Yellow River Watershed Monitoring

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Yellow RiverWatershed Monitoring

• Rick Langel
• Research Geologist
• IDNR-Watershed Monitoring and Assessment Section

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Watershed background

• Drains 241 sq. mi.
• Covers parts of Allamakee, Clayton, and
  Winneshiek counties
• Situated in the Paleozoic Plateau landform region
• Landuse 40 row crops 25 grassland 20
  forest

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Water quality impairments(2002 List of Impaired
Waters)
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Project Partners

• Federal
• USDA-NRCS
• USDA RCD
• USGS-WRD
• US National Park Service

• Local
• Allamakee Co. SWCD
• Winneshiek Co. SWCD

• State
• DNR-Fisheries
• DNR-FO 1
• DNR-Water Monitoring
• University Hygienic Lab

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Monitoring began in 2004
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Whats being monitored?Water Quality

• BOD
• E. coli
• Ammonia
• TKN
• NitrateNitrite
• Total Phosphate
• Orthophosphate
• Total Dissolved Solids
• Total Suspended Solids
• Dissolved Oxygen
• Water Temperature
• Turbidity
• Specific Conductance
• Stream Flow

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Whats being monitored?Real Time Water Quality
in 2004

• YSI EDS 6600
• Dissolved Oxygen
• pH
• Specific Conductance
• Turbidity
• Water Temperature

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Whats being monitored?Biological Monitoring
2004 2005
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Water Quality Results
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2004 Real TimeWater Quality Results
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Nitratenitrite as N
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Total Phosphate
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Turbidity
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E. coli results
- Only site designated as Class A1
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Load Duration CurveYellow River at Ion
(WY2005-2006)
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Percent of Benthic Macroinvertebrate Orders for
all Samples in the Yellow River
2004
2005
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Index of biological integrity (IBI) Results
Unable to calculate IBI for Hecker and Suttle
because of low flows
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Watershed Improvements

• Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL)Sampling began in
  July 2006 on biologically impaired section.
  Draft TMDL to EPA 2008-2009
• Yellow River Watershed Improvement
  ProjectTargets stream bank erosion and coliform
  bacteria from both livestock and inadequate human
  septic system

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Watershed Improvements

• Norfolk Creek Subwatershed Project (WIRB) Targets
  nutrients, livestock runoff, and streambank
  erosion in the Norfolk subwatershed
• EPA Yellow River Watershed ImprovementTargets
  areas within the watershed that have direct
  drainage into the main stem of the Yellow River

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Results from the Yellow River Watershed
Improvement Project

• 20069 streambank sites Stabilized 2400 of
  streambank Installed 344 of fish
  hidesConstructed 1 ag. waste settling basin
• 2007 (proposed projects)10 streambank sites
  Stabilize 3200 of streambank Install 512 of
  fish hidesConstruct 2 ag. waste settling
  basinsConstruct 2 ag. waste storage tanks

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Acknowledgements

• The entire staff of the USDA-NRCS (Waukon Office)
  and the Allamakee Co. SWCD, especially Lynn
  Ellefson, who diligently collected the water
  quality samples and flow measurements every week
• The landowners who granted access to streams on
  their property
• Nathan Ohrt (UHL), who transported the water
  quality samples from Effigy Mounds National Park
  to UHL
• Rod Rovang, Effigy Mounds National Park, who
  provided a secure place for water quality samples
  before being transported to UHL
• Heartland Network, Inventory and Monitoring
  Program, National Park Service which provided
  funding and technical support

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Questions?