Watershed Protection Plan for the Leon River Below Proctor Lake and Above Belton Lake
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Watershed Protection Plan for the Leon River Below Proctor Lake and Above Belton Lake Prepared for the Stakeholders of the Leon River Watershed by Parsons Water & Infrastructure Inc. and the Brazos River Authority PARSONS Funding for the development of this Watershed Protection Plan was provided by the Texas State Soil and Water Conservation Board and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency through a federal Clean Water Act §319(h) nonpoint source grant to the Brazos River Authority. This WPP is available on the Brazos River Authority website at: http://www.brazos.org/LeonRiverWPP.asp January 2015 Watershed Protection Plan for the Leon River Below Proctor Lake Table of Contents TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter 1 : Introduction .............................................................................................................................1 1.1 Watershed Characteristics .........................................................................................................1 1.1.1 Climate ............................................................................................................................. 5 1.1.2 Demographics and Economy ........................................................................................... 6 1.1.3 History .............................................................................................................................. 7 1.2 Project Background ...................................................................................................................8 1.3 Elements of a Watershed Protection Plan ...............................................................................10 Chapter 2 : Leon River Stakeholder Group ..............................................................................................11 2.1 Participation Objectives & Organizational Structure ..............................................................11 2.1.1 Focus Groups ................................................................................................................. 12 2.1.2 Working Committee ....................................................................................................... 13 2.1.3 Town Hall Meeting ........................................................................................................ 14 2.1.4 Technical Advisory Committee...................................................................................... 14 2.1.5 Synopsis of Public Participation Process ....................................................................... 14 2.2 Stakeholder Rationale to Improve Leon River Water Quality ................................................15 2.3 Desired Outcomes ...................................................................................................................16 2.4 Adaptive Management and Sustainability ..............................................................................18 Chapter 3 : Water Quality Conditions in the Leon River Watershed .......................................................20 3.1 Introduction .............................................................................................................................20 3.2 Surface Water Quality Standards (Pre-2014) – Numeric and Narrative .................................20 3.3 Revised Water Quality Standards (2014) ................................................................................21 3.4 Water Quality Impairments and Concerns ..............................................................................22 3.5 Bacteria ...................................................................................................................................26 3.6 Nutrients, Chlorophyll a, and Dissolved Oxygen ...................................................................35 3.7 The Local Perspective – Characterizing Water Quality Problems ..........................................42 3.8 Establishing Water Quality Goals for the Leon River ............................................................45 3.9 Consequence of No Action .....................................................................................................46 Chapter 4 : Sources and Causes of Pollution in the Leon River Watershed ............................................47 4.1 Land Use/Land Cover Characteristics ....................................................................................47 4.2 Pollutant Source Categories ....................................................................................................51 4.3 Direct Discharges ....................................................................................................................52 4.3.1 Wastewater Treatment Facilities .................................................................................... 53 4.3.2 Sanitary Sewer Overflows .............................................................................................. 55 January 2015 i Watershed Protection Plan for the Leon River Below Proctor Lake Table of Contents 4.3.3 Onsite Sewage Facilities ................................................................................................ 56 4.3.4 Wildlife .......................................................................................................................... 57 4.3.5 Feral Hogs (Invasive Species) ........................................................................................ 59 4.3.6 Livestock ........................................................................................................................ 60 4.3.7 Animal Feeding Operations ........................................................................................... 63 4.3.8 Dead Animal Disposal ................................................................................................... 64 4.4 Polluted Storm Water Wash Off .............................................................................................66 4.4.1 Forestland ....................................................................................................................... 66 4.4.2 Cropland ......................................................................................................................... 66 4.4.3 Rangeland ....................................................................................................................... 66 4.4.4 Waste Application Fields ............................................................................................... 67 4.4.5 Residential, Commercial, and Industrial ........................................................................ 67 4.5 Estimating Pollutant Source Loads .........................................................................................68 4.6 Uncertainty Analysis ...............................................................................................................71 4.7 Source Contributions ..............................................................................................................71 Chapter 5 : Management Strategies, Implementation Schedule, and Estimate of Pollutant Load Reductions ................................................................................................................................................75 5.1 Direct Discharge Management Strategies ...............................................................................81 5.1.1 Wastewater Treatment Facility Strategies ...................................................................... 81 5.1.2 Sanitary Sewer Overflow Strategies .............................................................................. 84 5.1.3 Onsite Sewage Facilities Strategies ................................................................................ 88 5.1.4 Direct Deposition Strategies ........................................................................................... 92 5.1.4.1 Feral Hog Management ...................................................................................... 92 5.1.4.2 Deer Population Management ............................................................................ 94 5.1.4.3 Alternative Watering Sources ............................................................................. 96 5.1.4.4 Dead Animal Disposal ........................................................................................ 98 5.2 Polluted Storm Water Washoff ...............................................................................................99 5.2.1 Forestland Strategies ...................................................................................................... 99 5.2.2 Rangeland Strategies .................................................................................................... 100 5.2.3 WAF Strategies ............................................................................................................ 103 5.2.4 Residential, Commercial, and Industrial Strategies ..................................................... 107 5.3 Implementation Schedule ......................................................................................................109 5.4 Pollutant Load Reductions ....................................................................................................110 Chapter 6 : Institutional Framework for Implementation .......................................................................116 6.1 Leon River Watershed Steering Committee .........................................................................116 January