Notikewin and Keg Rivers Water Quality Monitoring Program 2019 The County of Northern Lights and the North Peace Applied Research Association (NPARA) Prepared for: County of Northern Lights 600-7th Avenue NW Box 10 Manning, Alberta T0H 2M0 and North Peace Applied Research Association 116-4th Avenue SW Manning, Alberta T0H 2M0 December 2019 Prepared by: Aquality Environmental Consulting Ltd. #204, 7205 Roper Road NW Edmonton, AB, Canada, T6B 3J4 NOTIKEWIN AND KEG RIVERS WATER QUALITY 2019 PAGE 1 Notikewin and Keg Rivers Water Quality Monitoring Program 2019 The County of Northern Lights and the North Peace Applied Research Association (NPARA) Signature Page Prepared by: Reviewed and Approved by: Bhupesh Khadka, M. Sc. P. Biol. Joshua Haag, B.Sc., P.Biol. Biologist Biologist ©2020 Aquality Environmental Consulting Ltd. NOTIKEWIN AND KEG RIVERS WATER QUALITY 2019 PAGE 2 Contents Table of Contents Contents ............................................................................................................................... 2 Table of Contents ...........................................................................................................................2 List of Figures .................................................................................................................................3 List of Tables ..................................................................................................................................4 1 Introduction ............................................................................................................... 5 2 Methods .................................................................................................................... 5 2.1 Sampling Sites .....................................................................................................................5 2.2 Water Quality Parameters ...................................................................................................7 2.3 River Water Quality Index Calculations ................................................................................7 2.4 Climate Information ............................................................................................................8 3 Results ....................................................................................................................... 9 3.1 Routine Water Quality.........................................................................................................9 3.1.1 pH ........................................................................................................................................ 10 3.1.2 Routine Ions ........................................................................................................................ 11 3.1.3 Total Suspended Solids (TSS) .............................................................................................. 12 3.2 Nutrients .......................................................................................................................... 13 3.2.1 Total Nitrogen (TN) ............................................................................................................. 14 3.2.2 Total Phosphorus (TP) ......................................................................................................... 15 3.3 Metals .............................................................................................................................. 16 3.4 Bacteria ............................................................................................................................ 18 3.5 Herbicides and Pesticides .................................................................................................. 20 3.6 River Water Quality Index ................................................................................................. 22 4 Discussion ................................................................................................................ 24 4.1 Routine Parameters .......................................................................................................... 24 4.2 Nutrients .......................................................................................................................... 24 4.3 Metals .............................................................................................................................. 25 4.4 Bacteria ............................................................................................................................ 25 4.5 Pesticides .......................................................................................................................... 25 4.6 Overall Water Quality ........................................................................................................ 26 5 Conclusions and Recommendations .......................................................................... 26 7 Bibliography ............................................................................................................. 28 Appendix A - Detailed Water Quality Parameter Lists........................................................... 31 Routine Water Quality Parameters ............................................................................................... 31 Nutrient Water Quality Parameters .............................................................................................. 31 Bacteria Water Quality Parameters ............................................................................................... 31 Pesticides Water Quality Parameters ............................................................................................ 32 Metals Water Quality Parameters ................................................................................................. 33 Appendix B - River Water Quality Index Calculations ............................................................ 34 Overview ..................................................................................................................................... 34 Objectives Used in the Water Quality Index .................................................................................. 35 ©2020 Aquality Environmental Consulting Ltd. NOTIKEWIN AND KEG RIVERS WATER QUALITY 2019 PAGE 3 List of Figures Figure 1. Water quality monitoring program sample sites, including 2019 and historical locations. .......... 6 Figure 2. Summary of surface water pH at all sites. Top: bars represent 2019 values. Bottom: bars represent average values for each site by year, error bars indicate standard deviation of measurements for each site within the given year. ............................................................................................................ 10 Figure 3. Summary of routine ions at all sites. Values are stacked, as individual components contribute to overall measures of hardness, salinity, alkalinity, and conductivity........................................................... 11 Total suspended solids (TSS) concentrations have historically shown high values during spring runoff and lower values in the fall, but with substantial variation from year to year (Figure 4). TSS at Site 1 was higher in the fall than in the spring in contrast to this pattern, but due to lower-than-average concentrations in the spring rather than elevated concentrations in the fall. Across all sites, 2019 values were below historical averages. The extreme values observed in 2014 appear to have been the result of higher than normal precipitation preceding the summer sampling period, with over 250% of the normal monthly rainfall falling in April just as snowmelt was occurring, exacerbating erosion and sedimentation issues. 12 Figure 5. Total Nitrogen (mg/L) in surface water at all sites. Areas are stacked to indicate overall total nitrogen concentrations, comprising the contributions of dissolved (upper area on each figure) and particulate forms (lower are on each figure). ............................................................................................. 14 Figure 6. Total Phosphorus (mg/L) in surface water at all sites. Areas are stacked to indicate overall total nitrogen concentrations, comprising the contributions of dissolved (upper area on each figure) and particulate forms (lower are on each figure) .............................................................................................. 15 Figure 7. Number of guideline exceedances for measured metals, by site and season............................. 16 Figure 8. Summary of Total Coliforms at all sites. Top: bars represent 2019 values; points indicate seasonal averages by site across all years. Bottom: bars represent average values for each site by year, error bars indicate standard deviation of measurements for each site within the given year. .................................. 18 Figure 9. Summary of E. coli at all sites. Top: bars represent 2019 values; points indicate seasonal averages by site across all years. Bottom: bars represent average values for each site by year, error bars indicate standard deviation of measurements for each site within the given year. ................................................ 19 Figure 10. Overall Water Quality Index Scores from all sites, 2011 – 2019. Dashed lines indicate overall linear trend, though the statistical significance of these trends was not determined due to the limited number of years of data available from some sites. .................................................................................