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BIG CANYON CREEK, CLEARWATER, LEWIS, AND NEZ PERCE COUNTIES, IDAHO - WATER QUALITY STATUS REPORT, 1988
Description:
A water quality study of Big Canyon Creek, Idaho (17060306) was conducted from February 3, 1987 to February 23, 1988. Objectives of the study were to determine water quality in various reaches and subwatersheds and to document the effects of snowmelt and storm event runoff on water quality. Designated beneficial uses are adversely affected by pollutants from nonpoint sources. Primary pollutants are suspended sediment, ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate, total Kjeldahl nitrogen, total phosphorus, fecal coliform and fecal streptococcus bacteria. The majority of sediment and nutrient transport occurs during the spring snowmelt period. Cattle are the likely source of bacterial contamination in the upper watershed. Agricultural practices affecting stations S-5, S-6, S-7, S-8, and S-9 have increased nitrogen and phosphorus concentrations. The headwaters are the primary contributors of water pollutants to the watershed. Little Canyon Creek has been impacted more from nonpoint sediment sources than Big Canyon Creek. Higher sediment and nutrient discharges may have been measured in the watershed during a normal precipitation year. 1988. Water Quality Status Report No. 89. Idaho Department of Health and Welfare, Water Quality Bureau, Boise, ID. 38 pp.