Captina Creek Watershed Action Plan 2014 A Collaboration of the Belmont Soil and Water Conservation District and Captina Creek Watershed Stakeholders Belmont Soil and Water Conservation District 101 N. Market St., Suite A St. Clairsville, Ohio 43950 Phone: 740-526-0027 Fax: 740-526-0032 Website: http://www.belmontSWCD.org Cover photos courtesy of Dover Woods Photography Powhatan Point, Ohio Table of Contents List of Figures……………………………………………………………………………..………iii List of Tables……………………………………………………………………………….…… vii List of Appendices……………………………………………………………………………...…ix List of Acronyms…………………………………………………………………………….…….x Acknowledgements…………………………………………………………………………….….xi Executive Summary…………………………………………………………………………...…xiii Section I: Watershed Overview Chapter 1: Introduction……………………………………………………………..……..2 Chapter 2: Defining the Watershed……………..……………………………………..…..4 Chapter 3: Watershed Demographics…………………………………………….……….9 Chapter 4: Watershed Geographic Locators……………………………………...……...15 Chapter 5: History of the Watershed and Restoration Efforts……………………...……17 Section II: Watershed Action Plan Development Chapter 1: Watershed Stakeholders and Partners…………………………………...…...23 Chapter 2: Partner Roles and Responsibilities………………………………………...…29 Chapter 3: Watershed Action Plan Development……………………………………..…32 Section III: Watershed Inventory Chapter 1: Geologic Description of the Watershed…………………………………...…37 Chapter 2: Biological Features of the Watershed……………………………………..…58 Chapter 3: Water Resources…………………………………………………………..….65 Chapter 4: Land Use in the Captina Creek Watershed………………………………..…84 Chapter 5: Cultural Resources and History of the Watershed………………………..….99 Section IV: Habitat Modification Inventory North Fork Captina Creek Subwatershed………………………………………...........104 South Fork Captina Creek Subwatershed…………………………………………..….113 Bend Fork Subwatershed……………………………………………………………....123 Piney Creek Subwatershed…………………………………………………..................133 Pea Vine Creek Subwatershed………………………………………………………....143 Cat Run Subwatershed………………………………………………………………....153 Section V: Water Quality Inventory…………………………………………………………….162 Section VI: Watershed Action Plans for 12-digit Hydrologic Unit Code Subwatersheds………179 Chapter 1: Summary of Water Quality Issues………………………………………….181 Issue 1: Sedimentation and stream embeddedness…………………………….183 Issue 2: Excessive nutrients……………………………………………………187 Issue 3: Pathogens (Fecal coliform)…………………………………………....191 Issue 4: Water withdrawal……………………………………………………..193 Issue 5: Elevated organic and metal contaminants…………………………….194 Issue 6: Acidity and heavy metals……………………………………………..198 Issue 7: Trash in and near streambanks………………………………………..202 Issue 8: Barriers to fish migration……………………………………………...202 i Issue 9: Flooding………………………………………………………………204 Chapter 2: Problem Statements and Action Plans for each Subwatershed……………..206 Overall Watershed Goals……………………………………………………....211 North Fork Subwatershed……………………………………………………...216 South Fork Subwatershed……………………………………………………...228 Bend Fork Subwatershed………………………………………………………239 Piney Creek Subwatershed…………………………………………………….248 Pea Vine Creek Subwatershed…………………………………………………260 Cat Run Subwatershed…………………………………………………………271 Section VII: Glossary and References Glossary………………………………………………………………………...………281 References …………………………………………………………………………...…283 Appendices Appendix A Land Trust Standards and Practices Appendix B Sample Agricultural Impact Mitigation Agreement Appendix C Draft Captina Creek Watershed Soil Erosion Model Appendix D List of Endangered Fish Species in Ohio ii List of Figures Figure 1. The Captina Creek watershed is located in the southern half of Belmont County and the very northernmost portion of Monroe County. Figure 2. Incorporated and unincorporated cities and communities within the Captina Creek watershed. Figure 3. Public school district boundaries within the Captina Creek watershed. Figure 4. Population distribution in the Captina Creek watershed. Figure 5a. Distribution of people in Belmont County by age. Figure 5b. Distribution of people in Monroe County by age. Figure 6a. Educational attainment for individuals 25 years of age or older in Belmont County. Figure 6b. Educational attainment for individuals 25 years of age or older in Monroe County. Figure 7a. Percentage of households in Belmont County within annual income brackets. Figure 7b. Percentage of households in Monroe County within annual income brackets. Figure 8a. Historical and projected population changes for Belmont County, 1800 – 2050. Figure 8b. Historical and projected population changes for Monroe County, 1800 – 2050. Figure 9. Maps of the Ohio River Basin and the Upper Ohio Wheeling Watershed. Figure 10. Map of the 12-digit hydrologic unit code (HUC) subwatersheds within the Captina Creek watershed and their corresponding HUC codes. Figure 11. Map depicting underground mines located in Belmont and Monroe counties. Figure 12a. Location of strip mined lands in the western portion of the Captina Creek watershed area. Figure 12b. Location of strip mined lands in the eastern portion of the Captina Creek watershed area. Figure 13. Map depicting the location of each subwatershed within the Captina Creek watershed. Figure 14. Topographic map (7.5 minute quadrangle) of the North Fork subwatershed. Figure 15. Topographic map (7.5 minute quadrangle) of the South Fork subwatershed. Figure 16. Topographic map (7.5 minute quadrangle) of the Bend Fork subwatershed. Figure 17. Topographic map (7.5 minute quadrangle) of the Piney Creek subwatershed. Figure 18. Topographic map (7.5 minute quadrangle) of the Pea Vine Creek subwatershed. Figure 19. Topographic map (7.5 minute quadrangle) of the Cat Run subwatershed. Figure 20. Topographic map depicting the four generalized provinces of terrain within the watershed. Figure 21. Eastern Ohio's physiographic ecoregions. Figure 22. A rocky outcrop formed from uneven erosion of shale and siltstone layers on a forested hillside. Figure 23. Thick beds of limestone exposed near the mouth of Anderson Run in the Pea Vine Creek subwatershed. Figure 24. The Captina Creek watershed region within the Marcellus shale formation. Figure 25. Depth of the Marcellus shale formation. Figure 26. Map depicting the depth and range of the Utica shale formation in the northeastern United States. Figure 27. Bedrock ages in extreme eastern Ohio. Figure 28. Map depicting bedrock formations within the Captina Creek watershed. Figure 29. Soil associations in the Captina Creek watershed. Figure 30. Map depicting glacial advancement in Ohio. Figure 31. Favorable soils for supporting wetlands in the watershed region. Figure 32. Wetland locations within the Captina Creek watershed. Figure 33. Captina Creek mainstem and tributaries within the Captina Creek watershed. Figure 34. Floodplain zones of the Captina Creek watershed region. Figure 35. Highly flood prone regions of Captina Creek mainstem near Armstrongs Mills, Ohio. Figure 36. Highly flood prone regions of Captina Creek mainstem near Powhatan Point, Ohio. Figure 37. Captina Creek peak flows from 2004 – 2012 at Armstrongs Mills, Ohio gauge. Figure 38. Lakes, reservoirs and impoundments within the Captina Creek watershed. Figure 39. Groundwater recharge rates for aquifers in the Captina Creek watershed. Figure 40. Groundwater pollution potential within the Captina Creek watershed. Figure 41. Map depicting land use in the Captina Creek watershed. Figure 42. Impervious surfaces within the Captina Creek watershed. Figure 43. Locations of rural residences within the Captina Creek watershed required to have a proper septic disposal system. iii Figure 44. A mature upland oak/hickory deciduous forest on a south-facing slope and a unique mature bottomland forest composed of river birch and eastern hemlock. Figure 45. Forest patch size in the Captina Creek watershed. Figure 46. Historic forest community coverage in the state of Ohio. Figure 47. Surface water withdrawals in Belmont County in 2006. Figure 48. Hunter Prairie in Wayne Township and rocky outcrops at Hunter Prairie consisting of limestone cobble with very shallow soils. Figure 49. The Emerald Ash Borer and the Asian Long-Horned Beetle. Figure 50. The Old Seven Ranges Ohio historical survey region. Figure 51. The location of Casey Run within the Bend Fork subwatershed. Figure 52. North Fork subwatershed of Captina Creek. Figure 53. Notable impacts and modifications to tributaries of the North Fork subwatershed. Figure 54. National Elevation Dataset (NED) relief of the North Fork subwatershed area showing its major tributaries and their floodplain access. Figure 55. Riparian corridors represented in shaded green. Absent green shade represents missing or inadequate riparian buffers. Figure 56a. Modified straightened creek channels in the North Fork subwatershed. Figure 56b. Bridges and culverts diverting creek channel under bridges and roads in the North Fork subwatershed. Figure 57. Major dams within the North Fork subwatershed. Figure 58. Livestock access in the North Fork subwatershed. Figure 59. Locations with eroding banks in the North Fork subwatershed. Figure 60. The South Fork subwatershed. Figure 61. Notable impacts and modifications to tributaries of the South Fork subwatershed. Figure 62. National Elevation Dataset (NED) relief of the South Fork subwatershed showing its major tributaries and their floodplain access. Figure 63. Riparian corridors in the South Fork subwatershed. Figure 64a. Modified channels in the South Fork subwatershed. Figure 64b. Bridges and culverts diverting