Publication Summary

This is the Detailed Implementation Plan for the North Creek Fecal Coliform Bacteria Total Maximum Daily Load (North Creek TMDL) as required under the Memorandum Of Agreement Between The United States Environmental Protection Agency and The Washington State Department Of Ecology Regarding The Implementation Of Section 303(d) Of The Federal Clean Water Act. This document details the actions needed to return the impaired waters in the North Creek Watershed to acceptable levels of bacteria content.

This is the Detailed Implementation Plan for the North Creek Fecal Coliform Bacteria Total Maximum Daily Load (North Creek TMDL) as required under the Memorandum Of Agreement Between The United States Environmental Protection Agency and The Washington State Department Of Ecology Regarding The Implementation Of Section 303(d) Of The Federal Clean Water Act. This document details the actions needed to return the impaired waters in the North Creek Watershed to acceptable levels of bacteria content.

In the North Creek TMDL evaluation, target geometric means are set as the goals for meeting the bacteria criteria of the Washington State Water Quality Standards Washington Administrative Code (WAC) 173-201A.

A wide variety of activities are proposed in this Action Plan to reduce bacterial pollution levels. Participating entities include Snohomish County, each of the local city governments, and a number of other entities. The actions required of National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) stormwater permit holders are anticipated to have a great affect on pollution levels and greatly improve public awareness of the role of stormwater in our current pollution problems. Many of the activities are already funded or planned for implementation in the future. Where funding is not currently available, Ecology will be assisting in finding appropriate funding sources.

The implementation of the North Creek TMDL is based on the assumption the actions proposed in this Action Plan will be adequate if they are fully implemented. However, several factors are anticipated to affect the rate of progress in reducing bacteria levels. First, the sources of bacterial pollution are expected to be diffuse and will take time to locate. Second, specific source identification data is very limited at this time; therefore, stormwater and receiving water monitoring will be needed in many locations to determine not only where, but what type of corrective actions are needed. Finally, there are few models to follow regarding the cleanup of urban watersheds with respect to bacterial pollution. Thus, it is anticipated that adaptive management methods will play an important role in identifying specific actions needed from existing programs or if new programs are needed.

The primary means of ensuring that activities detailed in this plan are implemented is the periodic examination of water quality monitoring data and collaboration of Ecology staff with basin stakeholders. Ecology will facilitate information sharing, coordinate activities between the various governmental and private entities working to reduce pollution inputs, and thus maximize the efficient use of available resources. Ecology will also require certain implementation activities through its NPDES permit programs where applicable.

In order to gauge the progress of this TMDL, Ecology will convene a meeting of municipal stakeholders no less than annually in order to share water quality data, trends (where applicable), and to evaluate the status of implementation activities within the North Creek watershed.