2015 Savannah River Monitoring Report Phinizy Center for Water Sciences 1858 Lock & Dam Road Augusta, GA 30906 706.828.2109 www.phinizycenter.org 2015 Savannah River Monitoring Report 1 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Phinizy Center for Water Sciences would like to thank the following entities for their generous and loyal support, without which this important research would not have been possible: Augusta-Richmond County - Utilities Department Columbia County - Water Utility City of North Augusta, SC Potash Corporation International Paper 2015 Savannah River Monitoring Report 2 TABLE OF CONTENTS 1 INTRODUCTION .......................................... 5 2 METHODS ................................................... 8 2.1 Monitoring Locations ................................. 8 2.2 Hydrology and Climate Data .................... 11 2.3 Lake Profile Data ...................................... 11 2.4 Continuous Monitoring ............................ 11 2.5 Long-Term BOD Study .............................. 11 3 RESULTS .................................................... 13 3.1 Hydrology & Climate ................................ 13 3.2 Lake Profiles ............................................. 16 3.3 Continuous Monitoring ............................ 18 3.4 Long-term BOD ......................................... 30 4 LEVERAGED RESEARCH ............................. 32 4.1 Oxbow Lake Study .................................... 32 4.2 Macroinvertebrate Study ......................... 32 4.3 Presentations and papers ......................... 32 2015 Savannah River Monitoring Report 3 TABLE OF TABLES Table 1. Savannah River Monitoring Locations ......................................................................................................... 9 Table 2. Monthly mean water temperature (degrees Celsius) ............................................................................... 18 Table 3. Monthly mean specific conductance (µs/cm2) .......................................................................................... 18 Table 4. Monthly mean pH ...................................................................................................................................... 19 Table 5. Monthly mean dissolved oxygen concentration (mg/L) ............................................................................ 19 Table 6. Monthly mean dissolved oxygen percent saturation ................................................................................ 20 Table 7. Results of 2015 long-term BOD tests ........................................................................................................ 30 2015 Savannah River Monitoring Report 4 TABLE OF FIGURES Figure 1. Map of the Savannah River Basin ............................................................................................................... 7 Figure 2. Monitoring location map ......................................................................................................................... 10 Figure 3. 2015 Monthly total and long-term monthly mean precipitation (in) (NCDC 2016) ................................. 13 Figure 4. Long-term monthly (box plot) and 2015 Palmer Hydrologic Drought Index (PHDI) for Savannah River Basin ........................................................................................................................................................................ 14 Figure 5. 2015 daily mean discharge (ft3/sec) and long-term (1954-2014) monthly mean discharge (open circles). ................................................................................................................................................................................ 15 Figure 6. Depth-Time diagram of temperature at J. Strom Thurmond Lake (ACOE 2016) ...................................... 16 Figure 7. Depth-Time diagram of dissolved oxygen (mg/L) in J. Strom Thurmond Lake (ACOE 2016) ................... 17 Figure 8. River Mile 214 daily mean plots for continuous parameters ................................................................... 21 Figure 9. River Mile 202 daily mean plots for continuous parameters ................................................................... 22 Figure 10. River Mile 190 daily mean plots for continuous parameters ................................................................. 23 Figure 11. River Mile 185 daily mean plots for continuous parameters ................................................................. 24 Figure 12. River Mile 179 daily mean plots of continuous parameters .................................................................. 25 Figure 13. River Mile 146 daily mean plots for continuous parameters ................................................................. 26 Figure 14. River Mile 119 daily mean plots for continuous parameters ................................................................. 27 Figure 15. River Mile 61 daily mean plots for continuous parameters ................................................................... 28 Figure 16. River Mile 27 daily mean plots for continuous parameters ................................................................... 29 Figure 17. Results of 2015 long-term BOD test compared to box plots of historical results .................................. 31 2015 Savannah River Monitoring Report 5 1 Introduction Phinizy Center for Water Sciences (PCWS) has been monitoring the Savannah River using continuous datasondes since 2005. The main goal LOCATIONS OF MAJOR of this monitoring program is to provide a “backbone” of basic water SAVANNAH RIVER quality data that supports and informs research aimed at understanding FEATURES how the Savannah River functions. To date, PCWS’s river research program has River Mile 288 • produced the most geographically and temporally comprehensive Hartwell Dam water quality database in the history of the Savannah River, • been used by Georgia EPD to calibrate its Savannah River water River Mile 258 quality model, Richard B. Russell Dam • informed resource managers about the impacts of low flows and River Mile 221 drought, J. Strom Thurmond Dam • provided insight into the movements of the endangered shortnose sturgeon, and River Mile 209 • revealed the importance of the Augusta Shoals and the effects of Steven’s Creek Dam Thurmond Dam operations. River Mile 208 In 2013, through the generous support of individuals, and local Augusta Diversion Dam governments, PCWS began converting to a real-time, web accessible River Mile 187.5 monitoring system. Continuous monitoring data from these stations is New Savannah Bluff Lock & available to the public at: http://goo.gl.kFn6H. Dam This report summarizes the continuous monitoring data collected by River Mile 150 PCWS during the 2015 calendar year. As additional information, this Plant Vogtle report also summarizes some basic climatological and hydrologic data collected by other state and federal resource agencies. River Mile 119 HWY 301 Bridge ABOUT THE SAVANNAH RIVER River Mile 61 Savannah River flows for approximately 312-miles from its headwaters in HWY 119 Bridge the Blue Ridge Mountains to the Atlantic Ocean near Savannah, Georgia. The river forms much of the border between Georgia and South Carolina, River Mile 27 bisecting three distinct physiographic regions - the Blue Ridge, Piedmont, Interstate 95 Bridge and Coastal Plain. The Savannah River Basin (Figure 1) receives drainage from approximately 10,600 square miles of watershed located in North Carolina, Georgia, and South Carolina. Near the headwaters, the Seneca and Tugaloo Rivers join and are impounded to form Lake Hartwell. Below Hartwell Dam, Richard B. Russell and J. Strom Thurmond dams and their associated impoundments further regulate the river. These three impoundments stretch 120 river 2015 Savannah River Monitoring Report 6 miles (USACE 1996), and are primarily constructed for flood control and hydroelectric power generation. Beginning approximately 13 miles below Thurmond Dam, three additional features impact river flow: Stevens Creek Dam, Augusta Diversion Dam, and New Savannah Bluff Lock & Dam (NSBLD). While the Savannah River becomes a free flowing river below NSBLD flow patterns below NSBLD have been influenced by down-river dredging, 26 miles of channelization, and navigation cuts (Hale and Jackson, 2003). Dredging operations from River Mile 21.3 (RM, measured from the mouth of the Savannah River) up to RM 204.4 (just above NSBLD) ended in 1979 due to a lack of barge traffic around Augusta but the river was shortened by nearly 40 miles as a result of navigation cuts. The endangered shortnose sturgeon and Atlantic sturgeon inhabit the Savannah River, as well as other important diadromous species such as American shad, blueback herring, and striped bass. 2015 Savannah River Monitoring Report 7 Gastonia NORTH CAROLINA Charlotte Rock Hill Greenville SOUTH CAROLINA Columbia Athens Augusta GEORGIA Macon Warner Robins Savannah Figure 1. Map of the Savannah River Basin 2015 Savannah River Monitoring Report 8 2 Methods 2.1 Monitoring Locations In 2015, PCWS performed continuous monitoring at 9 stations in the Savannah River mainstem; descriptions of each site, as well as a table of site locations (Table 1) and location map (Figure 2) are presented below. 2.1.1 RM 214 Hydrology at RM 214 was highly influenced by hydropower discharges from the USACE’s J. Strom Thurmond Dam, located approximately eight miles upstream. This section of the river is also referred to as the Stevens Creek pool since it is impounded by