Watershed Characterization
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Wat e rshe d Characterization ausable bayfield maitland valley planning region Ausable Bayfield & Maitland Valley Partnership Made possible through the support of the Government of Ontario Ausable Bayfield & Maitland Valley Source Protection Region - Watershed Characterization Watershed Characterization Ausable Bayfield & Maitland Valley Partnership Source Water Protection Planning Region Assessment Report: Guidance Module 1 Version 1.0 January 2007 DRAFT This document is a draft version and is subject to review by Conservation Ontario. 1 Ausable Bayfield & Maitland Valley Source Protection Region - Watershed Characterization ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Authors Brian Luinstra Liz Snell Rick Steele Meredith Walker Mari Veliz Contributors Andrew Bicknell Susan Brocklebank Pat Donnelly Geoff King Kevin McKague Ausable Bayfield Conservation Staff Maitland Valley Conservation Staff Reviewers Ken Cornelisse, Ministry of Natural Resources Stan Denhoed, Harden Environmental Services Trevor Dickinson, University of Guelph, Engineering Department Steve Evans, Middlesex County Planning Department Doug Joy, University of Guelph, Department of Engineering Gary Palmateer, GAP Environmental Services Geoff Peach, Lake Huron Centre for Coastal Conservation Susanna Reid, Huron County Planning Department Pamela Scharfe, Huron County Health Unit Paul Turnbull, Municipality of Lambton Shores Kelly Vader, B.M. Ross and Associates Ltd. Bob Worsell, Huron County Health Unit 2 Ausable Bayfield & Maitland Valley Source Protection Region - Watershed Characterization INTRODUCTION The Clean Water Act, which received Royal Assent on October 19, 2006, is part of the Ontario government’s plan to implement recommendations from the Walkerton Inquiry and the O’Connor Report. Justice O’Connor concluded that a multi-barrier approach was the most effective method to prevent contamination from affecting drinking water. This approach includes taking action to prevent the contamination of sources of water, using adequate water treatment and distribution systems, water testing and training of water managers. The Clean Water Act sets out a framework to identify and assess risks to the quality and quantity of drinking water sources, and to rank these risks from those requiring immediate action, to those which require monitoring to prevent elevation to a higher risk, to those risks which are negligible. The legislation also mandates the development of a source protection plan which sets out how the risks will be addressed. The plan will be carried out through official plans and other planning or regulatory requirements. Any activity that poses a significant risk to a drinking water source may be prohibited or require a site specific risk management option. The Watershed Characterization for the Ausable Bayfield Maitland Valley Source Protection Planning Region is one of a set of modules that will help the local Source Protection Planning Committee and regional working groups to prepare an Assessment Report and a source water protection plan. It is the aim of this document to compile information on the physical, sociological and economic characteristics of the Ausable Bayfield Maitland Valley watersheds. Information will be updated as knowledge and data gaps are prioritized and filled, and used for other modules. It is anticipated that a Map Book will be produced in the future to include all the maps required for the Watershed Characterization and the Conceptual Water Budget and it will encompass up-to-date data. 3 Ausable Bayfield & Maitland Valley Source Protection Region - Watershed Characterization TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER 1 9 1 WATERSHED DESCRIPTION 10 1.1 Overview of Source Protection Planning Region 10 1.1.1 Drinking Water Source Protection Planning Region 10 1.1.2 Stakeholders and Partners 12 1.1.2.1 Municipalities 12 1.1.2.2 Health Units 13 1.1.2.3 Interested and Engaged Stakeholders 14 1.1.2.4 Provincial Agencies 15 1.1.2.5 Federal Government 15 1.1.2.6 First Nations 15 1.1.2.7 Non Governmental Organizations (NGOs) 15 1.2 Geological Setting 17 1.2.1 Bedrock Geology 17 1.2.2 Quaternary Geology 18 1.3 Hydrology 19 1.3.1 Watershed Form and Surface Hydrology 19 1.3.2 Climate 36 1.3.2.1 Climatic and Meteorological Trends 37 1.3.3 Groundwater and Hydrogeology 37 1.3.4 Surface – Groundwater Interactions 39 1.4 Natural Heritage 41 1.4.1 Wetlands and ANSIs 42 1.4.2 Terrestrial 45 1.5 Aquatic Ecology 47 1.5.1 Fisheries 47 1.5.2 Aquatic Macroinvertebrates 50 1.5.3 Species and Habitats at Risk 51 1.5.4 Invasive Species 54 1.6 Human Characterization 54 1.6.1 Population Distribution 55 1.6.1.1 Population Projections 56 1.6.2 Land Use 57 1.6.2.1 Existing Urban Development 57 1.6.2.2 New and Projected Urban Development 58 1.6.2.3 Industrial / Commercial Sectors Distribution 58 1.6.2.4 Trends in Industrial and Commercial Sectors 59 1.6.2.5 Agricultural Sector Distribution 59 1.6.2.6 Trends in Agriculture 60 1.6.2.7 Non Agricultural Rural Land Uses and Trends 60 1.6.2.7.1 Aggregates 60 1.6.2.7.2 Cottage Development 61 1.6.2.7.3 Forestry Operations 62 4 Ausable Bayfield & Maitland Valley Source Protection Region - Watershed Characterization 1.6.2.7.4 Protected Areas 62 1.6.2.7.5 Brownfields 62 1.6.2.7.6 Landfills 62 1.6.2.7.7 Oil and Gas 63 1.6.2.7.8 Transportation 63 1.6.2.7.9 Wastewater Treatment 63 1.6.3 Water Uses and Values 66 1.6.3.1 Drinking Water Sources 66 Municipal wells 67 1.6.3.1.1 Communal Wells 67 1.6.3.1.2 Private groundwater supplies 67 1.6.3.1.3 Surface water intakes 67 1.6.3.2 Recreational Water Use 71 1.6.3.3 Ecological Water Use 73 1.6.3.4 Agricultural Water Use 73 1.6.3.5 Industrial Water Use 75 1.7 Watershed monitoring strategies and programs 75 1.8 Water Quality 77 1.8.1 General Overview of Surface Water Quality 77 1.8.2 General Overview of Groundwater Quality 78 1.9 References 79 Appendix A: Climate Normals (1971-2000) Measures at Long-Term AES Stations in the Ausable Bayfield- Maitland Planning Region 87 Appendix B: Municipal Restructuring of the six counties within the source protection planning region (Ontario Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing 2006). 89 Appendix C: Watershed-Specific Summary of Surface Water Quality from Available Documents 93 Appendix D: Catalogue of Maps 97 CHAPTER 2 99 2 WATER QUALITY 100 2.0 Background 100 2.1 Indicators 103 2.2 Methodology 108 2.2.1 Surface Water 108 2.2.1.1 Data Collection Programs 109 2.2.1.2 Scan of Potential Water Quality Issues 110 2.2.1.3 Temporal Changes 111 2.2.1.4 Temporal Trends 112 2.2.1.5 Spatial Trends 113 2.2.2 Groundwater 117 2.2.2.1 Provincial Groundwater Monitoring Network 118 2.2.2.2 Municipal groundwater supplies 118 2.3 Results 119 5 Ausable Bayfield & Maitland Valley Source Protection Region - Watershed Characterization 2.3.1 River 119 2.3.1.1 Scan of data – all indicators with standards 119 2.3.1.2 Temporal Trends 123 2.3.1.3 Spatial Trends 136 2.3.1.4 Riverine Water Quality Summary 139 2.3.2 Lake Huron 139 2.3.2.1 Temporal Trends 139 2.3.2.2 Lake Huron Intake Summary 145 2.3.3 Groundwater 145 2.3.3.1 Overburden Aquifers 145 2.3.3.2 Bedrock Aquifers 149 2.3.3.3 Groundwater Quality Summary 154 2.4 Microbial Source and Raw Water Characterization 155 2.5 Discussion 156 2.6 Implications for Source Water Protection – Municipal 157 2.7 References 158 Appendix A: Historic PWQMN summary data and graphs for chloride, copper, nitrate, total phosphorus, residue particulate, fecal coliform and E. coli 160 Appendix B: Selected Historic PWQNM sites with Different or Significant Trends 209 Appendix C: Spatial Trend Statistical Graphs (2001-2005) – nitrate, total phosphorus and E. coli 211 Appendix D: Catalogue of Maps 215 CHAPTER 3 217 3 VULNERABLE AREAS 218 3.1 Vulnerable Areas to Groundwater Resources 218 3.1.1 Well Head Protection Areas (WHPA) 219 3.1.1.1 Surface to Well Advection Time (SWAT) Well Head Protection Areas 221 3.1.2 Intrinsic Susceptibility Index and Aquifer Vulnerability Index 222 3.1.3 MOE Groundwater Susceptibility Mapping 224 3.1.4 Shallow Susceptibility Index Mapping (SSI) 224 3.1.5 Localized Vulnerability Issues (outside WHPAs) 225 3.1.5.1 Recharge/Discharge Areas 225 3.1.5.2 Karst Aquifers and Sinkholes 228 3.1.5.3 Village Well Fields 229 3.2 Surface Water Vulnerability 230 3.2.1 Surface Water Vulnerability – Runoff Index 230 3.2.2 Modified RI 231 3.2.3 Flood Plain Mapping 232 3.3 Surface Water Intakes in the Nearshore of the Great lakes 232 3.3.1 Nearshore Water Quality 233 3.3.1.1 Factors affecting nearshore water intake zones 233 3.3.1.1.1 Water Movement 234 3.3.1.1.2 Tributary effects 235 6 Ausable Bayfield & Maitland Valley Source Protection Region - Watershed Characterization 3.3.1.2 Lake Huron Case Example 236 3.3.1.3 Other Local Influences 240 3.3.1.3.1 Sediment Characteristics 240 3.3.1.3.2 Biology 240 3.3.1.3.3 Atmospheric Deposition 240 3.3.1.3.4 Summary of Factors Influencing Nearshore Water Quality Conditions 241 3.3.2 Intake Protection Zone 242 3.3.2.1 Conclusions for Great Lakes Intake Protection Zones 244 3.4 Conclusions 245 3.5 References 245 Appendix A: Generic Representative Permeability (K-factor) 249 Appendix B: Soil and Geology Values for SSI 250 Appendix C: Potential Village Well Fields 252 Appendix D - Soil Values for Runoff Index 253 Appendix E: Catalogue of Maps 259 CHAPTER 4 261 4 EXISTING THREATS INVENTORY 262 4.2 Categories of threats/issues/concerns 262 4.2.1 Agricultural Activities 263 4.2.1.1 Application of Nutrients 263 4.2.1.2 Liquid Manure and Septage 263 4.2.1.3 Storage 264 4.2.2 Municipal Wastewater/landfills (incl.