Water Quality Monitoring Program

In a state as arid as Wyoming, water is literally the life blood of the area.  Testing the health of that life blood is part of a water monitoring program undertaken by the Washakie County Conservation District (WCCD). The water monitoring program began because of the 1996 listing of seven streams in Washakie County on the Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality's (WDEQ) "needs monitored" list.  The listing of these streams was not justified due to lack of scientific data to prove they were impaired, but could not be removed from the list unless scientific data was collected to show they were not impaired.

WDEQ was scheduled to monitor local streams in 2000-2001, however, due to landowner request, WCCD employees conducted the monitoring.  "The landowners have been wonderful;  each took time out of their day to show the WCCD employees the best way to get to the stream sites," Tori Dietz, District Director said.

To allow Conservation Districts around the state to assist DEQ in gathering the water quality information needed, the state legislature allotted $367,000.00 for water monitoring training, lab analysis and equipment in 1998 and 2000, $675,000 in 2002 and 2004, 2006 and $675,000 again in 2008.  In addition, the WCCD received a grant from WDEQ's 319 funds to conduct water quality monitoring from 2005 through 2008.  This funding also includes an education component and is providing cost share to help local residents upgrade failing and/or inadequate septic systems and to address existing or potential water quality issues associated with small non-permitted livestock operations, i.e. less than 1000 head.

In order for WDEQ to accept the data collected from the Conservation Districts, the Districts followed WDEQ's protocol, which consisted of employees participating in several phases of classroom and field training by the Wyoming Department of Agriculture and the University of Wyoming and WDEQ.  

The WCCD staff began water quality monitoring on six streams in Washakie County in May, 2005. The monitoring program is focused on streams that were included on the Wyoming DEQ’s 303(d) list, which includes the Bighorn River, Nowood River, Sage Creek, Slick Creek, Fifteen Mile Creek, and Nowater Creek. This year 2005 began a monitoring schedule to gather water quality information on each site for E. coli and chemical constituents in both May and September, and a Beneficial Use Reconnaissance Program was done on three of these sites, in September. In 2006, monitoring was accomplished in August, in 2007, monitoring was accomplished in July, and in 2008, final monitoring was completed in June, except for the Nowood River.  Monitoring was completed May through September on the Nowood, since this stream was candidate for the start of a delisting process.  Since the month of May showed E. Coli above the standard, the WCCD decided not to keep monitoring an additional three years.  The funding for this project is from a 319 grant awarded to the WCCD by WDEQ. Prior to the water monitoring each year, the WCCD updated our Sampling & Analysis Plan, where it was approved each year by WDEQ.

The data indicated Chemical and Physical parameters are not problematic but there may be indications of sedimentation and hardness.  Nutrients (N and P) are also generally low in concentration.  Bacteria continues to be the most persistent water quality challenge within the District.  In general,  it appears that bacteria concentrations increased from 2005 to 2007 and decreased in 2008.  It is the hope of the District that BMP implementation is beginning to reap benefits to water quality.  It is also apparent that there may be a need to focus efforts on Sage Creek as it is the only waterbody tested that doesn’t appear to be responding to BMO implementation efforts at this point in time. 
 

Cost Share Program

The District completed a Clean Water Act, Section 319 grant from the WDEQ in May of 2009.  Information was provided to the landowners of Washakie County on non-point source pollution, including E. coli bacteria.  The grant provided cost-share funding to address Animal Feeding Operations (AFO's) and individual Septic Systems that required renovations to minimize the probability of surface water contamination.  The WCCD offered this money as an incentive to the residents of Washakie County to address improper corral placement or watering methods and non-functioning septic systems on a voluntary basis.  Septic systems that were installed prior to 1973 were not exempt from provisions of the Clean Water Act, which was adopted that year.  All septic systems, regardless of when they were installed, had to comply with current county or state standards and specifications.  Applicants were anonymous to the ranking committee.  Both the AFO projects and the Septic projects were cost shared at 50% and the total project cost for the septic projects could not exceed $8,500.00 without individual justification and authorization by WDEQ.

Over the course of three years, 49 homeowners were awarded cost share funds to upgrade their inadequate and/or failing systems, using $161,124.00 and 4 landowners were warded cost share funds to move their animal feeding operation, using $25,580.00 of the WCCD's 319 program. In addition, 3 homeowners upgraded their inadequate and/or failing systems using $7,500 of the WCCD's mill levy funds.

Use Attainability Anaylsis

The WCCD employees attended a Use Attainability Analysis training in 2009, which was hosted by the Wyoming Association of Conservation Districts.  Upon returning, the WCCD began gathering the data necessary to document the proposed change of classification from Primary to Secondary within the Nowater Creek and Fifteen Mile Creek watersheds.