Draft SLCW Management Plan South Laughery Creek Watershed Management Plan Prepared by The South Laughery Creek Watershed Project December 2005 Sponsored by Dearborn County Soil and Water Conservation District 10729 Randall Avenue Suite 2 Aurora, IN 47001 1 Draft SLCW Management Plan Funding for this project was obtained from a United States Environmental Protection Agency Clean Water Act # 319 Grant The South Laughery Creek Watershed Project Steering Committee is a subcommittee of the Dearborn County Soil and Water Conservation District To obtain more information on this project, please contact Dearborn Soil and Water Conservation District 10729 Randall Avenue, Suite 2 Aurora, IN 47001 Phone 812 926 2406 ext 3 Fax 812 926 4412 Disclaimer “This project has been funded wholly or in part by the United States Environmental Protection Agency under assistance agreement to the Indiana Department of Environmental Management. The contents of this document do not necessarily reflect the views and policies of the Environmental Protection Agency, nor does mention of trade names or commercial products constitute endorsement or recommendation for use.” 2 Draft SLCW Management Plan Project Mission and Vision Statements Adopted by the South Laughery Creek Watershed Steering Committee The vision of the South Laughery Creek Watershed Project is to provide a healthy creek and surrounding habitat that promotes productive land use and responsible recreational practices. The mission of the South Laughery Creek Watershed Project is to educate citizens of the watershed about conservation, through community involvement, while utilizing leadership, teamwork, and resources effectively. 3 Draft SLCW Management Plan Table of Contents Project Vision and Mission Statement -------------------------------------------------------3 List of Figures --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------7 Appendices ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------10 List of Tables -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------11 Glossary of Terms -------------------------------------------------------------------------------13 Acronyms ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------15 Section One- Project Introduction -----------------------------------------------------------16 Building Partnerships ---------------------------------------------------------------------------18 Section Two- Describing the Watershed --------------------------------------------------21 Physical Description ----------------------------------------------------------------------------22 Natural History -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------22 Land Use ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------23 Endangered Species ---------------------------------------------------------------------------25 Fisheries -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------29 Soils -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------31 Topography ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------34 Hydrology ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------35 Water Supply -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------37 Wetlands -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------38 Historical Land Use -----------------------------------------------------------------------------40 Timber ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------41 Public Land ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------41 4 Draft SLCW Management Plan Section Three- Establishing Benchmarks -------------------------------------------------42 Land Inventory Findings -----------------------------------------------------------------------42 Population -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------45 IDEM 303d Water Quality Results ----------------------------------------------------------46 Middle Ohio-Laughery Watershed Restoration Action Strategy ---------------------48 2004 Cropland Transect Survey -------------------------------------------------------------48 Visual Assessment Results -------------------------------------------------------------------51 Water Monitoring Results ----------------------------------------------------------------------52 Turbidity -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------53 E.coli ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------56 Dissolved Oxygen ----------------------------------------------------------------------59 Total Phosphorus -----------------------------------------------------------------------62 NPDES Discharge Data -----------------------------------------------------------------------72 Riparian Buffer Width ---------------------------------------------------------------------------74 Trash ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------75 LARE (Lake and River Enhancement) -----------------------------------------------------76 Stream Bank Erosion ---------------------------------------------------------------------------76 Estimated Pesticide Application per County ----------------------------------------------78 Estimated Fertilizer Application per County -----------------------------------------------80 Livestock and Manure Production per County -------------------------------------------83 Section Four & Five- Identifying Problem Causes, Stressors, and Sources ------85 Erosion Problem Causes and Stressors ---------------------------------------------------86 Water Quality Problem Causes and Stressors -------------------------------------------88 Creek Maintenance Problem Causes and Stressors------------------------------------90 Recreation Problem Causes and Stressors -----------------------------------------------91 5 Draft SLCW Management Plan Education Problem Causes and Stressors ------------------------------------------------92 Section Six & Seven- Identifying Critical Areas, Setting Goals, and Selecting Indicators -----------------------------------------------------------------------------94 Erosion Goals and Objectives ----------------------------------------------------------------95 Water Quality Goals and Objectives --------------------------------------------------------98 Creek Maintenance Goals and Objectives ----------------------------------------------100 Permitting Procedures Goals and Objectives -------------------------------------------102 Education Goals and Objectives------------------------------------------------------------105 Section Eight – Choosing Measures to Apply ------------------------------------------107 Section Nine - Calculating Load Reduction----------------------------------------------108 Section Ten – Implementing Measures---------------------------------------------------109 Cost Estimates for the next 3-5 years Section Eleven ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------111 Section Twelve ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------112 6 Draft SLCW Management Plan List of Figures Figure 1. SLCW: State and Regional Location-------------------------------------------17 Figure 2. SLCW: Subwatersheds-----------------------------------------------------------21 Figure 3. SLCW: Landuse--------------------------------------------------------------------24 Figure 4. SLCW: Dearborn and Ohio County Soils------------------------------------31 Figure 5. SLCW: Ripley County Soils------------------------------------------------------32 Figure 6. SLCW: Switzerland County Soils----------------------------------------------33 Figure 7. SLCW: Floodplain Area-----------------------------------------------------------34 Figure 8. SLCW: Tributaries-----------------------------------------------------------------35 Figure 9. SLCW: Wetlands-------------------------------------------------------------------38 Figure 10. Indiana Farm Land Use History: Dearborn County----------------------43 Figure 11. Indiana Farm Land Use History: Ohio County-----------------------------43 Figure 12. Indiana Farm Land Use History: Ripley County---------------------------44 Figure 13. Indiana Farm Land Use History: Switzerland County-------------------44 Figure 14. Census Population 1900-2000-------------------------------------------------45 Figure 15. SLCW: Impaired Streams-------------------------------------------------------47 Figure 16. 2004 Tillage Data: Corn---------------------------------------------------------49 Figure 17. 2004 No-till Acres per County--------------------------------------------------50 Figure 18. 2004 Tillage Data: Soybeans---------------------------------------------------50 Figure 19. SLCW: Testing Locations-------------------------------------------------------52 Figure 20. SLCW: Turbidity, Sites 1-3----------------------------------------------------- 54 Figure 21. SLCW: Turbidity, Sites 4-6----------------------------------------------------- 54 Figure 22. SLCW: Turbidity, Sites 7-9-----------------------------------------------------