Best Management Practices Verification: Results from a Huron County - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Best Management Practices Verification: Results from a Huron County Watershed A presentation to: National Farmers Union November 28, 2015 Mari Veliz Ausable Bayfield Conservation Authority, RR 3 Exeter, ON N0M 2G0

Communities in Action Build Awareness Measure Community Involvement Take actions to protect and enhance

-1 ) Total Phosphorus (mg·l 0.00 0.20 0.40 0.60 0.80 1.00 Water Quality Issues = Runoff Issues South Pine Garvey Glenn Low Flow Gully Trick's Shashawandah Total Phosphorus (mg·l -1 ) 0.00 0.20 0.40 0.60 0.80 1.00 South Pine Garvey Glenn High Flow Gully Trick's Shashawandah

Stormwater - Why Do We See Differences? During an event Typical conditions • The ephemeral channels are important to water, sediment and nutrient transport • There is an hierarchy of urban and agricultural BMPs to address storm events • To evaluate the effectiveness of BMPs we need to monitor during storm events

BMP Evaluation • Management BMPs: • Cover crop • Nutrient management • Conservation tillage • Structural BMPs: • Water and Sediment Control Basins • (Grassed Filter Strip)

Cover Crop Rainfall Simulation Treatment Antecedent Runoff Runoff Total conditions (mm) (%) Suspended Solids (mg/L) no cover workable 0.8 6.4 406 crop A no cover wet 1.1 8.8 482 crop B cover crop A workable 0 0 0 cover crop B wet 0.9 7.2 130 light very wet 3.6 28.8 2260 cultivation C Treatment • on a field that was post no-till wheat harvest, straw baled with a portion that had red clover cover crop • 1 X 1m plots • simulation A : 12.5 mm/10 min simulates a 2 year10 minute storm • simulation B : 12.5 mm/10 min a 2 nd time - 3 h later • simulation C : PLUS 12.5 mm/10 min a 3 rd time - 0.5 h later

Field BMP Monitoring Water and Sediment Control Basin Duration of Duration of most outflow most inflow ~9 h <1.5 h

Linking Landscape and Water Quality • Grass filter strip reduced: – TSS, TP, and SRP – did not change nitrate-N • Change in cropping system: – landowner extended hay field – no concentrated flow path – no water samples – some BMPs can be measured at the site scale and some cannot

1955 1975 1999 1966 2006 1978 1989

ACTion BMPs and the Treatment Train (Avoid, Control, Trap/Treat) Rural BMPs Urban BMPs  Buffers Trap  Two-Stage  Stormwater Ponds Ditches Treat  Controlled Drainage  Rain Gardens Control  Grassed  Rain Barrels  Bioswales Waterways (at/near source)  Berms  Wetlands  No/Minimum Till  Less Pavement Avoid  Cover Crops  Permeable  Nutrient/manure Pavement (improve filtration)  Natural Cover Management  Natural Cover Based on Tomer et al . 2013

Soil Health Recommendations 1. Cover soil (with vegetation not pavement) 2. Reduce tillage 3. Rotate crops 4. Test soil – Fertility – Organic matter – Erosion risk

Acknowledgements • Other collaborators on the Watershed Based BMP Evaluation: – University of Guelph – Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs – Ontario Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change – Huron County Federation of Agriculture – Landowners in the Gully Creek watershed Funding for the work presented today is from Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, the Agricultural Research Institute of Ontario, the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change and Environment Canada. The views expressed are the views of the presenter and do not necessarily reflect those of the funders. Many of the photos by Daniel Holm Photography, courtesy of Healthy Lake Huron: Clean Water, Clean Beaches Initiative

Temporal and Spatial Scale Considerations • Measuring the effectiveness of this grassed ditch – Cannot be measured in the downstream channel or at watershed outlet or in the Lake during routine water sampling