NORTH CAROLINA DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENT AND NATURAL RESOURCES Division of Water Quality Water Quality Section Environmental Sciences Branch June 2003 This page was intentionally left blank NCDENR, Division of Water Quality Basinwide Assessment Report – French Broad River Basin - June 2003 1 TABLE OF CONTENTS Page LIST OF APPENDICIES ........................................................................................................................ 3 LIST OF TABLES................................................................................................................................... 4 LIST OF FIGURES ................................................................................................................................ 6 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ........................................................................................................................... 9 OVERVIEW OF THE WATER QUALITY OF THE FRENCH BROAD RIVER BASIN ............................10 PROGRAM AREA OVERVIEWS ................................................ 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BENTHIC MACROINVERTEBRATES............................................................................................. 16 FISHERIES ...................................................................................................................................... 17 LAKE ASSESSMENT....................................................................................................................... 20 AMBIENT MONITORING SYSTEM ................................................................................................. 20 AQUATIC TOXICTY MONITORING ................................................................................................ 21 INTRODUCTION TO PROGRAM METHODS .................................................................................... 22 QUALITY ASSURANCE................................................................................................................... 22 BENTHIC MACROINVERTEBRATES............................................................................................. 22 FISHERIES ...................................................................................................................................... 23 LAKE ASSESSMENT....................................................................................................................... 23 AMBIENT MONITORING SYSTEM ................................................................................................. 23 AQUATIC TOXICITY MONITORING ............................................................................................... 24 FRENCH BROAD RIVER SUBBASIN 01............................................................................................ 26 Description.................................................................................................................................... 26 Overview of Water Quality............................................................................................................ 27 River and Stream Assessment .....................................................................................................28 FRENCH BROAD RIVER SUBBASIN 02............................................................................................ 34 Description.................................................................................................................................... 34 Overview of Water Quality............................................................................................................ 35 River and Stream Assessment .....................................................................................................37 Lake Assessment ......................................................................................................................... 51 FRENCH BROAD RIVER SUBBASIN 03............................................................................................ 54 Description.................................................................................................................................... 54 Overview of Water Quality............................................................................................................ 54 River and Stream Assessment .....................................................................................................55 FRENCH BROAD RIVER SUBBASIN 04............................................................................................ 57 Description.................................................................................................................................... 57 Overview of Water Quality............................................................................................................ 58 River and Stream Assessment .....................................................................................................58 FRENCH BROAD RIVER SUBBASIN 05............................................................................................ 65 Description.................................................................................................................................... 65 Overview of Water Quality............................................................................................................ 66 River and Stream Assessment .....................................................................................................67 Lake Assessment ......................................................................................................................... 78 FRENCH BROAD RIVER SUBBASIN 06............................................................................................ 81 Description.................................................................................................................................... 81 Overview of Water Quality............................................................................................................ 82 River and Stream Assessment .....................................................................................................82 FRENCH BROAD RIVER SUBBASIN 07............................................................................................ 89 Description.................................................................................................................................... 89 Overview of Water Quality............................................................................................................ 89 River and Stream Assessment .....................................................................................................90 AMBIENT MONITORING SYSTEM..................................................................................................... 93 AQUATIC TOXICITY MONITORING................................................................................................. 112 REFERENCES .................................................................................................................................. 116 NCDENR, Division of Water Quality Basinwide Assessment Report – French Broad River Basin - June 2003 2 LIST OF APPENDICIES Appendix Page 1 Flow measurement and flow conditions in the French Broad River basin, 2002.........................119 2 Habitat evaluations and stream and riparian habitats at fish community monitoring sites in the French Broad River basin. .........................................................................................123 3 Habitat evaluation at 23 basinwide fish community sites in the French Broad basin, 2002 .............................................................................................................................................127 4 Habitat evaluation at 20 basinwide fish community sites in French Broad River basin, 1997 .............................................................................................................................................128 5 Habitat evaluation at 54 benthic macroinvertebrate sites in the French Broad River basin, 2002...................................................................................................................................129 6 Benthic macroinvertebrate sampling methods and criteria..........................................................131 7 Benthic macroinvertebrate data collected in the French Broad River basin,1983 - 2002 ...........133 8 Water quality measurements at benthic macroinvertebrate basinwide sites in the French Broad River basin, 2002...............................................................................................................144 9 New species and distributional records for the benthic macroinvertebrate fauna of the French Broad River basin ............................................................................................................145 10 Fish community sampling methods and criteria...........................................................................147 11 Fish community structure data collected in the French Broad River basin, 1993 - 2002 ............152 12 Fish community metric values from 23 wadeable streams in the French Broad River basinwide monitoring program, 2002...........................................................................................154 13 Fish distributional records for the French Broad River basin.......................................................155 14 Water quality at fish community sites in the