Tennessee Department of Agriculture Nonpoint Source Program Management Program Document 2015 ‐ 2019 TENNESSEE DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 2014 Authored by: Nonpoint Source Program Staff Tennessee Department of Agriculture – Water Resources Program John McClurkan ‐‐‐ Program Administrator Tennessee Nonpoint Source Program Contributing Staff: Sam Marshall NPS Program Manager Heidi McIntyre‐Wilkinson NPS Project Manager Carole Swann GRTS and GIS Coordinator ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS: The TN‐NPS program would like to acknowledge significant guidance and input received from the following individuals from the USEPA Region 4 office in Atlanta, GA: Sharon Brown, Yolanda Brown, and Napoleon Kotay. Most importantly, the TN‐NPS program would like to acknowledge and thank the many agencies, watershed groups, private landowners, and other citizens who have invested time, energy, expertise, and financial and technical resources to protect and restore Tennessee’s water resources. List of Acronyms Name Acronym Agricultural Resources Conservation Fund ARCF Clean Water Act CWA Escherichia coli E. coli Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development ECD Environmental Field Offices EFOs Environmental Protection Agency EPA Environmental Quality Incentive Program EQIP Farm Services Agency FSA Geographic Information System GIS Hydrologic Unit Code HUC Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System(s) MS4 Nitrogen N National Agricultural Statistics Service NASS National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System NPDES Nonpoint Source NPS Natural Resources Conservation Service NRCS Phosphorus P Resource Conservation and Development Councils RC&D Soil Conservation Districts (all 95 counties) SCD State Soil Conservation Committee SSCC State Technical Committee STC Tennessee Association of Conservation Districts TACD Tennessee Agricultural Enhancement Program TAEP Tennessee Association of Utility Districts TAUD Tennessee Department of Agriculture TDA Tennessee Department of Agriculture – Division of Forestry TDA‐DF Tennessee Department of Education TDE Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation TDEC Tennessee Department of Health, Division of Lab Services TDH‐DLH Tennessee Department of Transportation TDOT Tennessee Nonpoint Source Program TN‐NPS Total Maximum Daily Load TMDL Tennessee Stream Mitigation Program TSMP Tennessee Valley Authority TVA Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency TWRA United States Army Corps of Engineers USACE United States Department of Agriculture USDA United States Forest Service USFS United States Fish & Wildlife Service USFWS United States Geological Survey USGS University of Tennessee UT University of Tennessee Agricultural Extension Service UTAES University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture UTIA University of Tennessee Research and Education Center UTREC West Tennessee River Basin Authority WTRBA Contents ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS LIST OF ACRONYMS CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................................... 1 NONPOINT SOURCE POLLUTION ............................................................................................... 2 HISTORICAL BACKGROUND ....................................................................................................... 2 PURPOSE OF THIS DOCUMENT ................................................................................................... 4 PLANNING AND GOALS .............................................................................................................. 4 CURRENT AND FUTURE DIRECTIONS ......................................................................................... 6 CHAPTER 2: TENNESSEE’S WATER RESOURCES ............................................................................. 10 QUANTITY OF WATER IN THE STATE OF TENNESSEE................................................................. 10 QUALITY OF WATER IN THE STATE OF TENNESSEE .................................................................... 11 NONPOINT SOURCE WATER POLLUTION CONCERNS IN THE STATE OF TENNESSEE ................. 16 LEADING CAUSES OF NONPOINT SOURCE POLLUTION IN STREAMS AND RIVERS IN TENNESSEE ................................................................................................................................................. 17 PRIMARY SECTORS OF NONPOINT SOURCE POLLUTION IN TENNESSEE ................................... 22 AGRICULTURE ..................................................................................................................... 22 FORESTRY/SILVICULTURE .................................................................................................... 37 URBAN OPPORTUNITIES ...................................................................................................... 46 FAILING SEPTIC SYSTEMS ..................................................................................................... 53 RESOURCE EXTRACTION AND LEGACY MINING .................................................................... 61 REFERENCES CITED ................................................................................................................... 71 CHAPTER 3: PROGRAM GOALS AND STRATEGY FOR ADDRESSING NONPOINT SOURCE POLLUTION .................................................................................................................................................... 72 GOALS FOR NOW AND LATER .................................................................................................. 72 2019 ‐ ANNUAL GOALS VERSUS LONG TERM GOALS ...................................................................... 72 2015 ACHIEVING SUCCESS ................................................................................................................ 75 MEASURES OF SUCCESS ............................................................................................................ 77 AREAS FOR PROGRAM GROWTH .............................................................................................. 86 Document| PROTECTION AND RESTORATION ........................................................................................ 86 NITROGEN REDUCTION STRATEGY ...................................................................................... 87 FARM BILL INITIATIVES ........................................................................................................ 87 Program LAND TRUST FOR TENNESSEE .............................................................................................. 87 REFERENCES CITED: ................................................................................................................. 88 CHAPTER 4: PROPOSAL REVIEW AND PRIORITIZATION ................................................................ 89 STRIVING FOR SUCCESS ............................................................................................................ 89 Management i REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS PROCESS ......................................................................................... 89 REVIEW OF PROPOSALS ........................................................................................................... 90 STRATEGY AND PROCESS FOR PRIORITIZATION ......................................................................... 91 SEEKING TO IMPROVE THE PRIORITIZATION PROCESS ............................................................. 95 CHAPTER 5: PARTNERSHIPS ......................................................................................................... 96 OVERVIEW OF PARTNERSHIPS ................................................................................................. 96 WHY FORM PARTNERSHIPS?.................................................................................................... 96 WHAT IS A “PARTNERSHIP?” .................................................................................................... 96 319(H) VERSUS 319 ................................................................................................................... 98 TN‐NPS PROGRAM PARTNERSHIPS ........................................................................................ 100 NOT ALL PARTNERS ARE CREATED EQUAL ............................................................................. 104 REFERENCES CITED: ................................................................................................................ 104 CHAPTER 6: NONPOINT SOURCE ................................................................................................ 105 PROGRAM MANAGEMENT ........................................................................................................... 105 NONPOINT SOURCE PROGRAM MANAGEMENT ....................................................................... 105 FEDERAL GRANT REQUIREMENTS ........................................................................................... 105 ANNUAL CALENDAR ............................................................................................................... 106 COMMUNICATIONS WITH USEPA AND PARTNERS ................................................................. 108 ADAPTIVE MANAGEMENT ....................................................................................................... 109 ANNUAL PROGRAM MANAGEMENT GOALS AND OUTPUTS ...................................................... 110 STAFFING WITHIN TN‐NPS ..................................................................................................... 113 ADMINISTRATIVE AND FINANCIAL ..........................................................................................