OEPA finds Hocking mostly healthy

The Ohio Environmental Protection Agency released a report on the Hocking River last week which found that overall, aquatic communities of wildlife met water quality goals at over 70 percent of the sites surveyed.

Of the remainder, the report stated, about 20 percent of sites surveyed met at least some of the EPA's water quality standards, while approximately 10 percent did not meet any. Water quality in the Hocking and its tributaries was measured in 2004 and 2005.

"œSeveral areas of the watershed displayed exceptional quality, particularly Federal Creek," the report stated. "œClear Creek and its tributaries fully met aquatic life goals and the Federal Creek subwatershed had only minimal impairments. The most impaired area was the upper part of the Rush Creek subwatershed."

Fifty-three of 166 sites, or 32 percent, failed to meet water quality standards for recreational use due to high levels of bacteria, the report said. "The majority of these failures occurred in the upper portion of the Hocking River watershed," it added.

The Hocking River Commission and the Friends of the Hocking River have scheduled a public meeting at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday at the Athens Public Library, to discuss the recently released report. Ohio EPA spokesperson Gregg Sablak will attend the meeting.

The EPA report noted that point-source effluent discharges send treated wastewater into rivers and streams. "Water quality impacts were found in the Hocking River down from Lancaster's waste water treatment plant," the it said. "These impacts are expected to be abated as the city continues to address sewage collection and treatment. Other concerns regarding point sources are due to elevated nutrient and bacteria levels; however, only about 5 percent of the overall impairments are attributable to such sources."

Runoff from rain contributes pollution from urban and rural areas, the report said. Pollutants reportedly accumulate on the landscape based on how land is used and are washed off when it rains. "Manure is causing problems in isolated areas throughout the watershed, especially in the Rush Creek subwatershed," the report said.

Streams lose quality, according to the report, when they are converted to drainage ditches, because valuable habitat is altered and erosion and sediment problems often follow.

"Areas along the headwaters of the Hocking River have been especially impacted in this way," the report said. "However, even more widespread is the absence of vegetation such as trees along stream channels that can protect against bank erosion and filter pollutants washing off the land."

High levels of bacteria impair safe recreational use of the waterways, according to the report. "A primary source of bacteria is inadequately treated sewage that makes its way to streams from poorly functioning home septic systems as well as the manure from livestock," the report said.

It went on to say that acid mine drainage coming from previously coal-mined areas has severely impacted aquatic communities in the upper Rush Creek subwatershed. "The acidity of the water and toxic levels of dissolved metals left several areas nearly lifeless," the report said. "Other smaller areas are impacted by mining activity but with less sever impact."

Beginning in Fairfield County just to the southeast of Columbus, the Hocking River flows southeast for 102 miles to join the Ohio River in Athens County. The city of Lancaster is the largest urban area in the northern portion of the watershed, while the cities of Logan, Nelsonville and Athens are located directly along the river and are the largest municipalities in the lower watershed.

Ohio is one of a few states that measures the health of its streams by examining the number and types of fish and aquatic insects in the water. An abundance of fish and insects that are very tolerant of pollution, the report said, is one indicator of an unhealthy system. Other ways the Ohio EPA measures water quality include testing the chemistry of the water and stream sediment, and evaluating physical characteristics of the habitat.

The report stated that the Hocking River watershed is included on Ohio's list of impaired waters. Under the Clean Water Act, a cleanup plan is required for each impaired watershed. The report from the EPA serves as that plan, it said, as it specifies how much pollution must be reduced from various sources and recommends specific actions to achieve these reductions.

The report recommends several options to reduce pollutants and/or increase the capacity of the streams to better handle the pollutants present.

"Poorly functioning home sewage systems should be addressed in rural, urban and developing areas by the county health department," the report said. "Residential, commercial and other areas can reduce loading of nutrients by practicing more environmentally sensitive turf management such as reducing the rate of fertilizer application and using organic-based fertilizers."

The amount of phosphorus discharged should be reduced at some sewage facilities, the report said. And controls aimed at reducing erosion from farm fields should be considered, the report said, before going on to list a number of other measure that could be taken.

Implementation of the report's recommendations will be accomplished by state and local partners, including the voluntary efforts of landowners, the report said. Also, the Friends of the Hocking River and the Hocking River Commission, as well as other groups, have missions to protect water resources through education and outreach.