Abstract |
This report presents total maximum daily loads (TMDLs) for fecal coliform and Escherichia coli (E. coli) for 8 HUC-reaches in the Bayou Bartholomew Sub-Basin in south Arkansas. These stream reaches were included on the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ) 2004 Section 305(b) Report (ADEQ, 2005a) as not supporting their designated use of Primary Contact Recreation and/or Secondary Contact Recreation. The purpose of a TMDL is to determine the pollutant loading that a waterbody can assimilate without exceeding the water quality standard for that pollutant and to establish the load reduction that is necessary to meet the standard in a waterbody. The TMDL is the sum of the wasteload allocation (WLA), the load allocation (LA), and a margin of safety (MOS). The WLA is the load allocated to point sources of the pollutant of concern. The LA is the load allocated to nonpoint sources (NPS), including natural background. The MOS is a percentage of the TMDL that takes into account any lack of knowledge concerning the relationship between pollutant loadings and water quality. |