9 Avg 2.8 2.3 3.3 3.6 3.8 3.9 3.8 3.4 3.4 3.1 3.2 2.9 Max 8.0 5.2 8.5 8.0 7.4 8.6 10.5 7.5 12.1 9.2 9.9 8.0 Mineral Min 0.8 0.1 0.8 0.6 0.6 0.9 0.9 0.7 0.3 0.1 0.3 0.3 Ridge Avg 2.3 1.9 2.8 3.3 3.4 3.8 3.9 3.2 3.2 2.6 2.8 2.4 Max 6.5 4.6 6.2 6.7 7.7 8.7 10.1 7.2 6.9 8.4 11.1 4.9 Warren Min 0.7 0.1 0.8 0.9 0.8 0.8 0.7 0.5 0.3 0.3 0.4 0.4 Avg 2.5 1.9 3.1 3.4 3.6 3.8 3.9 3.1 3.2 2.7 2.8 2.5 Max 8.5 4.5 6.4 7.0 7.6 9.9 11.6 7.2 8.8 9.5 9.8 6.3 Youngstown Min 0.7 0.6 1.1 1.0 0.8 0.7 0.7 0.5 0.3 0.4 0.9 0.9 Avg 2.6 2.2 3.1 3.5 3.4 3.7 4.0 3.3 3.3 2.6 3.0 2.8 Max 7.6 5.3 6.2 7.3 6.2 10.7 9.7 7.9 6.4 8.6 9.1 6.5
Normal monthly snowfall varies throughout the basin in a consistent manner. Snowfall typically occurs from November to March with January experiencing the most snow. Normal monthly snowfall measured at the Youngstown precipitation station varies between 13.2 inches in January and 0.1 inches in May. A monthly summary of snowfall for representative stations is presented in Table 4.
Table 4. Monthly Snowfall Summary for Representative Stations (inches)
Station Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Canfield Min 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 Avg 7.0 5.2 4.0 1.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.2 2.3 4.6 Max 25.0 15.5 13.2 8.0 1.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 6.5 27.0 17.0 Hiram Min 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 Avg 12.8 10.7 8.3 2.0 0.1 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.5 5.7 12.1 Max 37.8 28.0 32.2 20.0 3.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 10.0 31.1 37.9 Mineral Min 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 Ridge Avg 9.1 7.6 7.5 1.2 0.1 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.2 2.8 8.0 Max 31.7 20.3 22.6 12.0 3.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 2.7 29.0 22.6 Warren Min 1.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 Avg 11.4 8.9 6.9 1.1 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.3 3.2 8.7 Max 34.1 21.7 29.0 11.9 2.5 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 6.5 26.0 31.7 Youngstown Min 2.7 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 Avg 13.2 10.5 10.8 2.4 0.1 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.6 5.4 12.2 Max 36.0 27.7 30.9 12.4 5.4 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 7.7 30.6 29.5
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3.2.3 Air Temperature Data
Normal annual temperature is uniform over most of the basin with an average annual temperature of approximately 50 ºF. Daily temperatures range between an average annual low of approximately 39 ºF and an average high of approximately 60 ºF. Temperatures as low as –20 ºF and as high of 100 ºF have been recorded at the NWS representative stations. An annual temperature summary of representative stations is presented in Table 5.
Table 5. Annual Temperature Summary for Representative Stations (°F)
Station Years Period Normal Normal of of Low High Record Record Temperature Temperature
Canfield 82 1917-1998 38.2 60.2 Hiram 103 1900-2002 39.4 58.6 Mineral Ridge 61 1940-2000 39.7 62.2 Warren 67 1936-2002 38.5 60.8 Youngstown 55 1948-2002 39.3 58.5
Normal monthly temperature varies in a consistent pattern over most of the basin with July typically being the warmest month and January the coldest. Average monthly air temperatures measured at the NWS Youngstown recorded a low of 18.2 ºF in January to a high of 32.7 ºF. In July, the air temperature recorded an average monthly low of 59.4 ºF and 81.7 ºF as the high. A monthly temperature summary of representative stations is presented in Table 6.
Table 6. Average Monthly Temperature Summary for Representative Stations (°F)
Station Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Canfield Low 17.9 18.6 26.6 35.5 45.2 54.6 58.3 56.6 50.2 39.8 31.5 22.2 High 35.0 37.3 47.8 59.8 70.6 79.4 83.1 81.6 75.4 63.7 49.4 38.2 Hiram Low 17.8 18.2 26.6 36.9 47.2 56.2 60.6 59.0 52.8 42.3 32.3 22.2 High 33.4 35.2 45.5 57.9 69.1 77.6 81.8 80.2 74.0 62.4 48.3 36.4 Mineral Ridge Low 18.9 20.1 27.4 37.0 46.6 55.8 59.8 58.4 51.8 41.3 33.4 24.3 High 35.9 39.3 49.4 62.4 73.1 81.5 85.2 83.5 77.0 65.8 51.4 39.9 Warren Low 17.9 19.1 26.5 35.8 45.5 54.8 58.6 57.2 50.3 40.0 32.0 23.0 High 34.7 37.9 47.7 60.6 71.5 80.1 84.0 82.6 75.6 64.2 50.3 38.7 Youngstown Low 18.2 19.6 26.8 37.1 46.3 55.3 59.4 58.1 51.2 41.5 33.1 23.2 High 32.7 35.6 44.9 58.3 69.1 78.0 81.7 80.2 72.9 61.6 48.4 36.6
3.3 Past Studies Various studies and reports have been completed throughout the Mahoning River basin including Flood Plain and Flood Insurance Studies through the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and others. In 1976, USACE Pittsburgh District prepared the document “Report on Feasibility Study on the removal of Bank and River Bottom Sediments in the Mahoning River.” The USACE Pittsburgh District also performed a report
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titled “Mahoning River Environmental Dredging Reconnaissance Study –Trumbull and Mahoning Counties, Ohio” in May 1999.
3.4 Stream Gage Records There are three published U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) stream gages located along the Mahoning River in the study reach. The USGS presently has stream gages located in Leavittsburg, Niles and Youngstown, Ohio. The Youngstown gage was originally established in 1921 and removed in 1982. It was located at a different site than the current gage which is located on West Avenue in Youngstown, Ohio. A USGS stream gaging station was located at Lowellville, Ohio but was discontinued in 1991. The National Weather Service established a gage in Warren, Ohio in 1924 but it was discontinued in 1971. The USACE Pittsburgh District established a wire weight gage on the South Street Bridge in Warren in 1962 and is currently in operation but is not published station. Table 7 shows pertinent data regarding the stream gaging stations on the Mahoning River.
Table 7. Pertinent Data of Stream Gaging Stations on the Mahoning River
Station Name USGS Period of Drainage Area Zero Datum Station Record (square miles) (NGVD) Number Leavittsburg, Ohio 03094000 1940-Present 575 871.25 Warren, Ohio USACE 1962-Present 599.5 855.66 Niles, Ohio 03097550 1987-Present 854 843.08 Youngstown, Ohio 03098600 1987-Present 978 824.10 Lowellville, Ohio 03099500 1942-1991 1,073 796.84
3.5 Historical Flooding
The history of flooding on the Mahoning River indicates that floods can occur during any season of the year, although the main flood season is usually December through April. Most of the floods that occur during this period are the result of heavy rain and snowmelt. Summer floods are usually the result of intense thunderstorm rainfall, and may be very local in nature. Summer floods are rare on the Mahoning River. Duration of flooding is relatively short on most small streams on the Mahoning River. The duration of flooding on the main stem Mahoning River is much longer.
The greatest known flood on the Mahoning River was the March 1913 flood and was estimated to be over 0.5 percent chance (200-year) event. The second highest was the January 1959 flood. Other floods recorded were the March 1936, January 1937 and the February 1959 event.
3.6 Flood Protection Measures
The USACE Pittsburgh District built, operates and maintains three multipurpose reservoirs in the Mahoning River basin upstream of the study area. Table 8 shows pertinent information about these reservoirs. Milton Lake, built in 1917, owned by the State of Ohio, is operated in conjunction with Berlin Reservoir to form a single operating unit. The network of these reservoirs reduces major floods in the study area by an average of 3 to 5 feet. 6
Table 8. USACE Pittsburgh District Upstream Reservoirs
Reservoir Name Beginning Drainage Area Full Pool Storage Operation (square miles) (acre-feet) Berlin Lake 1943 249 86,300 Michael J. Kirwan 1967 80.5 78,700
Mosquito Lake 1944 97.4 97,660
3.7 Hydrologic Analysis
3.7.1 Flow Frequency
A data search was conducted of past studies on the Mahoning River including FEMA Flood Insurance Studies. In 1975, published Flood Insurance Studies were done for Warren, Niles, Youngstown, Lowellville and Trumbull County, Ohio.
Hydrologic analyses were carried out to establish the peak discharge-frequency relationships for floods of the selected chance percent exceedance intervals for the Mahoning River. The flood- flow frequency data were based on the stream gages along the Mahoning River at Leavittsburg, Warren, Youngstown and Lowellville, Ohio.
A natural flow frequency analysis was performed using the standard log-Pearson Type III method as outlined in the Water Resources Council Bulletin 17B. The natural flow frequency discharges were reduced by average reduction curves for the USACE reservoirs upstream of the study area. For this study, the following peak discharge frequency flows were used and are show in Table 9.
Table 9. Flow Frequency Peak Discharges Summary for the Mahoning River
Frequency in % Mahoning River Mahoning Mahoning Mahoning chance at Leavittsburg, River at River at River at exceedance and Ohio Warren, Ohio Youngstown, Lowellville, (year) Ohio Ohio Flow (cfs) Flow (cfs) Flow (cfs) Flow (cfs) 200 (0.5 year) 3,100 3,200 4,100 6,600 100 (1 year) 4,400 4,500 5,500 8,400 50 (2 year) 5,700 5,800 6,900 10,200 20 (5 year) 7,600 7,800 9,400 14,000 10 (10 year) 8,800 9,000 10,800 16,800 5 (20 year) 10,300 10,500 12,600 19,800 2 (50 year) 12,100 12,400 15,100 23,800 1 (100 year) 14,100 14,400 17,200 26,600 0.5 (200 year) 16,300 16,700 19,500 30,000 0.2 (500 year) 19,800 20,200 22,800 34,800 0.1 (1000 year) 21,500 22,000 26,500 37,500
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Mahoning River, OH Leavitsburg Frequency Curve Flow Frequency Curves Warren Frequency Curve Reduced Flows Youngstow n Frequency Curve Low ellville Frequency Curve 100000
10000 Flow (cfs) Flow
1000 0.1 1 10 100 1000 Frequency (years)
Figure 1. Flow frequency curves for the Mahoning River reduced by the upstream reservoirs.
3.7.2 Flow Duration
Annual flow durations were developed for the U.S. Geological Survey stations along the Mahoning River at Leavittsburg, Youngstown and Lowellville, Ohio. The period of 1968 to 2002 was used to compute the flow durations. Table 10 shows the flow durations for these stations. Figure 2 shows the annual flow duration curves for the USGS stations on the Mahoning River.
Table 10. Annual Flow Durations for the Mahoning River
Percent Mahoning River Mahoning River Mahoning River equaled or at Leavittsburg, at Youngstown, at Lowellville, exceeded Ohio Ohio Ohio Flow (cfs) Flow (cfs) Flow (cfs) 1 3,080 5,420 6,410 2 2,600 4,320 5,060 5 1,960 3,160 3,650 10 1,510 2,360 2,750 20 980 1,500 1,790 30 625 992 1,250 40 445 706 915 50 359 565 730 60 314 488 613
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70 286 438 538 80 257 392 484 90 216 332 412 100 115 140 212
Table 10 (continued). Annual Flow Durations for the Mahoning River
Mahoning River - Annual Flow Durations Final Comparison Plots Water Years 1968-2002 12000
11000
10000
9000
8000
7000
6000 Flow in cfs in Flow 5000
4000
3000
2000
1000
0 0 102030405060708090100 % Equalled or Exceeded Leavittsburg Youngstown Lowellville
Figure 2. Annual flow duration curves for USGS stations on the Mahoning River.
3.8 Sedimentation
Sedimentation is a problem along the Mahoning River in the study reach. The 1976 USACE Pittsburgh District Feasibility Study investigated sedimentation in the report. No detailed analysis was performed in that study or in this study. Experts from the Engineering Research and Development Center (ERDC) in Vicksburg, Mississippi can assist in the sedimentation analysis of the Mahoning River if a detailed study is needed. It was determined a full detailed sedimentation study was not warranted for this study but may be necessary in the future.
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PLATE 1. General Location Map
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