-----Original Message----- From: Matthews, William J. [mailto:[email protected]] Sent: Monday, January 24, 2011 3:12 PM To: Jastrzebski, Marysia Cc: Matthews, William J.; Marsh-Matthews, Edith C.; Ginny Adams; [email protected] Subject: Evergreen frac sand permitting Piney Creek Izard County Professional Input to hearing for 25Jan11 Dear Ms. Jastrzebski, We (Dr. William J. Matthews and Dr. Edith Marsh-Matthews, University of Oklahoma) wish to submit to the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality, Water Division, the attached material as formal input into the hearing process for issuance of a permit to the Evergreen Processing, LLC, for proposed Twin Mountain facility to be located 7.5 miles east of Calico Rock on Highway 56, Izard County, Arkansas. As I understand their application, which reviewed in detail, releases of water related to stormwater flows would have the potential to enter Piney Creek, which is an extremely high-quality Ozark mountain stream. I have made scientific studies of the fish of Piney Creek since 1972, joined by Dr. Marsh-Matthews since 1994, and more recently by Drs. Ginny and Reid Adams of Central Arkansas University. Dr. Marsh-Matthews and I submit our credentials as experts on the fish of Piney Creek, a summary of our recent finding in fish surveys in Piney Creek near and downstream of the proposed activity, and a summary statement. I request that this material be added to and considered in your decision-making process regarding the Evergreen Processing permit. While we present our credentials and provide the information on our employment, we make all statements and conclusions as individuals, and not representing the opinions of the University of Oklahoma or any of its internal units. Thank you very much for your consideration. There are four attachments. I request that you acknowledge receipt by return email. Sincerely, William J. Matthews, PhD Professor and Chairman Department of Zoology University of Oklahoma Norman, OK 73019 [email protected] 405-325-6200 Comments on the Fishes of Piney Creek, Izard County Arkansas 24 January 2011 Dr. William J. Matthews, University of Oklahoma Dr. Edith Marsh-Matthews, University of Oklahoma Summary Piney Creek, in Izard County, Arkansas, contains a very rich and valuable native Ozark fish fauna. From the State Hwy 56 bridge downstream to near White River, our fish surveys in recent years have revealed a total of 41 native species, especially rich in minnows, sunfish, bass, darters, and other small-bodied fishes. Piney Creek has consistently had a very high quality fish fauna since at least the early 1970s, and our recent collections affirm that it has maintained this high quality over decades. Piney Creek has an excellent, reproducing population of smallmouth bass, which are attractive to anglers. Most fish species in Piney Creek depend on clean gravel substrates for reproduction, feeding, or shelter, and excessive silt is harmful to virtually all of these fishes. Any activity that has the potential to cause an increase in siltation of the Piney Creek streambed should not be allowed, as it can cause direct, serious harm to this important fish community. Credentials We (Dr. William J. Matthews and Dr. Edith Marsh-Matthews) wish to provide expert information and opinion about the fishes of Piney Creek, Izard County, Arkansas, as it may affect deliberations that are ongoing about sand mining permit(s) in Piney Creek. We are both faculty members at the University of Oklahoma, and we provide our credentials below to establish that we can be considered experts on the native fish of Piney Creek. However, we make all statements below as individual scientists, and our opinions do not reflect any official position of the Department of Zoology, the Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History, or the University of Oklahoma. All of the following statements and data-based information are true and correct to the best of our knowledge. We authorize use of this information by any and all parties with interest in Piney Creek or in sand mining or other uses of resources in this watershed, now, or in the future. Thank you for this opportunity for input. Dr. William J. Matthews has BSE and MS degrees from Arkansas State University, and a PhD from the University of Oklahoma (1977). He is currently a Professor and Department Chairman in the Department of Zoology, University of Oklahoma. His specialty is in ichthyology and fish ecology, and he has more than 100 published papers in peer-reviewed professional journals, and wrote or edited two books (including “Patterns in Freshwater Fish Ecology”, 1998, Chapman and Hall, NY). He began studies of the fishes of Piney Creek in 1972, and has made scientific collections of fishes throughout the creek at approximately decadal intervals since that time. Dr. Edith Marsh-Matthews has a BS degree from Duke University, and a PhD from the University of Texas (1980). She is currently an Associate Professor of Zoology and Associate Curator of Fishes at the Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History, University of Oklahoma. Her specialty is in ichthyology and fish ecology, and she has published 39 professional papers of book chapters on fishes. Dr. Marsh-Matthews has participated in surveys of fish throughout Piney Creek since 1994. Complete copies of our Curriculum Vitae are attached for verification of our credentials. All fish have been collected under provisions of Scientific Collecting Permits from the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission, and with approval by the University of Oklahoma Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee. Field Sites and Fish Surveys In this report we address collections made most recently (2006, 2008, and 2010) at four permanent sampling sites at or downstream from Hwy 56, east of Calico Rock. Those sites, and reference numbers used in all data bases and reporting, are, from upstream to downstream: P-5: Piney Creek mainstream, at and below the State Hwy 56 bridge east of Calico Rock, a reach of approximately 250 meters from slightly above the highway bridge to and through the first large rock rapids. P-4: Piney Creek mainstream at the Gorby Road crossing, from approximately 25 meters above to 175 meters below a concrete low-water bridge, including pools, rapids, and backwaters. P-2: Piney Creek mainstream at the Jones Cemetery Road crossing, a reach of approximately 200 meters above and below the concrete slab crossing, including pools, rapids, and one large backwater. P-1: Piney Creek mainstream above the Boswell Road bridge, a reach of approximately 200 m from high bluffs through a large downstream pool, and including a large rapids, smaller riffles and backwater pools, and a long sand-bottomed pool reach. This is approximately 1 mile above the confluence of Piney Creek with White River At all sites, fish were collected by seining for approximately 1 hour, with 15 ft. x 4 ft. x 3/16” mesh in pools, and by “kicksets” with a 6 ft. x 4 ft. x 3/16” mesh seine in rapids and riffles. All fish were preserved for laboratory identification. Collections in 2006 and 2008 were under the permit to W. J. Matthews, and collections in 2010 were under permit to Dr. Reid Adams, Central Arkansas University, who sampled with us in the field. In 2008 and 2010 Dr. Ginny Adams, Central Arkansas University also worked with us to make samples. Results and Conclusions A summary of fishes present, by year (2006, 2008, 2010) is attached as Appendix A. A total of 41 native species of fish was found, collectively, in the four sites from Hwy 56 to near the White River. This represents a very rich, native Ozark fauna, with many species of minnows, sunfish, and bass, with substantial numbers of darters and sculpins. Piney Creek has, in all of WJM surveys, beginning in 1972, had a very rich fauna in excess of 40 species, and all indications are that this stream remains in excellent and near pristine condition with respect to fishes and conditions of the aquatic environment. It typically exhibits clear water, over clear gravels and coarse sand, and is excellent habitat for many species of fish. We detect no decline in quality of habitat of fish over the decades. In each individual survey we collected, by site, a range in numbers of species as follows: P-5: 25-26 species; P-4: 23-28 species; P-2:19-26 species; and P- 1: 22-28 species. These numbers of species are very high for any single collection, further indicating that Piney Creek from Hwy 56 to the White River is an exceptionally diverse, and important stream for native Ozark fishes. Over all collections 2006-2010, there were, collectively, 16 species of minnows, 4 species of suckers, 3 species of catfishes, 2 species of topminnows, 1 species each of mosquitofish and silversides, 8 species of sunfish or black bass, 4 species of darters, and 2 species of sculpins. Piney Creek is an excellent smallmouth bass stream, and it is fished actively by local anglers. We found smallmouth bass (Micropterus dolomieu) at all of our study sites, and in all but one individual collection. We typically found good numbers of young-of-year, thus the species has an important, naturally reproducing population. Piney Creek also has a substantial population of Ozark rock bass and bluegill sunfish, which can provide angling on light tackle. Piney Creek has, in addition, other sunfish species that are important predators and comprise an important component of a natural Ozark stream ecosystem. All of the sunfish and black bass species reproduce by building depression nests in gravel. Nests can only provide successful reproduction if males are able to keep the nest clear of silt and well-aerated.