Utah Department of Environmental Quality Division of Water Quality TMDL Section Lower Bear River & Tributaries TMDL Waterbody ID Lower Bear River & Tributaries Location Box Elder County, Utah (HUC # 16010204) TMDL Pollutants of Concern Total Phosphorus Impaired Beneficial Uses Class 3B: Protected for warm water species of game fish and other warm water aquatic life, including the necessary aquatic organisms in their food chain. Loading Assessment - At Cutler 703 kg/day annual average load TP - At Corinne 980 kg/day annual average load TP Water Quality Targets/Endpoints - Below Cutler Reservoir 365.5 kg/day annual average TP load (Based on 0.075-mg/l instream concentration of TP) - At Corinne 380.6 kg/day annual average TP load (Based on 0.075-mg/l instream concentration of TP) - Basin wide endpoints · load reduction of 458.8 kg/day · not to exceed 0.075 mg/l TP concentration in river · 35 comprehensive nutrient mgt systems · 25% reduction of cropland runoff · 10 miles of streambank restoration · install BMPs on acres designated as critical · point sources meet UPDES requirements Load Reduction - Below Cutler Reservoir 410 kg/day annual average load TP - At Corinne 458.8 kg/day annual average load TP (includes 41.7 kg/day MOS 10% of initial target) Implementation Strategy BMPs - Animal waste mgt., irrigation water mgt., riparian rehabilitation, nutrient mgt., streambank stabilization, power ramping mgt., range/pasture mgt., wetland construction, point source control. This document is identified as a TMDL for Lower Bear & tributaries from Great Salt Lake to Cutler Reservoir and is officially submitted to the U.S. EPA to act upon and approve as a TMDL. It has been developed utilizing information submitted by Ecosystems Research Institute through a locally administered contract with Bear River Water Conservancy District. LOWER BEAR RIVER WATERSHED RESTORATION ACTION STRATEGY A Sub-basin Assessment for the Lower Bear River and Tributaries from GSL to Cutler Reservoir in Box Elder County, Utah Prepared by: Utah Department of Environmental Quality Division of Water Quality Michael D. Allred, Project Manager Harry Lewis Judd, Project Supervisor Prepared using information developed by: Ecosystems Research Institute, Inc. Bear River Water Conservancy District April 2002 TABLE OF CONTENTS 1.0 INTRODUCTION .......................................................1 1.1 Historic Perspective .................................................1 1.2 Utah’s Watershed Approach ..........................................1 1.3 Role of Stakeholder Input .............................................2 2.0 PROJECT AREA ........................................................2 2.1 Watershed Boundaries ...............................................2 2.2 Economy and Demographics ..........................................5 2.2.1 Population ..................................................5 2.2.2 Land Ownership .............................................9 2.2.3 Land Use and Economy ........................................9 2.3 Physical Setting ....................................................9 2.3.1 Geology ....................................................9 2.3.2 Soils .....................................................19 2.3.3 Climate ...................................................21 2.3.4 Ecotypes ..................................................21 2.4 Hydrology .......................................................28 2.4.1 Surface Water ..............................................28 2.4.2 Irrigation Systems ............................................31 2.4.3 Drainage Systems ............................................31 2.4.4 Water Budget ..............................................31 2.5 Groundwater .....................................................38 2.5.1 Groundwater Systems ........................................38 2.5.2 Recharge ..................................................38 2.5.3 Direction of groundwater flow and potentiometric surface ..............39 3.0 MONITORING PROGRAM ..............................................40 3.1 Analysis of Current Monitoring ........................................40 3.1.1 Locations .................................................40 3.1.2 Frequency and Parameters .....................................40 3.1.3 Monitoring Results ...........................................40 4.0 WATER QUALITY .....................................................52 4.1 Water Quality Standards ............................................52 4.2 Water Quality Assessment ...........................................52 4.3 Nonpoint Source ..................................................60 4.3.1 Overview ..................................................60 4.3.2 Pollutants ..................................................60 4.3.3 Cropland ..................................................60 4.3.4 Rangeland/Urban ............................................69 4.3.5 Feedlots ...................................................69 4.3.6 Unstable Streambanks/Natural Sources ...........................69 4.4 Point Source .....................................................69 4.4.1 Wastewater Treatment Plant ....................................69 4.4.2 Other Point Sources ..........................................69 4.5 Macroinvertebrates/Fisheries .........................................76 4.6 Loading Calculations ...............................................76 4.7 Reach Gains/Losses ................................................76 4.8 Water Quality Goals and Targets ......................................86 5.0 TMDL ANALYSIS ......................................................88 5.1 Technical Analysis .................................................88 5.2 Water Targets/Endpoints ............................................88 5.3 Total Maximum Daily Loads ..........................................88 5.4 Margin of Safety and Loads ..........................................91 5.5 Allocation of Load Reductions ........................................94 5.5.1 Nonpoint Sources ...........................................95 5.5.2 Point Sources ...............................................96 6.0 PROJECT RANKING AND IMPLEMENTATION ............................103 6.1 Project Ranking and Phasing ........................................103 6.2 Project Implementations Plans (PIPs) ..................................103 7.0 FUTURE LAND USE ...................................................103 7.1 Zoning Ordinances ................................................103 7.2 Potential Water Quality Impacts ......................................103 7.3 Recommended Monitoring Program ...................................103 8.0 CONCLUSIONS ......................................................104 9.0 REFERENCES ........................................................105 APPENDICES Appendix A. Water Quality Data Appendix B. Hydrologic Modeling Data Appendix C. BMP and BAT Research Data Appendix D. Project Implementation Plan LIST OF TABLES Table 2-1. Current and projected population for cities within Box Elder County .................6 Table 2-2. Current and projected population by subwatershed (see Figure 2-2 for placement in the watershed) ..............................................................7 Table 2-3. A summary of land ownership in the lower Bear River basin. All values are in acres. See Figure 2-3 for locations of subwatersheds ...........................................10 Table 2-4. Physiographic provinces occurrence within the project subwatersheds. All values are in acres. See Figure 2-3 for subwatershed location ......................................11 Table 2-5. Climate types found in the study area .......................................21 Table 2-6. A summary of land use in the lower Bear River based on GAP classifications. All values are in acres. See Figure 2-2 for locations of subwatersheds .............................22 Table 2-7. A summary of wetlands in the lower Bear River based on NWI “palustrine” classifications. All values are in acres. See Figure 2-2 for locations of subwatersheds ....................23 Table 2-8. Fish of the lower Bear/Malad River basins ...................................27 Table 2-9. Distribution systems (canals and ditches) for irrigation companies in the lower Bear River valley .....................................................................31 Table 2-10. Known drainages in lower Bear River valley ................................32 Table 2-11. The water budget for the Malad subarea ...................................33 Table 2-12. The water budget for the Tremonton subarea ................................34 Table 2-13. The water budget for the Brigham subarea ..................................35 Table 3-1. The count of water quality samples for the mainstem Bear River and tributaries between Cutler Reservoir and the Great Salt Lake. Data are from 1990 to 2000 .....................50 Table 4-1. A summary of established beneficial uses and applicable standards or criteria for stream segments in the lower Bear River ............................................53 Table 4-2. The percent exceedence of water quality standards or criteria for the mainstem Bear River and tributaries between Cutler Reservoir and the Great Salt Lake. Data are from 1990 to 2000 . 54 Table 4-3. A summary of agricultural lands in the lower Bear River project area. All values are in acres. See Figure 2-2 for locations of subwatersheds ..................................68 Table 4-4. A summary of