Watershed
FAQs
Provided by the IWEA Watershed Committee
Q: : What
is a watershed?
A: It is an area of
land from which all rainfall and snow melt is released to
a specific body of water.
All waters from this land area are either released
(discharged) directly into surface waters such as streams,
rivers, lakes or wetlands, or seep through the ground into
underground waters. Homes, farms, forests and cities make
up watersheds. Some cross county, state and even international
borders. Some are millions of square miles. Others are only
acres. Just as creeks drain into rivers, watersheds are nearly
always part of a larger watershed. A system identifying and
numbering watersheds in the US has been developed. This number
is commonly called a "Watershed Address."
Q: How can
I find my "Watershed Address"?
A: To locate your watershed
address see Know Your Watershed, National Watershed Clearinghouse
Web site at http://ctic.purdue.edu/kyw/kyw.html or
Surf Your Watershed, US EPA Web site at http://www.epa.gov/surf/
Q: Where can
I find information on my watershed such as its size, cities
and major water bodies within it, and existing water quality
conditions?
A: The Illinois EPA
has this information organized statewide by 33 major watershed
Fact Sheets at the Web site http://www.epa.state.il.us/water/water-quality/.
These sheets also classify the overall resource quality in
large streams and lakes within the watershed and list the
primary causes of water quality problems which may
impair the beneficial uses of our water resources.
Q: How is water
quality measured?
A: Primarily by three
properties: 1) physical (e.g., color, odor, turbidity, pH,
dissolved oxygen), 2) chemical (organic and inorganic), and
3) biological (macroinverterbrate and instream habitat data).
The Illinois EPA and the U.S. Geological Survey coordinate
a state wide surface water monitoring network. For information
on the USGS Illinois District’s surface water network
see their Web page http://il.water.usgs.gov/ Also
local governmental authorities such as the Metropolitan Water
Reclamation District of Greater Chicago and the City of Chicago
conduct water quality monitoring programs.
Q: Can citizens’ be
involved in water quality monitoring?
A: Yes, to encourage
citizen involvement in efforts to monitor, protect, preserve,
and restore water quality, biodiversity, habitat, and scenic
resources of the State of Illinois’ rivers and streams,
the Office of the Lieutenant Governor convened the Illinois
RiverWatch Network Steering Committee in June 1993. A result
of this effort is the training of volunteers to collect macroinverterbrate
and instream habitat data to help State and local authorities
evaluate the extent that pollutants are impairing water
quality from a biological perspective. For more information
visit the Web site http://dnr.state.il.us/orep/inrin/ecowatch/index.htm
Also, the Volunteer Lake Monitoring Program (VLMP)
is a program administered by the Illinois EPA since 1981
which utilizes the time and talents of citizen volunteers.
The VLMP serves as an educational program for Illinois citizens
to learn about lake ecosystems, as well as a method of gathering
fundamental information on inland lakes. 192 lakes were monitored
in 1998 in this program. For more information, on this program,
visit the Web site http://www.epa.state.il.us/water/conservation-2000/vlmp.html
Q: What causes water
quality impairment?
A: Pollutants from many
sources impair water quality. One source is the direct introduction
of pollutants into water bodies from specific point sources
such as the discharge pipes from factories and wastewater
treatment plants. Another is called nonpoint source pollution and
primarily occurs when water runs over land or through the
ground, picks up pollutants, and deposits them in surface
waters or introduces them into groundwater. Although less
extensive than point source discharges or over land runoff,
atmospheric pollutants directly deposited onto water bodies
is another type of pollution.
Q: Who causes nonpoint
source pollution?
A: We all do. We improperly
disposal of household and automotive products and use excess
farm and lawn chemicals which can enter groundwater through
the soil or into surface waters directly during heavy rains.
We allow community storm sewers to transport stormwater carrying
these and other pollutants from paved surfaces in commercial
and residential areas into streams and rivers. We allow uncontrolled
storm water from construction sites and farm lands to pick
up soil and associated pollutants and convey them into waters
of the state. Also, animal feeding operations; forestry operations;
resource extraction (e.g., coal mining) operations; improper
land disposal operations and pollutants released directly
into the atmosphere cause nonpoint source water pollution.
Q: What types
of pollutants are present in nonpoint source pollution?
A: Nonpoint
source pollutants include nutrients such as phosphorus and
nitrogen from fertilizers; pesticides from agricultural lands; soils from
construction sites, eroding stream banks and farmlands; salts
from winter road deicing; petroleum hydrocarbons from leaking
storage tanks and automobiles; trace metals and toxic chemicals
from inadequately protected landfills; and airborne sulfur,
nitrogen, PCBs, dioxins, mercury and other toxic metals from
power plants, incinerators and cement kilns.
Q: I know that
hazardous and toxic chemicals cause water pollution,
but how does soil cause water pollution?
A: Soil contributes
to sediment deposits (mineral or organic matter) that can
blanket the bottoms of lakes and rivers and smother aquatic
life such as insects and mussels. It can interfere with the
spawning of fish and other aquatic animals. Also, sediment
can be detrimental when it is still suspended in water. It
can make water cloudy or turbid. High turbidity makes water
aesthetically unpleasant and reduces recreational opportunities.
Suspended sediment can clog fish gills which interferes with
breathing.
Sediment also blocks light from reaching aquatic plant
life, slowing or stopping plant growth. Decreased light penetration
will reduce the photosynthetic activity of phytoplankton
(microscopic algae) which will result in less oxygen production.
Also, sediment may raise water temperatures since it darkens
water and causes it to absorb more solar radiation. When
this warmer water, which cannot hold as much dissolved oxygen
as colder water, is combined with reduced photosynthetic
activity, fish kills may occur.
Q: What are
some of the other effects of nonpoint source pollution?
A: Nonpoint source pollutants
contribute chemicals to our drinking water supply, pose a
toxic threat to wild and domestic animal life, and provide
for unsafe swimming and recreational areas. Certain pesticides,
when ingested, are known to increase the likelihood of contracting
serious illnesses. Animal wastes contain harmful bacteria
that are not only a health concern, but contribute to color,
taste, and odor problems in our drinking water. Nutrients,
from the fertilization of crop land and lawns, or from livestock
waste runoff, accelerate the eutrophication process within
lakes. Also, biodegradable organic matter (e.g., human and
animal wastes) cause oxygen depletion that affects aquatic
life.
Q: What is
being done to prevent nonpoint source pollution?
A: The Environmental
Protection Act and Water Pollution Rules and Regulations
of the Pollution Control Board prohibit the discharge of
contaminants into the environment so as to cause water pollution
in Illinois. The Illinois EPA issues National Pollutant Discharge
Elimination System Permits limiting the discharge of pollutants
so as not to cause water quality impairments. These permits
are issued to point source dischargers and to certain catagories
of nonpoint source dischargers. Also, the Illinois EPA investigates
alleged violations of state and federal environmental regulations
and requires actions necessary to correct and prevent future
violations.
The Illinois EPA is also conducting a source water
assessment program as a result of the 1996 Safe Drinking
Water Act (SDWA) requirements. Illinois EPA’s goals
of drinking water or source water assessment and protection
include 1) further encouraging a proactive approach to protecting
and restoring drinking water sources, 2) continuing and improving
on methods of informing communities and drinking water systems
about contaminants or potential contaminants that may negatively
impact drinking water quality, and 3) continuing to refine
and target monitoring requirements for drinking water sources
with a linkage to source water protection.
In addition, local watershed planning and management
committees are organizing to address the overall nonpoint
source pollution problem in their watershed and develop and
implement plans to control the problem. Contact your county
Soil and Water Conservation District
for information on existing committees or on how to organize
one.
Q: What can
I do to prevent nonpoint source pollution?
A: There are many things
you and your family can do around your home and throughout
your daily activities. Some are listed below:
-
Conserve water (reduce water used for landscape
maintenance, yard equipment and car washing, etc.).
-
If you have a septic system, inspect it annually
and have it pumped out regularly.
-
Learn your watershed address: the streams, rivers
and lakes that receive runoff in your community.
-
Use clean boating and fishing practices on our
rivers and lakes.
-
Don’t litter since it is easily washed or
blown into ditches and storm sewers.
-
Car pool or take public transportation to reduce
air emissions and gasoline leaks.
-
Check for drips under your car and repair leaks
to keep oils off pavements.
-
Properly dispose of (or better yet recycle) used
motor oil and other petroleum products.
-
Reduce, Reuse and Recycle
to keep wastes out of landfills and incinerators.
-
Use pesticides sparingly and only after considering
more natural methods.
-
Limit fertilizer use on lawns and gardens or use
natural fertilizers like compost.
-
Only purchase the amounts of yard and garden chemicals
needed for the year.
-
Seed or mulch areas where soil can wash away to
control erosion and runoff.
-
Protect all vegetation that grows along ditch
and shore lines to provide a "buffer strip."
-
Clean up pet wastes to prevent nutrients and bacteria
from washing into ditches and storm sewers.
-
Never burn yard waste near ditches or lakes since
ashes are high in nutrients and are easily blown away.
-
Consider using yard waste on-site as mulch or
compost.
-
On icy pavements, first try chipping ice off.
Use salt and sand sparingly.
-
Limit hazardous products used by planning your
purchases and buying the right amount for the job.
-
Share or donate excess household hazardous products
or safely dispose of them at collection sites.
-
Conserve electricity to reduce power plant emissions.
Q: These are
helpful but are limited in scope. I’m interested
in the "big picture." How can I help my community to
tackle the problems in our watershed?
A: If you want to become
proactive as a steward for watershed protection, consider
these:
-
As previously discussed, organize or join a local
watershed planning and management committee. Contact
your county Soil and Water Conservation District for
information on existing committees or on how to organize
one.
-
Support the creation of stormwater utilities and
user charge rate structures to provide capital projects
and enhanced maintenance for improved flood control,
capital projects for water quality control, and water
quality management.
-
Encourage land use planning to reduce the effects
of urban sprawl.
-
Encourage storm water management practices that
reduce runoff pollution by allowing water to soak into
the ground or by storing it in ponds or by reducing pollutants
at their source through land use controls.
-
Ensure that construction site soil erosion and
sedimentation control ordinances are enforced and that
permits are obtained from the Illinois EPA when required.
-
Help organize and support community-based Household
Hazardous Waste Collection sites.
-
Advocate the conservative use of salt and sand
for winter road maintenance. Promote the use of
"anti-icing" techniques that apply de-icing compounds
before precipitation to prevent ice from bonding to pavements.
-
Support agricultural land and animal waste "best
management practices" in your watershed.
-
Support wetlands' preservation since they act
as natural filters of pollution, provide habitat for
threatened and endangered species and flood control.
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