HARPETH RIVER WATERSHED ASSOCIATION , THE CITY OF FRANKLIN , WILLIAMSON COUNTY AND THE EPA

A Winning Combination For Our Community

Project Goals:

_ Protect the Harpeth’s biodiversity (the number of species of plants, fish, animals, etc., in the area).

_ Identify priority high quality areas of the watershed, like the South Harpeth.

_ Restore impaired streams to greater health and quality.

_ Use watershed planning tools and provide training for development and land conservation planning (for local governments to use in order to meet water quality goals and reduce pollution, and do it cost-effectively).

_ Facilitate efforts for an integrated water quality plan effort involving local, state and federal entities with private sector representatives to improve the health of the Harpeth.

The Harpeth River Watershed Association is pleased to announce that we’ve received a $200,000, three-year grant from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). These funds provide a unique opportunity to create a coalition of partners from city, county, state and federal government agencies, as well as representatives from the private sector, to improve water quality in our watershed. One of only three grants of its kind awarded in the Southeastern U.S., this project will focus on how local land use planning, stormwater regulations, and other municipal tools are most effective at achieving water quality goals and reducing pollutants going into the Harpeth.

A key outcome of this project is to provide materials, tools, and guidance that cities and counties around the state can use based on our focus in the Harpeth.

Work Is Already Underway

Recent assessments of the Harpeth by the EPA and the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC) have identified that the main water quality issues involve excessive sediment from erosion and nutrients (nitrogen and phosphorus) which end up in the Harpeth from runoff coming from developed areas, farms, and sewage treatment effluent. While sediment clogs important wildlife habitat in the rivers, nutrients cause algae growth, even blooms, which in turn cause oxygen levels to sink, often going below state standards or even getting low enough to cause fish kills. (For details, visit our website and look at prior issues of our newsletter.)

As required under the Clean Water Act, EPA and TDEC developed plans to reduce these pollutant loads. The plans, known as Total Maximum Daily Loads (or TMDLs), call for a reduction in sediment ranging from 32% to 90% in different sections of the Harpeth. Very high reductions are specific to the streams that were loaded with mud due to poor erosion control from the construction of State Route 840 near Dickson. Reductions in nitrogen from 20%-53% need to come from areas around Bellevue, Brentwood (Little Harpeth), West Harpeth, Franklin and upstream in order to protect the health of the main Harpeth.

With this EPA grant, HRWA will organize an integrated approach to meeting these pollutant reductions and protecting the Harpeth and drinking water sources. Working closely with area developers and local government, HRWA will assess streamside habitat buffer protection requirements, specific goals for the design to handle rain in new developments, and other tools at the local planning level that can meet water quality goals. HRWA will provide this as part of Franklin’s current efforts to revise its zoning ordinance.

How the Project Will Work

The main part of this project is to focus on one stream system in which a watershed plan will be developed and to examine various “what-if” scenarios to see which options are most effective in meeting water quality goals. The plan will identify areas that need restoration and areas that should be designed as conservation areas, as well as assessing whether there are specific site design needs for developments in this watershed. Water quality data will be gathered so that over time we can learn if the implementation actually is achieving improvements in the streams.

As part of the grant, there will be a major focus on new development site design options and workshops will be held on these techniques. There will be demonstrations of best management practices for restoration as well as outreach and training for the public. This work will focus on Five Mile Creek, which is in the I-65 corridor and is identified as a new “growth area” in the Franklin land use plan. This area, which is currently agricultural, is well suited for environmental assessment before, during and after development. With Five Mile Creek listed as “impaired” by the state, this is a good opportunity to develop a plan to guide growth in order to improve the creek’s water quality, since it provides source waters for Franklin’s drinking water supply.

The grant will also include an analysis of the vulnerable areas of the overall Harpeth and will identify priority areas for water quality. This work will be done to complement and provide valuable natural resource data to Williamson County’s land use plan update that has just begun.

With this watershed analysis and the work specific to one subwatershed, this is a great opportunity for Franklin, Williamson County and other jurisdictions in the Harpeth to leverage their resources in pursuit of common goals relating to the health of the river.

HRWA Leads the Way

HRWA will oversee the project, including development of project advisory teams, a watershed vulnerability analysis team, a conceptual monitoring plan team, a subwatershed planning team, and the water quality analysis team. Each group will include representatives from the city and county. Some teams will also include representatives from the EPA and TDEC. Orienting development and growth so that we can meet water quality standards and ecological goals will require the commitment of a broad range of participants and leaders. Partnerships such as these can leverage everyone’s efforts to rebuild and maintain the health of the Harpeth River.

-From Voices for the Harpeth, Spring 2005