Buckeye Basins Newsletter: April/May 2001

Buckeye Basins is produced by the Ohio State University Extension, Community Based Watershed Management Team. It is compiled quarterly for watershed coordinators, Extension specialists, and natural resource professionals to include within their newsletters, programs or however they see fit.

In This Issue:

• Changing Attitudes: The First Step Towards a Stream Stewardship Ethic
• Is Your Lawn Polluting Ohio's Waters?
• The Benefits of Streamside Forests
• Total Maximum Daily Loads: Establishing Pollution Budgets for Ohio Streams and Lakes
• Successful Organizations Foster Effective Volunteerism
• Are Failing Septic Systems Affecting Your Watershed?

Changing Attitudes: The First Step Towards a Stream Stewardship Ethic

J.P. Lieser, Watershed Management Agent, OSU Extension, East District

Often our attitudes play a large part in how we see the world and how we behave. As Americans we have a tradition of natural resource extraction and use, which effects how we see our natural world, especially streams. It is hard for us to understand how our actions in the present may have a lasting affect on our future. Currently, due to human land uses, streams and stream creatures are among the most endangered in North America. This is probably due to the fact humans do not live in streams. If we are to protect, restore, and enhance our water resources than a collective change in attitude is essential.

Since nearly 90% of Ohio lands are privately or locally owned, a streams health is dependent on the voluntary stewardship of streamside landowners. However, for voluntary stewardship to be successful landowners need to determine what is right for preserving the integrity and sustainability of a watershed, not just what is required by law. Below is a list of principles, which can help stewards conserve, restore, and enhance their waterways.

Principles of a Stream Ethic (Adapted from A Guide to Ohio Streams)

1. Natural is best. If in doubt about management strategy, lean towards keeping the stream in its natural state.
2. Protect water quality and habitat and wildlife will take care of themselves.
3. Protection of a healthy stream is less costly and time consuming than restoring an impaired one.
4. The fewer the pollutants the better.
5. Watersheds are not only the drainage area of streams-they are where we live, work, and send our children to school.
6. What we do to streams we do to ourselves-everything is connected and we all live downstream.
7. The more we learn about streams the better we will care for them.
8. Large streams are formed by many small ones, every stream is a tributary, and every stream location has a watershed.
9. Sustainable, healthy resources are ones we put more into than we take from.
10. We must recognize existing stream uses where they provide important community functions.

 Is Your Lawn Polluting Ohio's Waters?

Gary L. Comer, Jr., Extension Agent Water Quality & Natural Resources, OSU Extension, Logan County

There is an underground problem in Ohio that needs to be brought to the surface. It can begin with improper lawn care and end with water pollution. Luckily, we do not have to sacrifice a beautiful lawn in order to recover our beautiful waterways. We simply have to change the procedure by which we achieve a healthy lawn.

There are two basic theories to remember in responsible lawn care. First of all, much of what goes on your lawn can end up in Ohio's waterways due to soil erosion and rainwater run-off. Secondly, when fertilizing, more is not better, in fact it is usually worse. The soil can only absorb a certain amount of nutrients; the rest is washed away, polluting our rivers, streams and groundwater. Fortunately, achieving a beautiful lawn can be both healthy for the environment and inexpensive.

When starting or re-seeding a lawn, it is important to purchase a species of grass that thrives in your climate. Your lawn will be better adapted to local climate and moisture, more resistant to local pests, and therefore less reliant on fertilizers and pesticides.

Another productive use of natural nutrients is through composting clippings and leaves for garden mulch. Composting encourages the infiltration of beneficial insects and earthworms, creating a loose, porous soil essential in establishing healthy root growth and avoiding erosion.

Be careful, proper fertilization is based on the type of grass or plant. Over fertilizing can provide a "quick fix" to your lawn or garden, however, those same nutrients can also pollute the waterways. Use chemical fertilizers sparingly. When used excessively, they are expensive and can necessitate frequent mowing. Over fertilization can also contribute to pest infestation, poor root growth and weed problems. Always have your soil tested to determine proper fertilization rates. For more information on soil testing contact your county Extension office.

Avoid the use of broad-spectrum pesticides. Some can kill earthworms and other beneficial insects, harm vegetation and damage the environment. Use them only after identifying the type and quantity of pest, and after carefully reading instructions never apply pesticides when rain is expected. Allow time for the plants to absorb the treatment to avoid wasteful run-off into local waterways. As homeowners we must collectively do our part to help keep our waterways pollution free.

 The Benefits of Streamside Forests

Jerry Iles, OSU Extension Agent, Watershed Management, South District

(Part 1 of a 2 part series)

Streamside Forests provide many benefits to the water quality and aquatic habitat of our local streams and rivers. These strips of forests also referred to as riparian buffers or corridors play a major role in protecting water resources that in many instances provide vital drinking water sources for humans and livestock.

The following are just some of the many attributes of streamside forests:

• The stabilization of stream banks is a major asset of a streamside forest. The roots from the trees along the stream provide excellent biological structure for holding soils in place.
• The streamside forest acts as a ìsinkî for nutrients from fertilizer and animal waste runoff. The shrubs and trees help absorb and process these nutrients before they can reach the stream, river or lake.
• Sediment is one of the most common problems throughout Ohio's watersheds. It is suspended in surface runoff from exposed areas such as construction sites, eroded pasture and agricultural fields. The presence of a streamside forest helps trap this sediment before it reaches the water.
• Trees can help to keep sediment from covering the rocky substrate of the creek bottom, sediment may inhibit the feeding, and reproduction cycles of fish and aquatic macroinvertebrates. If these species are affected, the disturbance is felt throughout the food web.

In part two I'll discuss more about how streamside forests play an important role in habitat for both aquatic and terrestrial species. Its spring take your family out and plant a tree. Each year you will watch it grow and always remember the day you planted it.

Total Maximum Daily Loads: Establishing Pollution Budgets for Ohio Streams and Lakes

Anne Baird, Watershed Management Agent, OSU Extension, SW District

What is a TMDL?

A Total Maximum Daily Load or TMDL is the pollution budget for a specific river, lake, or stream. A TMDL includes a quantitative estimate of what is necessary to achieve water quality goals in polluted waters as well as a plan for implementing how that pollution load will be allocated and achieved. The Ohio EPA has begun working with local stakeholders (local governments and other interested parties, such as landowners, government agencies, farmers, loggers, and developers) in a cooperative process to determine the most common sense and cost-effective ways to address specific water quality problems.

How Will They Be Implemented?

Under TMDLs, point sources of pollution (e.g., discharges from a wastewater treatment plant) will continue to be allocated through enforceable water quality-based discharge limits. Non-point sources (e.g., runoff from parking lots, roads, lawns, and farms) will be addressed using voluntary incentive programs. One such program is the USDA's Conservation Reserve Program that provides incentive payments for implementing agricultural best management practices (check with your local Soil and Water Conservation District for more information).

What Streams Are Affected by TMDLs?

The TMDL list (also known as the 303(d) list-) identifies the waters of Ohio which are currently threatened or impaired and may require TMDL development. The Ohio EPA has identified 276 watersheds (out of a total 326) in the state that contain segments of streams or lakes that are not meeting designated water quality criteria. Ohio EPA has a tentative schedule to complete the TMDL development for all waters on the TMDL priority list by the end of 2013. The schedule may change as they review the water quality conditions and identify additional waters that are polluted.

The Upper Stillwater River, Bokes Creek, Mill Creek in Marysville, and Raccoon Creek are in the TMDL development process now and are scheduled to be completed in 2001. The TMDLs that were scheduled for completion in 2000 included Mill Creek in Cincinnati, Sugar Creek, Upper Little Miami River and the Rocky River. Ohio EPA believes that a water body should remain on the TMDL list until they can reassess the chemical and biological condition of the stream or lake.

What Are the Causes of the Pollution?

Some of the most common impairments include organic enrichment and low dissolved oxygen, siltation, habitat alterations, nutrients, metals, and flow alterations. The top sources of these impairments include: modification of stream channels, agriculture, point sources, and urban runoff. Because Ohio has a statewide fish consumption advisory for mercury contamination, all waters of the state are included in the 303(d) list and will require TMDL development for mercury. However, it was decided that water bodies included solely because of the statewide advisory would not be specifically identified in the 303(d) list.

References

US EPA TMDL 1998 303(d) List Fact Sheet
http://www.epa.state.oh.us/dsw/tmdl/

US EPA Total Maximum Daily Load Program
http://www.epa.gov/owow/tmdl/atlas/intro.html

OSU Extension Total Maximum Daily Loads (TMDLs) Fact Sheet
http://ohioline.ag.ohio-state.edu/ae-fact/0007.html

Ohio EPA 303 (d) Priority List for 1999-2000
http://www.epa.state.oh.us/dsw/tmdl/303dnotc.html

Successful Organizations Foster Effective Volunteerism

Dana Oleskiewicz, Watershed Management Agent, OSU Extension, NE District

Organizations that promote charitable causes or address environmental issues often must rely on volunteers to accomplish their goals. The recruitment and retention of a capable volunteer workforce can be challenging. Here are a few tips to keep in mind when faced with this challenge.

People need to be asked. The very energetic and passionate individuals will offer their assistance without being asked. However, most that are interested in becoming active will not voluntarily offer to do so. They may not know what is needed or they just need a bit of encouragement with a direct request.

Before asking, determine what they will get out of it. Everyone has different reasons for volunteering. Understand their motivation and make your request accordingly. Discuss their goals to discover how they best fit into the organization. Be sure to use their experience, skills, and interests effectively when assigning the tasks.

When asking, be specific. Clearly define the task you wish for them to accomplish and explain the job thoroughly with a start and end point. Illustrate how the task you are requesting of them relates to the goals of the committee or organization. Develop a written volunteer agreement that is signed by both parties so that the expectations are completely understood.

Make sure to provide feedback. Everyone needs and wants to know if they are doing a good job or if there is need for correction. Focus attention on the particular task you have asked them to do and make your feedback relevant by giving suggestions for improvement. Always give positive feedback, preferably before the negative comments, and do so often. Be sure to publicly acknowledge their volunteer efforts for this often is a motivation for being active. It is also important that they are thanked, both verbally and in writing. A handwritten ìthank youî note goes a long way in retaining volunteers.

Finally, keep detailed records. Being organized is a must. Keep a list of names, up-to-date contact information, and notes on their jobs and miscellaneous information about them. This helps you to remember the volunteers as individuals. It also allows for professionalism within the organization so questions can be easily and quickly addressed.

Developing effective human resource practices will enhance volunteer recruitment and retention. Managing volunteers efficiently is important to successful organizations.

Are Failing Septic Systems Affecting your Watershed?

Robert McCall, Watershed Management Agent
OSU Extension, NW District
(419) 422-6106)

Functions of watersheds have changed drastically since the influence of man on the land. The well-known stories about environmental problems tend to focus on large, recognizable impairments from big smoking industrial facilities, leaking toxic waste dumps and messy oil spills. As a result, we often forget about water pollution caused by smaller nonpoint source (NPS) impacts, especially those from household septic systems.

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Did you know that an estimated 80% of septic systems in some Ohio counties do not properly treat home sewage?

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A 1987 survey¹ conducted by The Ohio State University has estimated that as little as 27% of existing septic systems in Ohio are failing. This is largely due to the lack of existing technologically sound systems when those systems were installed or lack of proper installation and maintenance. Some Ohio counties also have been estimated to have as much as 80% of their systems failing.

Septic systems built before the 1970s may have been inadequately designed by today's standards due to lack of technology. For example, in Northwest Ohio, soils are predominately heavy clays with a shallow water table that encourages flooding of the leach field. This allows septic effluent to leave the leach field without being properly treated. Experimental systems, such as the ìmound systemî and the ìevapotranspiration systemsî exist to alleviate some of the design flaws of systems previously installed in soils with high-water tables. However a variance from the Ohio Department of Health must be obtained before installation of experimental systems because these systems are not included in the Ohio Administrative Code (Section 3701-29). A survey conducted in 1999 by Ingram² showed that out of 133 mound systems, 95% were shown to operate effectively. To facilitate consideration of mound systems as a wastewater treatment alternative for your home, The Ohio State University Extension has developed two manuals on mound siting, design and construction. Visit the web site http://ohioline.osu.edu/~setll and find Extension Bulletins 892, Mound Systems: Pressure Distribution of Wastewater, and Bulletin 813, Mound Systems for On-Site Wastewater Systems. Although technologically sound systems now exist, they are still considered experimental.

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Did you know that your septic system might only last from 20 to 30 years after installation due to improper maintenance and clogging of leach fields?

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State authorities are now revisiting existing home sewage disposal rules to update new designs. Septic system designs that were installed in the late 1970's included only one leach field. Conventional designs of the present now include a dual leach field system with a diverter installed near the tank. Dual sided systems allow one side of the leach field to be rested enabling bacteria to break down any accumulated suspended solids or sludge that would otherwise clog the leach field, thereby shortening the life of the leach field, acting as a type of self-cleaning mechanism. If the experimental systems were included in the Ohio Administrative Code, this would add system design options that are more suited to many of the soils in Ohio.

Septic tank maintenance is very straightforward once you have a basic understanding of the system. The purpose of the system is to remove pollutants from wastewater to protect the public health and the environment. However the solids in the tank, also known as septage, must be pumped out of the tank on a regular schedule, depending on the capacity of the tank, the amount of flow through the system and the volume of solids that accumulate over time. If the tank is not pumped regularly, solids will build up in the tank and allow the effluent to deliver potential pollutants to the leach field. Those potential pollutants are then subject to moving off site during subsequent rains, especially in poorly drained soils. Other parts of the system also have maintenance requirements. If your system was installed more than 20 years ago, you may want to consider replacing the system. Septic systems will usually only last for 20 or 30 years.

For more detailed understanding of septic systems or to attend workshops on septic systems, visit The Ohio State University Extension website at http://www.ag.ohio-state.edu/~setll/publications.html. Other septic system reference sites include http://www.ag.ohio-state.edu/~farmasys/ and http://www.epa.gov/owow/.

1. Mancl, K. 1990. A Survey of Small Sewage Treatment Facilities in Ohio. Ohio J. Sci. 90(4):112-17.

2. Mancl, K. 1999. Survey of Approval Practices for Onsite Sewage Treatment Systems in Ohio. Ohio J. Sci. 99(3):38-43.