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Bacteriological Monitoring |
In the summer of 2009, members of the Chartiers Creek Watershed Association collected water samples for bacteriological analysis from two locations in Chartiers Creek. The sampling locations were near the intersection of Route 18 and Old Scales Road in South Franklin Township and near Scotty’s on Route 18 in North Franklin Township. The sampling and analysis was conducted for the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (PADEP) Bureau of Water Quality Standards and Facility Regulation. The bacteria monitoring is being completed for Recreational Use Assessment of streams in Pennsylvania. The findings resulted in the PADEP designating the two sampled segments of Chartiers Creek as “impaired” because all the water samples exceeded the summertime maximum standard for fecal coliform (E. coli) of 200 cfu/100 ml (that is, 200 colony-forming units per 100 milliliter of stream water). Potential sources of E.coli include natural sources (wildlife such as deer and geese), livestock and horses on farms in the watershed, and malfunctioning sewage treatment plants and individual on-lot septic systems. PADEP will list the impairment decision for the two Chartiers Creek stream segments in their 2010 Integrated Water Quality Monitoring and Assessment Report to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Based on the impairment decision, a TMDL (Total Daily Maximum Load) for bacteria will be completed for the stream segments in the future. So, what does this mean? PADEP has an ongoing program to assess the quality of waters in Pennsylvania and identify as “impaired” those streams and other bodies of waters that are not attaining designated and existing uses. Water quality standards are comprised of the uses that waters can support and goals established to protect those uses. Uses include Aquatic Life, Fish Consumption, Recreation, and Potable Water Supply. The goals are numerical or narrative water quality criteria that express the in-stream levels of substances that must be achieved to support the uses (Pennsylvania Code - Chapter 93.7). This is where the water quality criteria for bacteria (fecal coliform) are listed. The states are required to prepare and submit a biennial water quality report to the U.S. EPA in accordance with Section 305(b) of the Clean Water Act. In addition, Section 303(d) of the CWA requires states to list all impaired waters that are not supporting uses even after appropriate and required water pollution control technologies have been applied. For example, if the stream segments were impacted by a permitted point source discharge that is out of compliance with its bacteriological effluent limits, PADEP would first attempt to correct the water impairment by taking a compliance action against the discharger. If, after the corrective action, the stream segments were still exceeding the standards, the stream segments would be placed on the 303(d) list of impaired waters. Pennsylvania submits an Integrated Water Quality Monitoring and Assessment Report that meets the requirements of both Section 305(b) and Section 303(d) of the CWA. Included in the integrated report are a description of the water pollution control and assessment/monitoring programs and a summary of the status of streams and lakes. The water quality status of Pennsylvania’s waters is categorized according to their use attainment status. The categories range from Category 1, in which all designated water uses are met, through Category 5 (in which the waterbody is on the 303(d) list of impaired waters requiring a TMDL to correct). As a follow-up to listing, the state or EPA must develop a Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) for each waterbody on the list. A TMDL is designed to reduce pollutant loads to impaired waters and enable these waters to meet water quality standards. A TMDL identifies allowable pollutant loads to a waterbody from both point and non-point sources that will prevent a violation of water quality standards. TMDLs set waste load allocations (WLAs) and Load Allocations (LAs) to the appropriate sources of pollutant loading. Individual WLAs are the amounts of the load allocated to point sources (such as sewage treatment plants, industrial discharges, stormwater discharge pipes, and construction sites). The Load Allocation (LA) portion of the TMDL is the amount of the load that is allocated to categories of nonpoint sources (such as runoff from agricultural land, suburban yards, and roads, malfunctioning septic systems, abandoned mine discharge, and erosion of stream banks). The Load Allocations are the basis of future Watershed Restoration Plans, which are the first part of correcting nonpoint source pollution problems. The last Pennsylvania Integrated Report was completed in 2008, and the next will be submitted in 2010. The 2010 report will place the two Chartiers Creek stream segments in Category 5 and thus on the 303(d) list of impaired waters for exceeding the bacteriological standard. If the EPA approves the inclusion of these stream segments on the 303(d) list, the PADEP must develop the TMDL. The TMDL will determine the sources of the bacteria and will develop Load Allocations and a plan to reduce the levels to below the water quality standard. Since the report will not be submitted until sometime in 2010, the development of a TMDL for these stream segments is likely still a few years away. Sources: 2008 Pennsylvania Integrated Water Quality Monitoring and Assessment Report: http://www.depweb.state.pa.us/watersupply/cwp/view.asp?a=1261&q=535678 Code of Federal Regulations Title 40, Part 130 – Water Quality Planning and Management Pennsylvania Code Chapter 93 – Water Quality Standards. http://www.pacode.com/secure/data/025/articleICII_toc.html U.S. EPA. Clean Water Act, Section 303. http://www.epa.gov/waterscience/standards/rules/303.htm (To view the state 303(d) list of impaired waters, go to www.dep.state.pa.us. Use the following keywords: Water, Water Quality, and finally Integrated Water Quality List for 2008.) To view / print the entire Project Summary Report as a PDF document, click here
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