Jessie J. Green
Arkansas Chapter American Fisheries Society
26 February 2014 – Rogers, Arkansas
 Clean Water
Act of 1972
• “fishable/swimmable”
 Provide
basis for development, review
and adoption of water quality standards
 Define chemical, physical, and biological
parameters of least-impaired streams
 Objectives
• Ecoregions
• Site selection
• Range of watershed sizes
• Critical survey periods
 Objectives
• Ecoregions
Ozark Highlands
Boston Mountains
Arkansas River Valley
Ouachita Mountains
Gulf Coastal Plains
•
•
Typical
Spring Influenced
Delta
•
•
Least Disturbed
Channel Altered
 Objectives
• Site selection
 36 Sites
 Most
representative
of ecoregion
 Least
disturbed
 Objectives
• Range of
watershed sizes
 20-50 mi2
 100-200 mi2
 300-500 mi2
 Objectives
• Critical survey periods
 Late Summer


Temp
Dissolved Oxygen
Freshwater Illustrated
 Chemical
-
Q, cfs
Temperature, °C
pH
Turbidity, ntu
TSS, mg/L
TDS, mg/L
 Physical
-
Drainage area
Watershed land
use
Stream Gradient
Mean Channel
Width
-
Fish
-
Mean Stream Width
Mean Stream velocity
Observed Flow
Average Substrate
Type
Mean Instream Cover
-
 Biological
-
BOD-5, mg/L
BOD-20, mg/L
Nitrates
Total Phosphorus,
mg/L
PO4-P, mg/L
NO2+NO3-N, mg/L
-
Macroinvertebrates
NH3-N, mg/L
Cl -, mg/L
SO4 =, mg/L
Fe, mg/L
Conductivity,
µmho
Alkalinity, mg/L
-
Riffle/Pool ratio of
Transects
Mean Bank
Overstory Cover
Mean Bank Ground
Cover
-
-
-
Chlorophyll a,
µg/L
Fecal Coliform
Dissolved
Oxygen
Mean Bank
Stability
Mean Stream
Canopy
1983-1985: Original Survey (36)
1993-1994: Ozark Highlands Revisit (3)
1998: Boston Mountains Revisit (1)
2003: Gulf Coastal Plains
Revisit (8)
2004: Ouachita Mountains Revisit (6)
2005: Arkansas River
Valley Revisit (3)
2009: Boston Mountains Revisit (5)
2014
 25
of 36
 Ambient
and roving
water
quality
monitoring
stations
 Land-use
Land-cover
 Fish community structure index
• Ecoregion
• Site specific
 1986
 1992
 1999
 2006
 Categories
• Forest
• Agriculture and pasture
• Urban
%
Sensitive
 % Cyprinidae
 % Ictaluridae
 % Centrarchidae
 % Percidae
 % Primary Feeders
 % Key Individuals
 Diversity
 Ouachita
Mountains
 Gulf Coastal Plains
 Boston Mountains
 Arkansas River Valley
 Ozark Highlands
 Ouachita
•
•
•
•
•
•
Mountains
Board Camp Creek
Caddo River
Cossatot River
Little Missouri River
Saline River
South Fork Ouachita River
 Gulf Coastal Plains
 Boston Mountains
 Arkansas River Valley
 Ozark Highlands
100%
80%
60%
Forest
Ag
40%
Urban
20%
100%
0%
1983-1985
2004
80%
Mostly Similar
60%
Generally
Similar
40%
Somewhat
Similar
20%
Not Similar
0%
1983-1985
2004
100%
30
rho = -0.57, p = 0.01
80%
60%
Forest
Ag
40%
Urban
% Percidae
25
20
15
10
5
20%
0
0
0%
2004
% Key Individuals
1983-1985
5
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
10
% Urban
15
20
rho = 0.50, p = 0.10
0
5
10
% Urban
15
20
 Impaired
- Not Supporting Fisheries
Designated Use
• Caddo River
 Cause: Silt - Source: Resource extraction
• Saline River
 Cause: Turbidity, TDS - Source: Surface erosion, Unknown
 Impaired
Use
– Supporting Fisheries Designated
• Little Missouri River
 Cause: Copper - Source: Unknown
100%
Forest
80%
Mostly Similar
Ag
60%
Somewhat Similar
Urban
40%
100%
20%
0%
1983
2004
80%
Cyprinidae
Catostomidae
60%
Ictaluridae
Atherinopsidae
40%
Fundulidae
Centrarchidae
20%
Percidae
0%
1983
2004

Ouachita Mountains
 Gulf
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•



Coastal Plains
Big Creek
Cypress Creek
Derrieuseaux Creek
East Fork Tulip Creek
Freeo Creek
Hudgens Creek
L’Aigle Creek
Moro Creek
Boston Mountains
Arkansas River Valley
Ozark Highlands
100%
Forest
80%
Ag
Urban
60%
40%
20%
100%
0%
1983-1985
2003
80%
Mostly Similar
60%
Generally
Similar
40%
Somewhat
Similar
20%
Not Similar
0%
1983-1985
2003
60
% Key Individuals
Forest
100%
Ag
80%
Urban
60%
40%
20%
0%
40
30
20
10
2003
rho = -0.50, p = 0.04
Biocriteria Score
50
Species Richness
50
0
1983-1985
40
30
20
10
0
0
rho = -0.58, p = 0.03
2
4
% Urban
6
rho = -0.58, p = 0.05
35
30
25
20
15
10
5
0
0
2
4
% Urban
6
 Impaired
- Not Supporting Fisheries
Designated Use
• Big Creek
 Cause: Turbidity - Source: Surface Erosion
Typical GCP
All Flows
Standard
Turbidity (NTU)
100
80
60
1985 Average
40
20
0
1990
2000
2010
Forest
100%
Mostly Similar
Ag
80%
Urban
60%
Generally Similar
40%
20%
100%
Anguillidae
0%
1985
2003
Cyprinidae
80%
Catostomidae
Ictaluridae
60%
Esocidae
Aphredoderidae
40%
Fundulidae
Poeciliidae
20%
Centrarchidae
Percidae
Elassomatidae
0%
1985
2003
 Ouachita
Mountains
 Gulf Coastal Plains
 Boston
•
•
•
•
•
Mountains
Hurricane Creek
Illinois Bayou
Indian Creek
Lee Creek
Mulberry River
 Arkansas
River Valley
 Ozark Highlands
100%
80%
60%
Forest
Ag
40%
Urban
20%
0%
100%
1983-1985
1999,2009
80%
Mostly Similar
60%
Generally
Similar
40%
Somewhat
Similar
20%
Not Similar
0%
1983-1985
1999,2009
100%
Mostly Similar
80%
60%
Forest
40%
Ag
Somewhat Similar
Urban
20%
100%
0%
1985
2009
Lepisosteidae
80%
Cyprinidae
Catostomidae
60%
Ictaluridae
Atherinopsidae
Fundulidae
40%
Centrarchidae
Percidae
20%
Sciaenidae
0%
1985
2009
pH
9
8.5
8
7.5
7
6.5
6
5.5
5
4.5
4
1990
1985 Average
2000
2010
 Ouachita
Mountains
 Gulf Coastal Plains
 Boston Mountains
Arkansas
River Valley
• North Fork Cadron Creek
• Mill Creek
• Petit Jean River
 Ozark
Highlands
100%
80%
60%
Forest
Ag
40%
Urban
20%
0%
100%
1983-1985
2005
80%
Mostly Similar
60%
Generally
Similar
40%
Somewhat
Similar
20%
Not Similar
0%
1983-1985
2005
 Impaired
- Not Supporting Fisheries
Designated Use
• Petit Jean River
 Cause: Turbidity - Source: Sediment Erosion
 Ouachita
Mountains
 Gulf Coastal Plains
 Boston Mountains
 Arkansas River Valley
Ozark
Highlands
• Flint Creek
• Kings River
• Yocum Creek
100%
80%
60%
Forest
Ag
40%
Urban
20%
0%
1983-1985
1993-1994
100%
80%
Mostly Similar
60%
Generally
Similar
40%
Somewhat
Similar
20%
Not Similar
0%
1983-1985
1993-1994
 Impaired
– Supporting Fisheries
Designated Use
• Kings River
 Cause: TDS - Source: Unknown
1983-1985: Original Survey (36)
2013: Ozark
Highland
2014: Boston Mountains
2016: Ouachita Mountains
Arkansas River Valley
Need
more data
 Standardize
methods
• 1983-1985: rotenone, mini-fyke nets,
electrofishing
• Present: electrofishing