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HAMILTON COUNTY SURVEYOR’S OFFICE |
One Hamilton County Square Suite 188 Noblesville, IN 46060 Phone 317 776 8495 Fax 317 776 9628 |
HAMILTON COUNTY |
Press Release
Little Cicero Creek Watershed Management Plan
A New Year
Means a Renewed Effort to Improve the Health of Little Cicero Creek
Hamilton
County, IN, January, 2006: With the start of a new
year, the Little Cicero Creek Watershed Management Planning Committee is moving
forward with the development of a management plan for the Little Cicero Creek
watershed. Partnerships forged in 2005
between the Indiana Department of Environmental Management (IDEM), Hamilton
County, other public and private institutions, and local citizens, will ensure
continued progress through 2006 and beyond.
The study and design of the plan is
partially funded by a Section 319 grant from IDEM to address the classification
of Little Cicero Creek as an “impaired waterway”. An impaired waterway is one that does not meet Indiana's water
quality standards for designated uses or other natural resource goals, such as
aquatic life support, fish consumption or recreational use. The impairment of Little Cicero Creek is
likely the result of non-point source pollution (NPS) originating from numerous
diffuse sources, which send pollutants through the watershed via overland flow,
and ultimately into Little Cicero Creek and its tributaries. Specific sources of NPS include excessive
use of fertilizers, herbicides, or insecticides from agricultural lands or
residential areas; oils, grease, and toxic chemicals from urban runoff and
energy production; sediment from improperly managed construction sites, crop or
forest lands, or eroding streambanks; salt from irrigation practices and acid
drainage from abandoned mines; and bacteria and nutrients from livestock, pet
wastes, and faulty septic systems.
The
Planning Committee hosted its fourth steering committee meeting in November
2005, to further address water quality concerns and discuss anticipated
watershed impacts of development in Hamilton County. During the November meeting, JFNew presented preliminary results
of water quality sampling required as part of this project. A total of four sampling events were needed
to create “snap shots” of current water quality in the watershed. Final results included two samples taken in
base flow conditions and two taken immediately after large rain events. Samples were collected from eight locations
throughout the watershed. Upon
preliminary review of the samples, it was found that higher concentrations of
pollutants were identified in the main channel of Little Cicero Creek. This makes sense, as Little Cicero collects
water and pollutant loads from all the smaller tributaries in the watershed.
The
Fifth Steering Committee Meeting is scheduled for Thursday, February 9th,
at 1:30 pm in the Hamilton County Judicial Building room
1-A, in Noblesville. As always,
the general public is welcome.
The
agenda of the next steering committee meeting will include the development of
the mission of this project, and the identification of goals and
objectives. In addition, the Planning
Committee will discuss the relationship between final sampling results and
observations made during the October 2005 watershed tour.
For
more information about this project, schedules, or current updates, please
visit the project’s website at http://www.djcase.com/cicerocreek.
For questions
regarding the project or participation, please contact Robert Thompson at the
Hamilton County Surveyor’s Office, at 317.776.8495.
Report for Water
Quality resulting from runoff pollution