The Grand Lake Watershed Alliance Foundation is committed to the restoration of the water quality of the Grand Lake Watershed to a level at which all designated uses are supported. The reduction of the amount of sediment and nutrients, particularly phosphorus, that enter the watershed is the first step. There are a number of best management practices that have been shown to be very effective in reducing sediment and phosphorus levels in water over time. All stakeholders in the watershed can participate, as stakeholders are contributors.

For Homeowners

Homeowners can reduce the amount of sediment and phosphorus that enters our water. Homeowners contribute to sediment and phosphorus loading through waste water, pet waste, yard waste, and through the misuse of fertilizer on lawns, landscape, and gardens. Several things that will help reduce sediment and phosphorus include:

• Sediment is fine soil particles that are carried with rainfall run-off into streams or lakes. Good vegetative cover (grass, landscape, trees) will reduce the amount of sediment that enters our waterways. If you plant a garden, leave a grass buffer strip of at least 100 ft. between the garden and the water.
• Properly maintain septic systems. It is estimated that twenty percent of the septic systems in the watershed are failing. Have your septic system inspected periodically to insure that it is working properly. Repair or replace if necessary.
• Pick up pet waste and dispose of it properly. There are several options. Include pet waste in your household garbage, so that it will end up in a landfill or incinerator, treat it the same as human waste and dispose of it in a septic or sewer system, or install a separate animal waste septic tank for your pets on your property.
• Use phosphorus free automatic dishwasher detergent. Phosphorus was removed from laundry detergent years ago, but remains in many automatic dishwasher detergent brands. Look for products that are phosphorus free.
• If you are connected to a municipal sewer system, support the efforts of your city to reduce the amount of phosphorus discharged from the city’s waste water treatment plant.
• Have a nutrient management plan for your property. Soil test before you fertilize to determine if your lawn or garden needs fertilizer and what rate and ratio of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium you should use. If you don’t soil test, use phosphorus free fertilizer. Do not fertilize within 100 feet of the shoreline. Do not fertilize on steep slopes. Lawn clippings and yard waste contain phosphorus. Do not dump along the shoreline. Dispose of properly, in a landfill.

For Agriculture

Farmers and ranchers can improve water quality in many ways. Agriculture contributes to sediment and phosphorus loading through animal waste, fertilizer misuse and soil erosion. Best management practices for agriculture include:

For Pasture, Rangeland and Other Livestock Production –

•  Animal Waste Management – minimizing impacts of animal feeding operations and waste discharges through runoff controls, waste storage, waste utilization, winter feeding sheds and nutrient management
•  Comprehensive Nutrient Management – managing all nutrient sources to insure adequate forage without excessive nutrient buildup or movement off fields
• Riparian Area Management – minimizing the impact of livestock in critical riparian zone through use of total or partial livestock exclusion, buffer zones, restoration, and providing alternative water sources
•  Pasture Grazing Management – minimizing the water quality impacts of grazing and browsing activities on pasture and range lands
• Erosion and Sediment Control – conserving soil and reducing the mass of sediment reaching a water body, protecting both agricultural land and water quality and habitat

For Cropland

• Conservation Tillage – leaving crop residue (plant materials from past harvests) on the soil surface reduces runoff and soil erosion, conserves soil moisture, helps keep nutrients and pesticides on the field, and improves soil, water, and air quality
• Crop Nutrient Management – fully managing and accounting for all nutrient inputs helps ensure nutrients are available to meet crop needs while reducing nutrient movements off fields. It also helps prevent excessive buildup in soils and helps protect air quality
• Pest Management – varied methods for keeping insects, weeds, disease, and other pests below economically harmful levels while protecting soil, water, and air quality
•  Conservation Buffers – from simple grassed waterways to riparian areas, buffers provide an additional barrier of protection by capturing potential pollutants that might otherwise move into surface waters

For Construction

Construction activities that disturb the soil vegetative cover cause soil erosion from rainfall run-off events. Pollutants associated with this run-off include sediment, nutrients, bacteria and viruses, oil and grease, metals, organics, pesticides, gross pollutants (floatables), and miscellaneous waste. Some constituents can also affect the pH of stormwater. Sediment resulting from excessive erosion is a pollutant. Sedimentation is defined as the settling out of particles transported by water. Sedimentation occurs when the velocity of water is slowed sufficiently allow suspended soil particles to settle. Larger particles, such as gravel and sand, settle more rapidly than fine particles such as silt and clay. Effective sediment control begins with proper erosion control, which minimizes the availability of particles for settling downstream. The management practices that are used to reduce pollutants associated with construction activities can be grouped as follows:

•  Stormwater Pollution Prevention – provide a simple narrative and diagram that locates the construction site, identifies potential pollutant sources on site, and shows the location of the practices to be used to minimize erosion and sedimentation during construction. The plan should also describe measures which eliminate or reduce pollution of stormwater runoff by any chemicals and materials used during the construction process. The level of detail will vary with the intensity, size, and type of construction.
• Erosion and Sediment Control – Erosion control is any source control practice that protects the soil surface and prevents soil particles from being detached by rainfall, flowing water, or wind. Erosion control is also referred to as soil stabilization. Erosion control consists of preparing the soil surface and implementing one or more practices to disturbed soil areas. All inactive soil-disturbed areas on the project site, and most active areas prior to the onset of rain, must be protected from erosion. Soil disturbed areas may include relatively flat areas as well as slopes. Typically, steep slopes and large exposed areas require the most robust erosion controls; flatter slopes and smaller areas still require protection, but less costly materials may be appropriate for these areas, allowing savings to be directed to the more robust practices for steep slopes and large exposed areas. To be effective, erosion control practices must be implemented at slopes and disturbed areas to protect them from concentrated flows.
• Sediment control is any practice that traps soil particles after they have been detached and moved by rain, flowing water, or wind. Sediment control measures are usually passive systems that rely on filtering or settling the particles out of the water orwind that is transporting them. Sediment control includes those practices that intercept and slow or detain the flow of stormwater to allow sediment to settle and be trapped. Sediment control practices can consist of installing linear sediment barriers (such as silt fence, sandbag barrier, and straw bale barrier); providing fiber rolls, gravel bag berms, or check dams to break up slope length or flow; or constructing a sediment trap or sediment basin. Linear sediment barriers are typically placed below the toe of exposed and erodible slopes, down-slope of exposed soil areas, around soil stockpiles, and at other appropriate locations along the site perimeter.
• Non-Stormwater Management and Material Management – Non-stormwater management involves control practices that prevent pollution by limiting or reducing potential pollutants at their source or eliminating off-site discharge. These practices involve day-to-day operations of the construction site and are usually under the control of the contractor. These practices are also referred to as “good housekeeping practices” which involve keeping a clean, orderly construction site. Non-stormwater management practices also include procedures and practices designed to minimize or eliminate the discharge of pollutants from vehicle and equipment cleaning, fueling, and maintenance operations to stormwater drainage systems or to watercourses.

For Municipalities

Municipalities have a host of pollution prevention practices available to them to address all municipal operations and activities. Numerous studies have shown urban runoff to be a significant source of water pollution, causing declines in fisheries, restricting swimming, and limiting our ability to enjoy many of the other benefits that water resources provide. Pollutants associated with stormwater include sediment, nutrients, bacteria and viruses, oil and grease, metals, organics, pesticides, and gross pollutants. Best Management Practices to reduce pollutants in runoff from municipal operations include:

• Stormwater Pollution Prevention – Municipalities should have programs and ordinances in place to address public education and outreach, public involvement and participation, illicit discharge detection and elimination, construction site runoff control, pollution prevention for municipal operations, and post-construction stormwater management in new development and redevelopment
•  Source Control – operational practices that prevent pollution by reducing potential pollutants at the source
•  Treatment Control – methods of treatment to remove pollutants from stormwater and wastewater
•  Implementation and Evaluation – communities must also monitor their efforts and prepare annual reports demonstrating that the community has implemented the control measures and complied with the measurable goals.

Stream Bank Stability

The sedimentation in our waterways caused by the erosion of stream and river banks is a significant contributor to the degradation of water quality in the Grand Lake Watershed. Sedimentation destroys the habitat necessary for aquatic life, reduces the ability of waterways to handle runoff, increases pollution problems caused by flooding, reduces property values, and is a major transport for nutrients, particularly phosphorus into lakes and reservoirs. Streambank restoration projects are complex and costly, and are best undertaken by government agencies, whether county, state or federal. (Click on link to example of a successful restoration project)