Record Display for the EPA National Library Catalog

RECORD NUMBER: 4198 OF 4624

Main Title TMDLs for Turbidity for Bayou Bartholomew, Arkansas.
CORP Author FTN Associates, Little Rock, AR.; Environmental Protection Agency, Dallas, TX. Region VI.
Year Published 2008
Report Number EPA/CN-68-C-99-249
Stock Number PB2013-100706
Additional Subjects Turbidity ; Watersheds ; Pollutants ; Waterbodies ; Water quality standard ; Total Maximum Daily Load ; Federal Clean Water Act ; Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality(ADEQ)
Holdings
Library Call Number Additional Info Location Last
Modified
Checkout
Status
NTIS  PB2013-100706 Some EPA libraries have a fiche copy filed under the call number shown. 07/26/2022
Collation 103p
Abstract
Section 303(d) of the Federal Clean Water Act requires states to identify waterbodies that are not meeting water quality standards and to develop total maximum daily pollutant loads for those waterbodies. A total maximum daily load (TMDL) is the amount of a pollutant that a waterbody can assimilate without exceeding the established water quality standard for that pollutant. Through a TMDL, pollutant loads can be allocated to point sources and nonpoint sources discharging to the waterbody. Bayou Bartholomew begins near Pine Bluff, Arkansas and flows generally southward towards its confluence with the Ouachita River near Bastrop, Louisiana. The scope of this project is limited to the Arkansas portion of the bayou, which is designated by the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ) as Planning Segment 2B. The designated beneficial uses that have been established by ADEQ for Bayou Bartholomew include primary and secondary contact recreation; domestic, industrial, and agricultural water supply; and seasonal and perennial Gulf Coastal Plains fishery and perennial Delta fishery. The Bayou Bartholomew watershed lies within both the Gulf Coastal Plain and Delta ecoregions. The main stem of Bayou Bartholomew and the tributaries on the east side are mostly in the Delta ecoregion, while the tributaries on the west side are mostly in the Gulf Coastal Plains ecoregion. The numeric turbidity standard for streams in the Gulf Coastal Plain ecoregion is 21 NTU, while the standard for the Delta ecoregion is 45 NTU for least-altered streams and 75 NTU for channel-altered streams. ADEQ considers the main stem of Bayou Bartholomew to be least-altered. ADEQs historical water quality data for Bayou Bartholomew show that turbidity values frequently exceed the standards. Because of its elevated turbidity levels, the entire length of the main stem of Bayou Bartholomew (6 reaches) was included on the Arkansas 1998 303(d) list for not supporting aquatic life due to siltation/turbidity. Deep Bayou, which is a tributary to Bayou Bartholomew, was not on the 1998 303(d) list, but it is included on the proposed 2002 303(d) list due to siltation/turbidity.