60 Ways to Leave Your Groundwater … Cleaner Audrey Eldridge, Oregon Department of Environmental Quality Kevin Fenn, Oregon Department of Agriculture Support and Progress for Implementing a Groundwater Protection Plan a Groundwater Protection Plan

(1) Document contamination (2) Declare a Groundwater Management Area (GWMA) (3) Appoint an Advisory Committee (4) Form an Action Plan (5) Implement the Action Plan (6) Rescind the GWMA declaration

 Think of the Public Drinking Water rules ~ 20 years ago  Then divide the MCL by 50%  That is the limit of contamination that, when exceeded, can trigger a GWMA  Except, when it comes to nitrate ….

 The public drinking water standard is 10 mg/L  “Action Level” for Oregon GWMA declaration is 7 mg/L

 Shallow (20-40 ft.)  Unconfined  In some areas, the shallow groundwater overlies a larger and deeper regional aquifer

 Function of rate, timing, and water  Cemeteries, parks, crops, lawns, golf courses

Willamette Silt Alluvial Materials – younger Alluvial Materials – older

 Nitrate Testing Looked for good coverage of the area, and targeted shallow wells  2002 Study Looked to confirm earlier results and determine if any other parameter of concern was present

Shallow wells (less than 75 feet deep) Good overall coverage 476 Wells 437 Private Wells 29 PWS 10 Irrigation Wells

Of the 107 wells that were sampled, most were from the group of wells that had NO3 greater than 7 mg/l Also analyzed for pesticides, metals, bacteria, inorganics and caffeine

mg/L = 49 wells mg/L = 43 wells mg/L = 9 wells > 3 mg/L = 6 wells

 Be recognizable to the general public, so they would know if they are “in”  Capture most of the high nitrate values seen in the studies

 GWMA declared in 2004  A committee was appointed  An Action Plan was finalized Dec 2006  Outreach and implementation continues

 3 County Commissioners  Small City Mayor  2 Farmers, 1 CAFO and a Fertilizer Rep.  Watershed Council and CPRCD  Realtors & Residents  Small and Large Businesses  Engineering Firm  Public Water Supply Operator  Natural Resources Advocate

 Volunteer Monitoring network  Long Term Network - 40 domestic and monitoring wells

5.37 mg/L  Average Nitrate Value 1 st 9 Events for all GW wells = 5.37 mg/L 4.94 mg/L  Average Nitrate Value for 1st 9 Events for all DW Wells = 4.94 mg/L Average of Last 4 Events (2009) GW Wells = DW Wells = 5.05 mg/L 4.75 mg/L

Domestic Wells 4 decreasing 8 steady 5 increasing 24 Monitoring Wells 7 decreasing 7 steady 9 increasing 1 no show Domestic Wells 10 decreasing 2 steady 4 increasing 24 Monitoring Wells 10 decreasing 6 steady 7 increasing 1 no show

 Agricultural  Residential  Commercial, Industrial, and Municipal  Public Water Supplies

Soil and Water Conservation District Annual Work Plans GWMA Action Plan Implementation Agricultural Water Quality Plans and Rules

 Approximately 21,000 people living in the GWMA and nearly all of the GWMA residents rely on groundwater for their drinking water supply.  Many landowners still use hand-dug or driven wells.  Septic Systems--68% of the septic systems in the GWMA do not have a septic system record.  Home and garden fertilizer use

 Free nitrate well water testing.  Volunteer monitoring network  Rural Living Basics Classes  Festivals--Daffodil festival  Kids Day for Conservation  Envirothon

 Businesses outside the urban growth boundaries must manage their own wastewater. Five onsite treatment facilities.  Four municipal wastewater treatment lagoons.  Three bulk fertilizer facilities in the GWMA.  Fertilizer application practices (golf courses, cemeteries, etc…)

 Currently, all 410 residential homes have individual septic systems.  Also, three commercial and industrial sites would be treated at the public wastewater treatment facility.  Has been a very long and contentious process, but now has enough public support to move forward.

 113,350 acres (93 % of the area) Includes grains, hay and forage, seed crops, field crops, vegetables, fruits, and various specialty seed crops. Known as the “grass seed capitol of the world.”  Eight permitted Confined Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs)  Small acreage agricultural landowners.

 Rise in fertilizer & fuel cost = Farm management changes (= Manure more valuable)  Loss of Vegetable Processing Ability  Increase in Grass Seed (uptake Nitrogen)  Declining Peppermint Price  Crop diversification toward grass seed  Adoption of precision agriculture practices These Changes = Less Nitrogen Input and Loss

 Partnership between Upper Willamette, Linn, and Benton SWCDs.  Funds for Education and Outreach and for implementation of projects.  Projects included irrigation efficiency upgrades, riparian plantings, manure facilities, and pasture upgrades.

1,704 annual tons 74 annual tons 109 annual tons

 Identification of priority area  Recruitment of landowners  $250,000 allocated for: - Conservation crop rotation - Cover crops - Nutrient Management - Irrigation Water Management - Irrigation system upgrades

 Provided, a free no-risk opportunity for farmers to get rid of legacy agricultural chemicals.  Resulted in the removal of approximately 25 tons of undesired chemicals. Of this, approximately 18 tons were pesticides, including nearly a ton of DDT.