Stonycreek River Stonycreek River Watershed ReassessmentWatershed Reassessment

Amanda Deal & Len Lichvar

Somerset Conservation District

August 2008

Watershed Characteristics

298,920 acres 538 perennial stream miles

519 mi natural stream/river19 mi artificial path

Elevation ranges 3132 ft to 896 ft

Stonycreek River Watershed Major Sub-watersheds

Quemahoning Creek Shade Creek Bens Creek Paint Creek Rhoads Creek Beaverdam Creek Wells Creek Solomon Run Oven Run

urbanforestagriculturebarrenwater

Land Cover

~66% forested ~24% ag ~9% urban

REassessment? USGS 1997

Effects of coal-mine discharges on the quality of the Stonycreek River and its tributaries, Somerset and Cambria counties, Pennsylvania

Located & sampled 270 mine discharges Stream water chemistry at 37 sites Stream sampled above and below 5

discharges different discharges and entrance of Pokeytown Run and Oven Run

REassessment?

Led to nearly $10 million of project investment dollars

Reversed Stonycreek River from net acidic to net alkaline

Over 15 miles of recovered fisheries Proliferation of watershed groups &

grassroots interestWells Creek, Shade Creek, Paint Creek

Purpose of Reassessment

Develop baseline data set Fill in data gaps

Funding for watershed groupsAML funding

Quantify water quality changes Identify new projects Complete restoration efforts that began

>15yrs ago

Objectives Survey water quality throughout watershed

Especially upstream and downstream of treatment systems (main stem and tributaries)

Assess macroinvertebrate assemblages Identify fish assemblages GIS mapping Master database Full report

Interagency Cooperation PA DEP

Bureau of Abandoned Mine Reclamation

PA Fish & Boat CommissionHabitat Management Unit

Provided: Personnel Expertise Equipment Analysis assistance

Interagency Cooperation (cont.) PA Fish & Boat Commission (cont.)

Filled a major gap in biological data that would have been lacking without collaboration.

Data collected will serve both agencies SCD

Reassessment and support for remediation projects

PFBC Fisheries management decisions

Sampling Points 35 sites

17 main stem18 tributaries

Physical habitat

EPA habitat assessment and physiochemical characterization from Rapid Bioassessment Protocols for Use in Streams and Wadeable Rivers (2nd ed.)

epifaunal substrate, embeddedness, velocity/depth regime, sediment deposition, channel flow status, channel alteration, frequency of riffles, bank stability, vegetative protection, riparian vegetative zone width

Physical Characterization

Weather conditions Habitat types

cobble, snags, vegetated banks, sand, submerged macrophytes, other

Surrounding landuse NPS pollution Erosion Canopy cover

Morphology types LWD Aquatic vegetation Turbidity Stream width Average thalweg depth Velocity

Adapted from Rapid Bioassessment Protocols for Use in Streams and Wadeable Rivers (2nd ed.)

Water Chemistry Temperature Conductivity pH TDS DO Iron Sulfate Nitrate Phosphate

Multi-Meter--HI 991300

Ion Specific Meter--HI 93732

Hach hot kitHanna Sulfate Test Kit (modified Barium Sulfate Turbidimetric method)

LaMotte hot kits

Macroinvertebrate Sampling

D-frame Kick Net Multihabitat ApproachEPA Rapid Bioassessment Protocols

Modification 5 kicks/jabs instead of 20 Kicks/jabs taken in proportion to the percentages

of each habitat type Sample mixed into one homogeneous sample Stored in 70% isopropyl alcohol Entire sample sorted in lab Organisms identified to genus (when possible)

Macroinvertebrate Sampling

Macroinvertebrate Data Analysis

PA DEP IBI Modified Beck’sEPTSpecies RichnessShannon Weiner Diversity IndexHilsenhoff Biotic Index% intolerant taxa

Fish Sampling

PA FBC Protocols200 m reachSingle pass electrofishingCollect all fishesField id for most fishes; questionable

specimens preserved and identified in lab

Fish Sampling Sites 18 sites

12 main stem 6 major tribs

Electrofishing CrewLeft to right: Eric Null (SCD), Amanda Deal (SCD), Gary Smith (Management Area 4 Habitat Biologist, FBC), Bob Ventorini (Fisheries Biologist, FBC), John Trilli (FBC)

Initial Findings

Physical Habitat Scores Ranged 194

-- 36 (200 max)

Avg 134

Highest scores in middle reaches

Lowest scores in headwaters and near mouth

Stonycreek at Yonai BridgeHabitat Score 70

Clear Shade CreekHabitat Score 194

Field Water Chemistry Temperature

Ranged 23-13oC (55-73oF) Conductivity

Ranged 2200-43S DO

Ranged >10-5mg/L pH

Ranged 9-3 TDS

Ranged 1100-21ppm Fe

Ranged 0-6mg/L Nitrate

Ranged 0-13ppm Phosphate

Ranged 0-2ppm Sulfate

Ranged >100-0mg/L

Water Chemistry Highlights

Low phosphtes and nitrates throughout Nitrate spikes in headwaters South Fork Bens Creek

Conductivity43S 1.5mi 1322S

Macroinvertebrate Summary

2,034 organisms picked and identified 15 orders 57 families 91 genera

0100

200300400500

600700

Coleopt

era

Dipter

a

Ephem

eropt

era

Meg

alopter

a

Odona

ta

Plecopte

ra

Tricho

pter

a

Non-In

secta

Spp

.

Nu

mb

er o

f O

rgan

ism

s

Macro Distributions

Benthic IBI Scores

Paint CreekBelow Paint Creek no macros were found.

Beaverdam CreekHigh IBI Score (76.2)

Fish Highlights 6,184 fish captured and identified 30 total species

Greatest richness at Turkeyfoot Bridge in Kantner (19 species)

Most fish collected at Bens Creek (929)

Fewest fish (41) & lowest richness (6 spp) at Quemahoning Creek below Hoffman Run

Fish Highlights

Fish Highlights

Caught more fish at 7 of 8 sites previously sampled

Greater richness at 8 of 8 sites previously sampled

Site #4 – Krings Bridge

15 Sept 1998 4 Creek Chub 1 Yellow Perch

2 spp; 5 total

12 July 2007 1 Banded Darter 143 Blacknose Dace 1 Blackside Darter 12 Bluntnose Minnow 15 Central Stoneroller 13 Creek Chub 2 Johnny Darter 14 Longnose Dace 1 Mimic Shiner 2 Mottled Sculpin 1 Northern Hogsucker 4 Rock Bass 124 White Sucker 1 Yellow Perch

14 spp; 334 total

Site #4 – Krings Bridge

Site #6 Carpenters Park

15 Sept 1998 2 Brown Trout 3 Central Stoneroller 7 Creek Chub 1 Northern Hog Sucker 1 Pumpkinseed 13 White Sucker

6 spp; 27 total

12 July 2007 1 Blacknose Dace 2 Blackside Darter 1 Bluntnose Minnow 12 Creek Chub 13 Mimic shiner 1 Pumpkinseed 8 Rock Bass 3 Smallmouth Bass 34 White Sucker 1 Yellow Perch

10 spp; 76 total

Site #6 Carpenters Park

Blacknose Dace

Over 1,100 Blacknose Dace were collected in the survey, representing the most

abundant fish species in the watershed.

Mottled SculpinSecond most abundant species collected in the survey

(>900 collected)

Common small fishes.Left to right: Bluntnose Minnow, Johnny Darter, Fantail Darter.

Largemouth Bass Smallmouth Bass

Rock Bass

Smallmouth Bass

Brown Trout Girl

TroutOver 1,000 trout were collected in the survey.

Fallfish

Previously, Fallfish were not thought to occur in the Stonycreek River watershed, but in the current study 47 were collected.

Snapping Turtle

Penguin

Next steps…

Data processing, compilation, evaluation Full report Executive summary Identify specific locations where further

remediation projects are needed Provide results to partners for support of

additional projects

Restoring the resource…

AcknowledgementsFunding provided by

Cooperating Agencies