SC Estuarine and Coastal Assessment Program, 2011-2014 Technical Report

THE CONDITION OF SOUTH CAROLINA’S ESTUARINE AND COASTAL HABITATS DURING 2011-2014 AN INTERAGENCY ASSESSMENT OF SOUTH CAROLINA’S COASTAL ZONE TECHNICAL REPORT NO. 108 D ATMOSPH N ER A IC IC N A A D E M C IN O I S L T A R N A T O I I O T N A N U . E S C . R D E E M PA M RT CO M ENT O F The Condition of South Carolina’s Estuarine and Coastal Habitats During 2011-2014 Technical Report Prepared by: D.M. Sanger, S.P. Johnson, M.V. Levisen, S.E. Crowe Marine Resources Division South Carolina Department of Natural Resources 217 Fort Johnson Road Charleston, SC 29412 D.E. Chestnut, B. Rabon Bureau of Water South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control 2600 Bull Street Columbia, SC 29201 M.H. Fulton, E.F. Wirth Center for Coastal Environmental Health and Biomolecular Research National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration National Ocean Service Laboratory 219 Fort Johnson Road Charleston, SC 29412 Technical Report No. 108 2016 This document should be cited as follows: Sanger, D.M., S.P. Johnson, M.V. Levisen, S.E. Crowe, D.E. Chestnut, B. Rabon, M.H. Fulton, and E.F. Wirth. 2016. The Condition of South Carolina’s Estuarine and Coastal Habitats During 2011-2014: Technical Report. Charleston, SC: South Carolina Marine Resources Division. Technical Report No. 108. 58p. Cover photo courtesy of SCDNR Staff The Condition of South Carolina’s Estuarine and Coastal Habitats During 2011-2014 Table of Contents Table of Contents 1. INTRODUCTION ......................................................................................................................1 2. METHODS ................................................................................................................................2 2.1. Sampling Design ...........................................................................................................2 2.2. Water Quality Measurements ........................................................................................3 2.3. Sediment Quality Measurements ..................................................................................3 2.4. Biological Condition Measurements ��5 2.5. Integrated Indices of Estuarine Habitat Condition ��6 2.6. The Presence of Litter ....................................................................................................7 2.7. Data Analysis ................................................................................................................7 3. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION ..................................................................................................8 3.1. Water Quality ................................................................................................................8 3.2. Sediment Quality ......................................................................................................... 11 3.3. Biological Condition .................................................................................................... 18 Benthic Communities .................................................................................................. 18 Fish and Large Invertebrate Communities .................................................................. 23 3.4. Incidence of Litter ........................................................................................................ 25 3.5. Overall Habitat Quality ................................................................................................ 25 3.6. Program Uses and Activities ....................................................................................... 27 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS .......................................................................................................... 38 LITERATURE CITED ................................................................................................................. 39 APPENDICES ........................................................................................................................... 43 Appendix 1. Summary of station locations and dates sampled in 2011-2014 ..................... 43 Appendix 2. Summary of the amount of open water and tidal creek habitat scoring as good, fair or poor for each parameter and index for 2011-2014 ...................... 52 Appendix 3. Summary of the Water Quality, Sediment Quality, Biological Condition and Habitat Quality Index scores and their component measure scores by station for 2011-2014 . ................................................................................................. 54 Technical Summary iii The Condition of South Carolina’s Estuarine and Coastal Habitats During 2011-2014 Introduction INTRODUCTION South Carolina’s extensive coastal zone provides a beautiful setting for residents and tourists to enjoy, and supports an abundance of natural resources that can be harvested. In 2013, domestic travel expenditures in South Carolina’s eight coastal counties exceeded 7 billion dollars (U.S. Travel Association, 2014). In 2011, a total of 305,063 anglers spent over 2 million days saltwater fishing in our state (Southwick Associates, 2012). South Carolina’s most economically important fishery species rely upon a variety of sensitive coastal habitat types that serve as nursery or primary habitat during one or more life stages. Thus, it is critical to protect our coastal habitats from degradation. Urban sprawl is one of the primary As in most coastal states, the population in threats to the quality of South the coastal counties has been rapidly increasing Carolina’s estuarine habitats. in recent years, with more than 1.3 million people estimated to be living in South Carolina’s eight coastal counties in 2014 (U.S. Census Bureau, 2014). This number is expected to increase by Laboratory). The U.S. Environmental Protection another 15% by 2030 (South Carolina Budget Agency (USEPA) Gulf Ecology Division in and Control Board, 2013). The associated Gulf Breeze, FL became actively involved in expansion of housing, roads, and commercial SCECAP shortly after the inception of the and industrial infrastructure, combined with program, and utilized SCECAP data from 2000- increased recreational utilization of our coastal 2006 and again in 2010 in their National Coastal waters, will result in increased risk for serious Condition Assessment (NCCA) program. impacts to South Carolina’s coastal habitats. Historically, SCECAP represents an The South Carolina Estuarine and Coastal expansion of ongoing monitoring programs Assessment Program (SCECAP) was established being conducted by both state and federal in 1999 to begin evaluating the overall health agencies, and ranks among the first in the country of the state’s estuarine habitats on a periodic to apply a comprehensive, ecosystem-based basis using a combination of water quality, assessment approach for evaluating coastal sediment quality, and biotic condition measures. habitat condition. While the NCCA Program This collaborative program involves the South provides useful information at the national and Carolina Department of Natural Resources regional scale through their National Coastal (SCDNR) and the South Carolina Department Condition Reports (http://water.epa.gov/type/ of Health and Environmental Control oceb/assessmonitor/nccr/index.cfm), SCECAP (SCDHEC) as the two lead state agencies, as provides us with the ability to expand the well as the National Oceanic and Atmospheric assessment for the state of South Carolina by Administration’s National Ocean Service collecting additional data for parameters of state (NOAA/NOS) laboratories located in Charleston relevance as well as using thresholds developed (Center for Coastal Environmental Health and specifically for the state. Biomolecular Research and the Hollings Marine Technical Summary 51 Introduction The Condition of South Carolina’s Estuarine and Coastal Habitats During 2011-2014 There are several critical attributes of the (http://www.epa.gov/national-aquatic-resource- SCECAP initiative that set it apart from other surveys/ncca). Long-term monitoring programs ongoing monitoring programs being conducted such as SCECAP must find a balance between in South Carolina by SCDHEC (primarily for using the same methods and measures for water quality) and SCDNR (primarily for fishery consistency across time, and incorporating new stock assessments). These include: (1) sampling methods and measures as they are developed and sites throughout the state’s estuarine habitats proven. using a random, probability-based approach that complements both agencies’ ongoing programs 2.1. Sampling Design involving fixed station monitoring networks, (2) using integrated measures of environmental Historically, 50-60 stations were sampled and biological condition that provide a more annually, but a discontinuation of some funding complete evaluation of overall habitat quality, forced a downsizing of the effort beginning in and (3) monitoring tidal creek habitats in addition 2007 to a total of 30 stations sampled each year. to the larger open water bodies that have been Sampling sites extend from the Little River Inlet sampled historically by both agencies. This last at the South Carolina-North Carolina border to component is of particular importance because the Savannah River at the South Carolina-Georgia tidal creek habitats serve as important nursery border, and from the saltwater-freshwater interface areas for most of the state’s economically to near

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