Minutes from Science Committee Meeting - January 10, 2009
Attending:
Chuck Veatch, Mary Gessner, Jonathan Jay, Ellen Nash, Lee Dieter, Katherine Layton, Dennis Atwood, Leslie Watson, Roger Bolland, John Holmes, John Modolo, Ken Owens, and Ken’s dog, Gin
Benthic and E. coli Project:
–The kick off meeting was completed and the project is moving forward. Partners (FNFSR/FOSR/Shenandoah University) will study 3 stream segments with the possibility of additional individual sites of special interest. Analysis will include E. coli, turbidity, nutrient, benthic and flow data for each segment. The reason for concentrating on E. coli and benthic monitoring is that most of the streams in the North and South Fork watershed have either bacteria or sediment impairments, or both. Benthic testing will also be used as an education tool. E. coli, nutrient and turbidity sampling will occur once per month and benthic testing will occur quarterly. About ten sampling sites will be chosen for each stream segment for sampling E. coli, nutrient and turbidity. Benthic assessment and flow data will occur at fewer sample sites.
Target stream segments:
Cedar Creek - upper watershed in Shenandoah and Frederick Counties (North Fork Shenandoah). Mary Gessner and Leslie Watson will serve as the leads for the Cedar Creek effort with assistance from Woody Bousquet at Shen. University (Woody may also pursue flora studies of the watershed).
Smith Creek - Shenandoah and Rockingham Counties (North Fork Shenandoah). Mary and Leslie will serve as leads for this section as well.
Middle River - Augusta County (South Fork Shenandoah). Paul Bugas and Sandy Greene will hopefully lead this portion of the project.
E. coli analysis - Karen Andersen will serve as lead for the E. coli monitoring program:
- FOSR has updated their lab with new E. coli analysis equipment that will allow fast processing of many samples. Lab is almost ready and will need to be certified by DEQ. Cost of each E. coli sample analysis is $15. Only complication with E. coli sampling is a time constraint for initiating analysis - must occur within 6 hours after the sample is pulled (may be able to get an extension from DEQ to 24 hours).
- Sample site locations and the number of necessary volunteers will be determined and volunteers will be recruited in the next 2 months. Karen is writing up a description of volunteer duties and responsibilities related to E. coli sampling that will be distributed to members of both FNFSR and FOSR. E. coli sampling will not be initiated Shenandoah Basin wide initially - only in the targeted stream segments and individual locations of concern.
Benthic assessment - We are still looking for a lead to organize the benthic program:
- VA Save Our Stream methodology will be employed as this is the most appropriate method for volunteers to use and it is also recognized by DEQ. VA SOS will provide training, materials and equipment at no cost to us. Leslie will be developing a handout describing the requirements and responsibilities of benthic monitors and this will be distributed to our memberships, as well. Ideally, John would like to have 6 teams of 2 people each (12 individuals) in order to account for likely attrition. John would like benthic volunteers to commit for at least a 2 year period to make training and certification investment worthwhile. It is perfectly acceptable and would be useful for volunteers to be trained in multiple types of monitoring. Chuck Veatch and Lee Dieter offered their properties as possible locations for benthic training and certification.
Woody Bousquet at Shenandoah University will be working with his students on their participation in this project and parallel studies. Student (college and high school) involvement in this project will be pursued when and where possible. John Holmes will be managing the bookkeeping and the overall project.
Comments:
- Ken Owens (also Dennis Atwood) suggested that site selection might include sites downstream of Sewage Treatment Plants (Steps), however, John Holmes feels that most of the water quality issues are more likely associated with land use or untreated human sewage. STPs should theoretically be cleaning the water sufficiently - but STPs will be a consideration - just to keep a check on their operations. Also, E. coli testing will indicate what types of pollution sources we are dealing with (runoff or point sources), based on whether concentrations rise or fall with river level.
Additional partner interest:
- Chuck Veatch reported that Hedrick Belin with Potomac Conservancy has expressed interest in partnering with us on the Cedar Creek portion of the project. Potomac Conservancy has played a historical role in working with landowners on Cedar Creek to gain access for sampling sites in past work.
Data:
-There is some funding to support the integration of new monitoring site and data into FOSR's current website mapping tool. All information will be available through this site and via a link from FNFSR website. FNFSR will analyze the data and decide what and when to publish and how to use the information for water quality improvement purposes.
Drinking water study
- John reported that FNFSR has received funding to pursue a study and written report regarding the best (most efficient and effective) ways to analyze drinking water for the presence of trace organics. Friends will use this information to lobby for state requirements for water treatment facilities to analyze their finished water for these chemicals.
- John also reported on a recent article by USGS regarding drinking water contamination in the Potomac River system. USGS found the same herbicides in finished water as Friends discovered in North Fork water - this suggests that these herbicides are also in North Fork watershed drinking water as well. [Interestingly USGS did not look for pharmaceuticals or hormones in this study]. John would like an article to be written pointing out the likely presence of herbicides in our drinking water. Dennis Atwood suggested that Friends' Herald column committee could put something together using our trace org. report and the USGS report. Katherine Layton also offered to help with the article.
- John reported that he is working closely with the Potomac and Shenandoah Riverkeepers on this issue as well and will likely visit Richmond to lobby for drinking water analysis that includes trace organics at all water treatment plants in VA. Leslie will post the USGS report on the website.
Well water level work
- Well water depth testing is on-going, being completed by John Kreitzburg. John would like some help with this so we will post and ask for volunteers on the website. We are trying to locate additional or alternative wells more representative of the entire county. Chuck Veatch has offered his ag. well. Lee Dieter and Katherine Layton offered to help John Kreitzburg. Leslie will post well depth readings on the website. Dieter would like to see a well location in Columbia Furnace to track the effect on well water depths related to Georges Chicken processing plant withdrawals.
Methods for examining bacteria - other than E. coli
- Ken Owens has noted many different types of bacterial growth, other than E. coli in his samples from NS 10. There is interest (fish kill related) in determining what other bacteria are present and if it could potentially be detrimental to fish health. Karen Andersen is following up with SU faculty that may be interested helping with producing bacterial profiles for a couple of sites.
- Fish Kill task force meeting is scheduled for next week. Karen and John are attending and will try to determine how USGS scientist Rocco is conducting his bacterial analysis associated with Aeromonas salmonicida. Rocco thinks this bacterium is the cause of the fish kills but there is an alternative view that the key is immune suppression and low resistance to all infections. (Theory goes that aeromonas may be flourishing in springs and it is always injecting into the river and streams. Aeromonas salmonicida thrives in cold water so may be killing fish in the spring, when the water is still cold…then the bacteria die off later during the summer when the water warms up). Vicki Blazer with USGS has the view that it is immune suppression and infections agents of a wider variety. VA Tech is finishing a study and should have their view this summer. [See below for latest fish kill update from DEQ] Ken mentioned a recent study identifying mycobacteria on fish in the Chesapeake Bay [Ches. Bay Bulletin December '08 issue].
Chuck Veatch asked if there is an equipment upgrade that can help with bacteria profiling since the current and new equipment is E. coli specific. John will ask Karen if there is and what the cost is.
Anomalies Subcommittee
- Mary and Leslie are working on a process for dealing with reported anomalies.
Map request for the Education Committee
- Education coordinator, Cindy Frenzel needs a map locating water treatment facility and permitted STP's and other dischargers to the North Fork and tributaries. Leslie will work with Gary at FOSR and others to get this done.
Dilution of water out of water treatment plants - Lee Dieter
- Lee is concerned about the water use and discharge from Georges Chicken plant - feels like they may be diluting their effluent to reach their permitted discharge levels. John pointed out that this is generally illegal and unlikely but that if Lee wants to pursue the subject there are ways to track their flow profiles at DEQ.
- Lee is also concerned about additional well drilling by Georges in the Columbia Furnace area and also commented on the difference in water temperature in water from Georges discharge pipe and downstream (5-10 degrees warmer than stream).
Poultry Waste
John visited new power plant in Minnesota that is using turkey litter as fuel. They have had some infractions (air) but normal for start up. This is a great use of the waste as the burning process eliminates biological pathogens, eliminates waste, and produces a useful fertilizer (without ammonia). The company pays farmers a little bit for the litter. Some heavy metals that are helpful fertilizer result as well (arsenic not used for turkeys). The MN plan is the only one in the U.S. - there are 3 in England. NC is looking to build 3 plants as they have new Global Warming legislation that mandates a fraction of power to come from renewables.
- Resource base in Shen. Valley is apparently not big enough to support this type of facility but John is pursuing the possibility (incentives for coming here?). There was much discussion over how the facility owner has determined how much litter is in the Valley and whether or not there is enough to support this type of facility. Leslie will post a paper on the poultry litter power plant on the website.
Next Meeting is scheduled for Saturday February 14th at 10 am.
Latest from DEQ on Fish Kills
News Release
For Immediate Release
11/18/2008 Contact
Bill Hayden, DEQ, 804-698-4447
Julia Dixon, DGIF, 804-367-0991
Fish Kill Task Force Evaluates Results of Latest Studies
Richmond, VA — The Shenandoah River Fish Kill Task Force met November 17, 2008, to review the latest research on the causes of unexplained fish kills in several Virginia river systems since 2003. The meeting included presentations and discussions of findings during 2008. Though researchers have not identified a cause, they are evaluating several significant findings.
The work plan for 2009 will be developed with input from the task force's science subcommittee and should be finalized by early January. The general focus of work for 2009 will be on disease-causing organisms, fish health and water quality.
As researchers continue to gather valuable information, task force members are considering several theories. This includes the possibility of multiple stressors on fish populations that make the cause of the kills more complex than a single contaminant, virus or bacteria.
The Department of Environmental Quality and the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries, co-chairs of the task force, set priorities earlier in 2008 for available funds and coordinated a number of investigations this year. For example, studies in 2008 included sampling before, during and after fish kills in the rivers experiencing those problems. The investigation also emphasized rivers where fish kills have not occurred, expanded lists of chemical analyses with a focus on storm flows, and fish health studies.
Here is a summary of the fish kill investigation findings to date:
Water quality and environmental conditions - DEQ monitored every two weeks from March through May at multiple sites in the Shenandoah, James and Cowpasture rivers, and several comparison streams, for metals. Dr. Dan Downey of James Madison University conducted a study on the South Fork Shenandoah River and a heavily farmed tributary, Cub Run, that evaluated physical and environmental conditions, metals, nutrients, organic chemical, and pesticides. This was done at frequent intervals before, during and after storm events between March and May 2008. The fish kills have occurred mostly during the spring months, starting when water temperatures reach about 59 degrees Fahrenheit in March and April, and ending when temperatures reach the mid- to upper 70s in mid-June. Fish kills appear to be connected to spawning periods for many of the fish species that have been affected. Water quality data from these studies and from extensive sampling during previous fish kill seasons have not identified any contaminants at levels that exceed water quality criteria or known levels of concern for toxic chemicals. This monitoring does not cover every possible water quality parameter, though it does include the most likely potential contaminants.
Analyses of "passive samplers" (imitation fish tissue) - Passive samplers were placed at multiple sites in the Shenandoah and Cowpasture rivers in spring 2007 by the Friends of the North Fork and DEQ. Additional samplers were deployed in spring 2008. These samplers imitate fish tissue and "accumulate" chemicals during a four- to six-week period and allow measurements of chemicals that are normally not detected in conventional water samples. A wide range of chemicals were detected and quantified, but no chemicals were found at levels equal to or above known water quality criteria at any sites.
Bottom-dwelling stream life - Dr. Reese Voshell of Virginia Tech led a multi-year study that evaluated invertebrate communities in the North and South Forks of the Shenandoah and a number of tributaries. Data analyses included comparisons with other large river systems, historical comparisons in the Shenandoah River, and indications whether areas with severe fish kills had corresponding harm to small creatures living on stream bottoms. None of the large river sites in the Shenandoah basin showed significant reduction in biological conditions. The health of small stream creatures showed no patterns that corresponded with areas of heavy fish kills. The data provided no evidence that toxic substances were present in amounts that would cause biological harm. In general, the presence of these creatures in the large river sections appears to be consistent with streams that have high levels of nutrients.
Fish health - Studies of fish health continued in 2008 by Dr. Vicki Blazer of the U.S. Geological Survey, and Dr. Don Orth of Virginia Tech and associates. Studies focused on fish kill areas in the Shenandoah, James and Cowpasture rivers and included comparison sites in the Rappahannock, New, North Fork Holston and other rivers. Fish were collected before, during and after fish kills. Specimens were examined externally and internally for lesions, general health and abnormalities of skin, gills and internal organs. In addition, parasites were identified and quantified, microscopic analysis was conducted on gills and internal organs, and blood chemistry was evaluated. As seen in previous years, male fish from the Shenandoah and Cowpasture rivers had a high incidence of immature female eggs in the testes, known as intersex. The studies suggest that a wide variety of parasites, bacteria and viruses caused infections in fish that died. It is not known whether fish kills and reproductive issues are linked.
Bacteria and viruses - In 2008, Dr. Rocco Cipriano of USGS conducted bacterial analyses on numerous specimens from fish kill and comparison sites before, during and after kills in the Shenandoah, James, Cowpasture and other rivers. Cultures were obtained from skin, gills and internal organs. The findings show that pre-kill fish had diverse types of bacteria, but no symptoms. Once the fish kills and symptoms such as skin lesions began, the dominant bacteria shifted to Aeromonas salmonicida. When fish kills ended in mid- to late June, the bacteria in fish from the rivers with fish kills returned to the diverse groups seen before the kills. Specimens examined from streams without fish kills did not appear to host Aeromonas salmonicida at any time, even when fish kills were occurring in other rivers. Aeromonas salmonicida causes furunculosis, a disease with symptoms consistent with those observed in dead and dying fish in the Shenandoah, Cowpasture and James rivers. However, the investigation has not determined whether the bacteria caused the fish kills or is related to them.
Fish kills mainly have affected smallmouth bass and redbreast sunfish, though the incidence of fish deaths was relatively low in 2008. DEQ and DGIF continue to coordinate the investigation and efforts to obtain additional funding for future work.
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