Vermont Agency of Natural Resources Department of Environmental Conservation Watershed Management Division SOUTH LAKE CHAMPLAIN TACTICAL BASIN PLAN The Lower Poultney River floodplain forest (Photo Credit: TNC/ Mary Droege) The South Lake Champlain Basin - Water Quality Management Plan was prepared in accordance with 10 VSA § 1253(d), the Vermont Water Quality Standards1, the Federal Clean Water Act and 40 CFR 130.6, and the Vermont Surface Water Management Strategy. South Lake Champlain Tactical Basin Plan – December 2017 Page 1 South Lake Champlain Tactical Basin Plan Overview South Lake Champlain Tactical Basin Plan – December 2017 Page 3 Contents Executive Summary ....................................................................................................................... 9 South Lake Champlain Tactical Basin Plan Overview ...........................................................................9 Top Objectives and Strategies ................................................................................................... 11 Summary of Classification Opportunities .............................................................................. 13 Chapter 1 - Introduction ............................................................................................................. 15 A. Basin Description ..................................................................................................................... 15 B. Purpose of the Tactical Plan ..................................................................................................... 15 C. Watershed Partners ................................................................................................................. 15 D. The Vermont Clean Water Act ..................................................................................................... 22 E. Implementation Process .............................................................................................................. 23 Chapter 2- Water Quality in the Basin ..................................................................................... 26 A. Watershed Description ............................................................................................................ 26 B. Sub-basin Descriptions ............................................................................................................. 28 C. Assessments Undertaken in the Southern Champlain Basin....................................................... 33 D. Surface Waters Exhibiting Very High Quality Biological Integrity or Fisheries. ............................ 39 E. Stressors, and Causes and Sources of Impairment ..................................................................... 46 Chapter 3 - Regulatory Programs for Addressing Stressors and Pollutants under the Lake Champlain Basin Phosphorus TMDL Implementation Plan .................................... 64 Lake Champlain Phosphorus TMDL .................................................................................................. 65 Controlling Phosphorus from Wastewater Treatment Facilities and Other Industrial Discharges ...... 109 Facility Specific Information ........................................................................................................... 110 Chapter 4 - Management Goals for Surface Waters in the Southern Lake Champlain Basin ............................................................................................................................................. 115 A. Class A(1), A(2) and B(1) Waters ............................................................................................. 115 B. Existing Uses .......................................................................................................................... 116 C. Outstanding Resource Waters ................................................................................................ 117 D. Other High Quality Waters ..................................................................................................... 117 E. Irrigation and Animal Watering .............................................................................................. 119 F. Water Quality Monitoring Projects (McKenzie Brook watershed) ................................................ 120 South Lake Champlain Tactical Basin Plan – December 2017 Page 4 Chapter 5 – South Lake Champlain Implementation Table - Protection and Remediation Actions ................................................................................................................. 122 References and Resources ........................................................................................................ 139 Glossary ....................................................................................................................................... 141 Southern Lake Champlain Basin Plan Appendices ............................................................ 144 Appendix A – Existing Use Tables ................................................................................................... 145 Appendix B – Assessment of Basin Towns for Water Quality Protection .......................................... 149 Appendix C - Lakes and Ponds Assessment for the Basin ................................................................. 151 Appendix D – Detecting and Eliminating Illicit Discharges in Rutland County to Improve Water Quality ..................................................................................................................................................... 151 Appendix E - Resource Assessment and Watershed Level Plan for Agriculture in the McKenzie Brook Watershed, Addison County, Vermont (USDA-NRCS, 2017) ............................................................. 154 Appendix F. Lake Assessment, Management, and Implementation Plan (example: Lake Bomoseen) 164 Appendix G- Basin River Corridor Management Plan Summaries and High Priority Recommendations ..................................................................................................................................................... 176 Appendix H - Regulatory and Non-regulatory Programs Applicable to Protecting and Restoring Waters in Basin 2-4 ................................................................................................................................... 183 Appendix I – Overview of Funding Sources Identified in the Implementation Table ......................... 184 Appendix J - Basin Plan Public Comments and Responsiveness Summary ........................................ 196 List of Figures Figure 1. Southern Lake Champlain Watershed Map with Sub-Watershed Delineations Figure 2. Wards Marsh Wildlife Management Area along the Lower Poultney River Figures 3 and 4. Example of GSI project in Castleton at Cedar Mountain Road (“encapsulated lift project” to stabilize the road and provide for natural shoreline erosion control) Figure 5. Southern Champlain Basin (in VT and NY) map with municipal delineations. Figure 6. Stream geomorphic assessments conducted in the Southern Champlain Basin through 2017. Figure 7. Example Monitoring Site Summary for Sykes Hollow Brook in Rupert reflecting assessed condition by color Figure 8. Green Mountains to Adirondacks habitat connectivity priorities Figure 9. Impaired, altered, or stressed waters on the Vermont Priority Waters List (Poultney River Basin) Figure 10. Impaired, altered, or stressed waters on the Vermont Priority Waters List (Poultney River Basin) Figure 11. Impaired, altered, or stressed waters on the Vermont Priority Waters List (East Creek and McKenzie Brook (HUC-12) Basin) Figure 12. Pollutants or conditions that alter or stress water quality or habitat in Basin lakes and ponds. South Lake Champlain Tactical Basin Plan – December 2017 Page 5 Figure 13. Progress made with accelerated rate of Ag BMP practice implementation in 2016. Figure 14. Vermont sources of phosphorus loading to Lake Champlain segments, by land use; annual average of 2001-2010. Figure 15. Sources of phosphorus in Lake Champlain by land use type Figure 16. Sources of phosphorus from the South Lake Basin in Lake Champlain by land use type Figure 17. Lake segments and drainage areas of the Lake Champlain basin. Figure 18. Total annual total phosphorus contributions to Lake Champlain from 1990 to 2012 by the ten major watershed’s in the Lake Champlain Basin. Figure 19. Stream Equilibrium – Watershed Deficit Calculator Figure 20. Map of McKenzie Brook water quality monitoring locations List of Tables Table 1. High priority basins (and sub-basins) for restoration and protection Table 2. Status of assessments for the Southern Champlain Basin Table 3. Stream Geomorphic Assessments in the Basin. Table 4. Basin streams that support very high quality ecological integrity (based on most recent supporting biomonitoring data)* Table 5. Lakes and ponds in the Basin that exhibit Very High Quality based on DEC’s Best Lakes analysis. Table 6. Basin streams supporting Very High Quality significant wild trout populations Table 7. Very High-Quality spawning and nursery tributaries in the Southern Champlain Basin Table 8. Major stressors affecting surface waters in the Basin (a complete description of each stressor, including management intervention, is available by hyperlink from each stressor icon). Causes and sources resulting in Impaired (I), Altered (A), or Stressed (S) stream conditions in the Southern Lake Champlain sub-basins along with assessment