Niagara County Soil & Water Cons

Further evaluate the nature and extent of Poly Chlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs), Chlorinated Pesticides (DDT & DDE), PCDD/Fs, Chromium, Copper, Lead, Manganese, Nickel, Cyanide, Zinc and Mercury contamination in Eighteenmile Creek sediment to provide comprehensive data relevant to the migration of contaminants from upstream source areas;

Commence with the Eighteenmile Creek Protection Program within the source Area of
Concern (watershed). The program consists of the completion of a Feasibility Study for the Eighteenmile Creek Corridor Site, various site investigations, and operation maintenance and monitoring activities at a number of identified source areas.

Niagara County Soil and Water Conservation District has been awarded $25,000 to complete a Stressed Stream (Segment) Analysis for the Eighteenmile Creek watershed. The funds were awarded by the Finger Lakes - Lake Ontario Watershed Protection Alliance (FL-LOWPA) and are intended to identify and/or investigate sources of sedimentation and nutrient loading to Eighteenmile Creek. The stressed stream analysis is an approach that identifies impacted sub-watersheds and their associated streams. Within a watershed, stressed stream analysis is an approach for determining how and where a stream and its ecological community are adversely affected by a pollution source or other disturbances. It is a technique that identifies the sources, extent, effects, and severity of pollution in the watershed. SUNY Brockport has been identified as the contractor for the project and field work began in November 2008.

The overall goal of the project is to educate the public as to encourage them to protect local water quality resources. Specific goal and objectives of the proposal include: Roll out a final product (pollutant generator database) that can be easily accessed by the public and all AOC partnering agencies; Development & installation of 3 watershed education signs at three public recreation sites in the watershed; Placement of watershed identification signage where the creek intersects major road crossings; Installation of approximately 250 storm drain markers throughout the watershed; Promote watershed awareness.

Niagara County Soil and Water Conservation District has been awarded $202,743 for projects to protect water quality in the Eighteenmile Creek Watershed. Best Management Practices to be installed on three farms that are negatively impacting water quality include: milk center wastewater treatment, silage leachate management, barnyard runoff management, roof water management, and a compost system. Projects will be implemented by the District, then operated and maintained by the farm owners. This assistance is awarded through the NYS Agricultural Nonpoint Source Abatement and Control Program (ANSCAP), which serves as a vital component of the State’s Agricultural Environmental Management (AEM) program and is funded through the Environmental Protection Fund.

Three potential Beneficial Use Impairments (BUIs) at Eighteenmile Creek, a Great Lakes Area of Concern (AOC), were evaluated as part of the current investigation: 1. Existence of fish tumors and other deformities; 2. Status of fish and wildlife populations; and 3. Status of bird or mammal deformities or reproductive impairment.

To determine whether Eighteenmile Creek is impaired in regard to these BUIs, a wide range of data was collected from Eighteenmile Creek and an ecologically similar background creek, Oak Orchard Creek, and the data from the two creeks were compared. Both creeks are tributaries of Lake Ontario, are of similar size and surrounding geography, and are subject to water level fluctuations due to changes in lake water levels. In addition, each creek has a hydro-electric dam located some distance from their confluence with the lake. Oak Orchard Creek is not listed as an AOC.

Between May and September 2007, the following types of data were collected
from both creeks for the BUI evaluation: (1) fish diversity, abundance, and condition;
(2) wildlife (birds, mammals, amphibians) diversity and abundance; (3)
concentrations of polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) and dioxins/furans in brown
bullheads; and (4) prevalence of external, internal, and liver tumors in brown
bullheads.

A State of the Basin Report was published for the Eighteenmile Creek watershed. The State of the Basin Report provides a snapshot of the current condition of land and water resources in the Eighteenmile Creek basin and a look at the programs and initiatives pursued to preserve and restore those resources. It also provides a vehicle for establishing a consistent process of identifying resource needs, priorities, and potential work plans. The report is a catalyst for increased interagency cooperation and public involvement, through identification and prioritization of issues and objectives. The idea of creating a “basin wide” report stems from the decision to take an ecosystem based approach to address the AOC. This approach will hopefully enable increased coordination among programs and individuals.

In coordination with the Town of Newfane and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Engineering Research Development Center, the Phase II Habitat Restoration project has been completed. Approximately 300 lineal feet of large-rip-rap stone was be placed along the east bank of Eighteenmile Creek to narrow the channel to its former configuration and to create a low flow deflector/fishing access wall. Three hundred (300) lineal feet of hydraulic cover stones were placed along the west bank of Eighteenmile Creek to better define the channels shape and protect the wetland marsh present along said bank. Fifty (50) hydraulic covers stones were also be placed in Eighteenmile Creek for additional in-stream habitat, fish refuge areas, and increased water flow diversity.

The purpose of the trackdown project was to further evaluate contamination in
Eighteenmile Creek sediments. The specific objectives of the investigation were
to: Review all available historical sampling data to identify potential PCB sources
and future sampling locations of interest, using geographic information system
(GIS) technology to accurately depict the data spatially; Further evaluate the nature and extent (horizontally and vertically) of PCBs, arsenic, copper, chromium, lead, zinc, and mercury contamination in Eighteenmile Creek sediment that has the potential to negatively impact the downstream Area of Concern (AOC); and Assist and make progress towards de-listing Eighteenmile Creek as an AOC.

Niagara County Soil and Water Conservation District (NCSWCD) was awarded funds by the Great Lakes Research Consortium to complete the research proposal, Angler Survey: Analysis of Angler Awareness of Eighteenmile Creek Area of Concern Fish Consumption Advisory.

Some unknowns currently exist. First, it is important to numerous stakeholders to determine how many anglers are aware that a fish consumption advisory exists for the creek. Second, numerous government agencies at all levels are interested in the need for signage along Eighteenmile Creek. Third, it is of interest to determine how well the current pathways of communicating fish consumption advisories work. Currently, fish consumption advisories are available in a NYSDOH document entitled, Health Advisories: Chemical in Sportfish and Game booklet. They are also available in the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation fishing regulations guide.

In coordination with the Town of Newfane and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Buffalo District, an angler survey for the Eighteenmile Creek AOC has been completed. The survey intended to determine the benefits associated with angler expenditures at Eighteenmile Creek, as well as assess how the stream’s designation as a Great Lakes AOC impacts angler use. 127 “face to face” interviews with Eighteenmile Creek anglers were completed.

The Soil Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) was implemented for the Eighteen Mile Creek watershed to determine annual sediment yields and critical source areas of erosion in the watershed. SWAT is a public-domain, GIS-based, spatially-distributed, dynamic model that can simulate watershed-scale hydrology and water quality processes. The landuse-landcover GIS layer, an important input for SWAT, was manually updated using 2002 DOQQs. Core data layers required for SWAT implementation were downloaded from the EPA BASINS web site. A 10m DEM available from the NY State GIS Clearinghouse was used to characterize the watershed boundaries in SWAT. The STASGO soils database was used to describe soil parameters for the model. Drainage network for the watershed was defined using the National Hydrography Data (NHD) layer. Model simulations were performed for the period 1992-2004. Weather data for model simulations was downloaded from the online NCDC web site.

In 2004, a Comprehensive Watershed Management Plan Concept Document was published for the Eighteenmile Creek watershed. The purpose of this report is to provide a document specific to Eighteenmile Creek that will lay the foundation for initiating the watershed planning process, and will provide a framework for developing a CWMP for the Eighteenmile Creek Watershed. This Concept Document also presents: existing watershed information for Eighteenmile Creek, which will support the early stages of the planning process; guidelines, based upon literature sources, for the development of the other components of a CWMP, which will serve as a framework for a future Eighteenmile Creek CWMP. This document has been prepared to: Provide readily available information that specifically applies to the Eighteenmile Creek watershed; Provide an overall framework for a CWMP that can be followed once the planning process begins; and offer example text to demonstrate the content of specific sections of the Eighteenmile Creek CWMP, once a plan is developed (i.e., Watershed Management Actions).