Oak Orchard Watershed State of the Basin Report Prepared for Oak Orchard Watershed Protection Alliance Prepared by SUNY Brockport Consulting Team James Zollweg (report compilation, GIS) Mark Noll, Ted Lewis (water quality) Paul Richards (hydrology) Scott Wells (fish survey) Emily Kridel December 2005 Funded by Finger Lakes-Lake Ontario Watershed Protection Alliance (FL-LOWPA) Sponsored by Genesee and Orleans County Soil and Water Conservation Districts Table of Contents I. Introduction ......................................................................................................................4 a. Purpose .............................................................................................................................4 b. Background ......................................................................................................................4 c. Historical Events Impacting the Oak Orchard Watershed................................................6 d. Water Quality and Quantity Goals.................................................................................17 e. Previous Studies .............................................................................................................17 f. Relationships to International, Federal, State, and Other Local Programs.....................20 1. International Joint Commission (IJC) ........................................................................20 2. Great Lakes Commission ...........................................................................................21 3. U.S. Department of Homeland Security.....................................................................22 4. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency .....................................................................22 5. Natural Resources Conservation Service (U.S. Dept. of Agriculture).......................24 6. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (U.S. Dept. of Defense)............................................24 7. U.S. Department of the Interior..................................................................................26 8. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC)......................................................27 9. The Seaway Trail – National Scenic Byway..............................................................29 10. NYS Department of State.........................................................................................29 11. NYS Department of Environmental Conservation...................................................30 12. NYS Department of Agriculture ..............................................................................38 13. NYS Thruway Authority..........................................................................................38 14. NYS Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation ...................................39 15. Cornell Cooperative Extension ................................................................................40 16. Finger Lakes/Lake Ontario Watershed Protection Alliance (FL/LOWPA).............40 17. Genesee/Finger Lakes Regional Planning Council (G/FLRPC) ..............................40 18. Genesee Transportation Council ..............................................................................41 19. New York Sea Grant ................................................................................................41 20. The Trust for Public Land (TPL) .............................................................................42 21. The Nature Conservancy..........................................................................................42 22. Water Education Collaborative ................................................................................43 23. Water Quality Coordinating Committees (WQCCs) ...............................................43 24. Soil and Water Conservation Districts.....................................................................43 25. County Health Departments .....................................................................................44 26. Town of Carlton – example of “Home Rule” Principle ...........................................45 27. Oak Orchard Small Watershed Protection District ..................................................45 g. State of the Basin Report Stakeholders ..........................................................................46 h. Public Involvement in Report Preparation; Contributors...............................................48 II. Geographical Description of the Watershed ..................................................................56 a. Geology ..........................................................................................................................56 b. Location of Oak Orchard River and Tributaries ............................................................57 c. Size and Boundaries of Watershed and Sub-watersheds................................................58 d. Floodplains.....................................................................................................................59 e. Federal Wetlands ............................................................................................................59 f. State Wetlands ................................................................................................................59 g. Soils................................................................................................................................60 h. Topography, Slope and Aspect ......................................................................................61 2 i. Aquifers...........................................................................................................................61 j. Land Cover......................................................................................................................62 k. Mineral Resources..........................................................................................................62 l. Climate ............................................................................................................................63 m. Demographics ...............................................................................................................64 III. Biological/Natural Resources Description of the Watershed.....................................65 a. Description of the Basin .................................................................................................65 b. Critical Habitats of the Basin and the Species That Use Them......................................67 c. Overall Trends and Threats in the Southwest Lake Ontario Basin ................................69 d. Goals and Objectives......................................................................................................74 e. Fishery Assessment of the Oak Orchard Watershed .....................................................75 IV. Uses of Land...............................................................................................................78 a. Land Uses .......................................................................................................................78 b. Erie Canal.......................................................................................................................86 c. Land Transportation .......................................................................................................87 d. Scenic Resources............................................................................................................91 e. Land Use Trends.............................................................................................................91 f. Governmental Policies and Regulation of Land Use......................................................92 V. Uses of Water.................................................................................................................93 VI. Water Quality .............................................................................................................94 a. Previous studies..............................................................................................................94 b. Snap Shot Study – June 21, 2005...................................................................................98 c. Water Discharge Management .....................................................................................103 VII. Water Quantity .........................................................................................................106 a. Hydrologic Assessment of Tributaries in Oak Orchard Watershed ............................106 b. Catchment characteristics of Oak Orchard Tributaries related to Flow......................106 c. Flow volumes from design storms and hydrologic response time ...............................107 d. Phosphorous Loads ......................................................................................................109 e. Phosphorous Transport Paths .......................................................................................110 f. Potentials, Limitations, Recommendations : Hydrologic Modeling............................110 VIII. Tourism ....................................................................................................................113 IX. Recreation/Education ...............................................................................................114 a. Recreational & Business Opportunities........................................................................114