feather river watershed james wilie ce 296b may 12, 1998
TRANSCRIPT
Feather River Watershed
James Wilie
CE 296B
May 12, 1998
Overview(Lower Feather River Watershed)• Description of Watershed
• Land Use / Land Cover
• Flow Characteristics
• Beneficial Uses
• Sources of Pollution– Point Sources– Non-point Sources
• Best Management of Non-point Source
Marrysville
Oroville
Land Area by County(Lower Feather River)
COUNTY LAND AREA (acres)
Butte County 1,049,340
Sutter County 385,720
Yuba County 403,490
TOTAL 1,838,550
Land Use / Land Cover
Land Use/Cover % of TotalLand Area
Area (acres)
Orchards, Vineyards,Nurseries
14 257,397
Cropland & Pasture 24 441,252
Urban/Suburban 7 128,699
Forest Land 38 698,649
Rangeland 17 312,554
TOTAL 100 1,838,550
Land Use / Land Cover
Land Use/Cover % of TotalArea
Urban / Suburban 7
Agriculture (Cropland &Pasture; Rangeland;Orchards, Vineyards,Nurseries)
55
Undeveloped (Forest Land) 38
Marrysville
Oroville
Flow Characteristics(Hydrologic Record 10/64 to 12/83)
StationName
DrainageArea(sq. miles)
AnnualAve.Discharge(cfs)
DryWeather(June-Sept) FlowRate (cfs)
WetWeather(Oct-May)Flow Rate(cfs)
Oroville 3,624 1,984 944 2,494
Gridley 3,676 5,471 3,480 6,479
Yuba City 3,974 5,875 3,560 6,997
Nicolaus 5,921 9,302 5,124 11,457
FeatherRiver
Ave. (cfs)= 5,658 3,277 6,857
Daily Mean Discharge for Feather River
0
100000
200000
30000010
/1/6
4
10/1
/65
10/1
/66
10/1
/67
10/1
/68
10/1
/69
10/1
/70
10/1
/71
10/1
/72
10/1
/73
10/1
/74
10/1
/75
10/1
/76
10/1
/77
10/1
/78
10/1
/79
10/1
/80
10/1
/81
10/1
/82
10/1
/83
Date (Mon/Day/Year)
Flo
w R
ate
(cf
s)
Oroville
Gridley
Yuba City
Nicolaus
261,000 cfs
Beneficial Uses
Beneficial Use Achievement of Beneficial Use
Municipal &DomesticSupply
Orroville, Marrysville, & YubaCity
AgricultureIrrigation
Richvale Irrigation District, Biggs-West Gridley Water District, SutterExtension Water District, SutterButte Canal Co.
Beneficial Uses(cont.)
Beneficial Use Achievement of Beneficial Use
Recreation Fishing, Bedrock Park, OrovilleWildlife Area, ThermalitoAfterbay, O’Connor Lakes, &Abbott Lake
Fresh-WaterHabitat
Feather River Fish HatcherySpawning Riffles: Hatchery Riffle,Bedrock Park Riffle, Mathew’sRiffle, Weir Riffle, & GridleyRiffle
Beneficial Uses(cont.)
Beneficial Use Achievement of Beneficial Use
WildlifeHabitat
Bedrock Park & Oroville WildlifeArea
PowerProduction
Principal Hydroelectric Plants:Oroville Dam, Edward HyattPowerplant, & Thermolito Afterbay
Point Sources • Industrial
– Mathews Readymix, Inc. (South of Oroville)
– High Sierra Pine, Mills
– Olive Products Co. & Coronet Olive Oil Co.
– Stokley Cannery
• Airports
– Yuba County
– Sutter County
• Sewage Treatment Plants
– Oroville, Gridley, Yuba City, Marysville
• Oroville City Dump
• Fish Hatchery
Non-point Sources
• Agriculture (55% of Land Use)– Over application of Fertilizers– Over application of Pesticides– Irrigation
Overview Non-point Source Management
• Management – Nutrient– Pesticide– Irrigation
• Authority– Various Partnerships involving Multi-
Agency Resources and Jurisdictional Authority (Federal, State, & Local)
Non-point Source Management(Nutrient Management)
• Nutrient Management– Apply nutrients at rates necessary to achieve
realistic crop yields
– Improve the timing of nutrient application
– Use agronomic crop production technology to increase nutrient use efficiency
Non-point Source Management(Nutrient Management)
• Authority– Federal - Provide techn. & financial assistance
to growers relative to nutrient manag. & proper fertilizer application (Natural Resource Conservation Service, Consolidated Farm Service Agency,…)
– State - review all fertilizer formulations & issue a license before product use (Department of Food & Agriculture)
– Local - important role in delivery of approp. info. to growers (Resource Conservation Districts, Farm Advisors, Water Districts,…)
Non-point Source Management(Pesticide Management)
• Pesticide Management– Evaluate pest problems, previous pest control
measures, and cropping history– Evaluate the soil & physical characteristics of
the site including mixing, loading, & storage areas for potential leaching or runoff
– Apply pesticides efficiently and at times when runoff losses are unlikely
– Periodically calibrate pesticide spray equipment– Use anti-backflow devices on hoses used for
filling tank mixtures
Non-point Source Management(Pesticide Management)
• Authority– State - DPR (Department of Pesticide
Regulation) is the lead agency for pesticide regulation with primary responsibility for the protection of public health and the environment from the risk of pesticides while regulating all aspects of quality, sales, and use.
– Local - pesticide use enforcement in the field (County Agricultural Commissioners)
Non-point Source Management(Irrigation Management)
• Irrigation Management– Operate the irrigation system so that the timing
and amount of irrigation water applied match crop water needs. This will require at a minimum:
• 1) accurate measurement of soil-water depletion volume of irrigation water applied
• 2) uniform application of water
– When chemigation is used, include backflow preventers for wells, minimize the harmful amounts of chemigated waters that discharge from the edge of the field, and control deep percolation.
Non-point Source Management(Irrigation Management)
• Authority– State - California has had an effective
Agricultural Water Conservation Program since ‘80 which is administered by DWR (Department of Water Resources)
– Local - counties use ordinances to protect groundwater supplies (Ventura County,...)
Conclusion
• Beneficial Uses for Lower Feather River Watershed are Realized
• Primary Non-point Source Pollution Is Agriculture
• Key to Best Managed of Non-point Source Pollution is Various Partnerships involving Multi-Agency Resources and Jurisdictional Authority
Point Source
• Point Source [40 CFR 122.2]– “any discernible, confined, and discrete
conveyance, including but not limited to, any pipe, ditch, channel, tunnel, conduit, well, discrete fissure, container, rolling stock, concentrated animal feeding operation, landfill leachate collection system, vessel or other floating craft from which pollutants are or may be discharged. This term does not include return flow from irrigated agriculture or agricultural storm water runoff.”
Point Source (cont.)
• Point Source [Sierra Club v. Abston Construction Co., Inc., 620 F.2d 41 (5th Cir. 1980)]– “changing the surface of land or establishing
grading patterns on land will result in a point source where the runoff from the site is ultimately discharged to waters of the United States.”