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Lampasas River volunteers to set conservation measures
5/22/2009
A voluntary Watershed Protection Plan could save Lampasas River users from a strict set of state and federal regulations, organizers of a watershed meeting held at First Texas Bank said last week.
The gathering, organized by Texas AgriLife Research and the Texas State Soil & Water Conservation Board, focused on developing a set of strategies for Lampasas River "stakeholders" -- homeowners, ranchers, local governments and outdoor enthusiasts -- to follow to reduce pollution in the river.
Because e coli levels in some samples taken from the Lampasas River exceeded Texas Commission on Environmental Quality standards, the river has been placed on TCEQ's "Texas 303(d) List" of "impaired" waterways. Samples taken from the Lampasas River also have indicated low dissolved oxygen in some areas, as well as nutrient imbalances in parts of the 1,502-square-mile rivershed.
The wastewater treatment plant that serves Lampasas, City Manager Michael Stoldt noted during the meeting, is downstream of the parts of the river found to be out of compliance with state standards.
The federal Clean Water Act requires the cleaning of impaired rivers, using either a Watershed Protection Plan or a Total Maximum Daily Load.
Although TMDLs impose federally regulated mandatory daily limits on the amount of pollutants river users may add to a waterway, WPPs are designed to work through voluntary stakeholder participation. WPPs often address matters such as repairing failing septic systems.
"The Watershed Protection Plan is our friend," said Hamilton County Commissioner Dickie Clary, who has been involved with a Leon River WPP in his county. "It's not our foe. What more can we ask for as private citizens than to hear what the problems are and be able to come up with solutions?"
Some grant funding may be available to assist with the implementation of WPP sugges- tions, said Aaron Wendt, statewide watershed planning coordinator for TSSWCB. Studies have shown WPPs to be one of the most effective environmental responses to watershed pollution, Wendt added.
Proposed deadline for drafting the WPP is February 2011. The plan is expected to be sent to the Environmental Protection Agency by May 2011 for approval, and the plan should be implemented beginning in September that year, said Lisa Prcin, research assistant at the Blackland Research & Extension Center in Temple.
Ms. Prcin encouraged area residents to join the Lampasas River WPP steering committee, a group of 10 members or more that develops recommended practices to combat watershed impairment. The steering committee also will organize topical workgroups, for which citizens can volunteer, to address specific issues relevant to the Lampasas River.
BREC assistant research scientist Steve Potter said the steering committee, following advice from state scientists monitoring the Lampasas River, can alter the watershed protection plan if needed to respond to changing conditions.
Reprinted with permission from Lampasas Dispatch Record
http://www.lampasasdispatchrecord.com/news/2009/0522/front_page/004.html
News Broadcasts
High levels of bacteria in parts of Lampasas River
Updated: 5/12/2009 12:33:06 PM
By: Brandi Powell
See newscast here: http://www.news8austin.com/content/your_news/Default.asp?SecID=278&ArID=240332&addvid=66137&
This is the section of the Lampasas River that has been deemed impaired due to the high levels of bacteria.
Spending time in rivers and lakes is a part of many family traditions during the summer months, and state law requires the Lampasas River be ok for people to swim in.
But the state said the Lampasas River above Stillhouse Hollow Lake is impaired because bacteria levels are too high.
We found out what issues are on the table for people who live and play in the area.
Bell County rancher Woody Ray says his daughter will not swim in the Lampasas River anymore.
"Something's crazy," Ray said, "Yeah, see it and smell it."
Ray said the water is not like it was when he was growing up. "We stayed in the river all the time in the summertime when I was a kid," Ray said. But not anymore.
"I had no clue, that we had E. Coli problems," Ray said.
Now much of the Lampasas River Watershed is on a Texas Water Quality Inventory list, because of high bacteria levels.
The Lampasas River Watershed Protection Plan experts will study it.
One possible cause of the problem: experts say is land use.
Assistant Research Scientist with Agrilife Research, Steve Potter said, "These areas used to be huge ranches, 1000 acres, now they're being subdivided up into 10 acre spots, and a lot of times people moving in from the cities don't necessarily know how to manage small ranchettes." Agrilife Research is affiliated with the Texas A&M System Blackland Research and Extension Center.
But Potter and other researchers say it's hard to point fingers.
Aaron Wendt, State Watershed Coordinator with the Texas State Soil & Water Conservation Board said, "It's not an easy solution because it takes everyone's actions to fertilize their yards in a responsible manner, to apply pesticides in a responsible manner, it takes farmers and ranchers doing that same thing applied to farmland and ranchland."
But the project money from the federal government won't just go toward studying bacteria.
Ray says the childhood swing he used to play on is now gone. Scientists say that is part of the problem with erosion that they're going to look at through this study.
It's all to help get the Watershed healthy again.
The scientists remind families that these bacteria levels can go up or down on any given day.
They say check with your local river authority or park manager for up-to-date information.
Reprinted with permission from News 8 Austin
