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Evaluation of land use and water quality in an agricultural watershed in the USA indicates multiple sources of bacterial impairment

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Abstract

Pathogens are the number one cause of impairments of assessed rivers and streams in the USA and pose a significant human health hazard. The Dry Run Creek Watershed in Northeast Iowa has been designated as impaired by the State of Iowa because of high levels of Escherichia coli bacteria. To investigate the nature of this impairment, land use and stream bank assessments were coupled with comprehensive water quality monitoring. Physical, chemical, and biological parameters were measured at 13 different sites in the watershed, including pH, temperature, conductivity, dissolved oxygen, turbidity, total Kjeldahl nitrogen, ammonia-N, nitrate + nitrite-N, total phosphorus, and E. coli. In addition, benthic macroinvertebrate communities were analyzed at seven sites, and optical brightener tests were performed late in the season. Results identified segments of the watershed that were more prominent contributors of E. coli, and correlations were observed between levels of E. coli and several chemical parameters, including ammonia-N, total Kjeldahl nitrogen, and total phosphorus. Interestingly, distinct sites emerged as more prominent contributors of these elements during rain vs. non-rain events, suggesting different types of sources. Both the amount of rainfall and the time elapsed between the rain event and the sampling influenced E. coli levels during wet weather conditions. Nitrate + nitrite-N displayed a unique response to rain events compared with the other parameters, suggesting a different delivery route. Analyses of benthic macroinvertebrate communities were consistent with pollution trends. Collectively, these data suggest distinct agriculturally related E. coli contributions, as well as specific areas and practices for water quality improvement strategies. This study can serve as a resource for evaluating agricultural watersheds that are impaired for bacteria.

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Acknowledgments

The authors thank Eric Baack for assistance with statistical analysis, the Dry Run Creek Watershed Improvement Association for stimulating the direction of this project, Lisa Hieb and Mary Beth Cannon for sampling assistance, Jered Bourquin and Rachelle Zehr for expert assistance in macroinvertebrate analysis, and Richard Bernatz for helpful discussion and sharing of detailed precipitation data. Funding for samples analyzed through the State Hygienic Laboratory was provided by the Iowa Department of Natural Resources Watershed Monitoring and Assessment Program. This work was further supported by Iowa State University Extension and Luther College.

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  1. Department of Biology, Luther College, 700 College Dr, Decorah, IA, 52101, USA

    Jacob Wittman, Andrew Weckwerth, Chelsea Weiss, Sharon Heyer, Jacob Seibert, Kirk Larsen & Jodi Enos-Berlage

  2. Iowa State University Extension and Outreach, 2150 Beardshear Hall, Ames, IA, 50010, USA

    Ben Kuennen & Chad Ingels

  3. Iowa Department of Natural Resources, 109 Trowbridge Hall, Iowa City, IA, 52242, USA

    Lynette Seigley

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  1. Jacob Wittman
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Correspondence to Jodi Enos-Berlage.

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Jacob Wittman and Andrew Weckwerth contributed equally to this work.

Appendices

Appendix 1

Table 6

Table 6 Bootstrapped 99 % confidence intervals of the mean for rain and non-rain event parameters, including Escherichia coli, total Kjeldahl nitrogen, and total phosphorus in 2010 and 2011
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Table 7

Table 7 Results of AN(C)OVA tests for parameters that met required assumptions
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Table 8

Table 8 Post-hoc results for statistically significant AN(C)OVA tests with 2010 data
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Table 9

Table 9 Post-hoc results for statistically significant AN(C)OVA tests with 2011 data
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Appendix 2

Table 10

Table 10 Benthic macroinvertebrates collected from seven sites in the Dry Run Creek Watershed in 2011
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Wittman, J., Weckwerth, A., Weiss, C. et al. Evaluation of land use and water quality in an agricultural watershed in the USA indicates multiple sources of bacterial impairment. Environ Monit Assess 185, 10395–10420 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-013-3340-y

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