Lake Taneycomo

Watershed Management Plan

By Tammy Trantham,

Education Outreach Director

Meetings for the Lake Taneycomo Watershed Management Plan have been underway since September. The Watershed Management Plan (WMP) is a written document that states what the major and minor issues and threats to water quality are in a specific watershed. WMPs are designed to include stakeholder involvement so local citizens, business owners, and anyone who uses the watershed are encouraged to participate in meetings. The plan is also a "living" document meaning that it will be revised in years to come. This keeps the most recent water quality priorities in the plan. A completed WMP enables qualifying organizations to apply for private or federal funding to help pay for water quality enhancement projects. The Lake Taneycomo WMP is scheduled to be completed by the end of 2012.

Many stakeholders have come together to discuss issues and concerns throughout the Lake Taneycomo watershed. One of the main topics has been sedimentation (movement of soil and gravel) in the lake, which is caused by erosion from flooding and extreme amounts of stormwater run-off. The sediment build-up in Lake Taneycomo is not a new issue although in the past few years it has gotten worse due to the flooding of 2008 and 2011. After this year's high water, there was extreme stream bank erosion and sediment was deposited at Rockaway Beach and further downstream. Often times many local boaters cannot even get their boats out because of the mud (sediment). Dredging has therefore been an attractive option to help remove some of the build-up and allow marina owners and boaters to use the lake. However, dredging is extremely expensive. In addition, the option of dredging may not be realistically feasible due to regulatory and hydrological realities. Effects of dredging on fisheries must be taken into account before this option is considered. Also, if sediment will continue to be washed into the lake from additional land disturbance and stormwater run-off, should dredging be the focus before stormwater run-off and erosion are addressed?

Thoughts and suggestions are being researched about prevention of sedimentation such as bank stabilization projects and shoreline management for Lake Taneycomo. Lake Taneycomo is a man-made lake like every other lake in SW Missouri and may need a long-term maintenance plan in order to preserve its desired uses. This type of plan would require cooperation between private landowners, Empire Electric, Missouri Department of Conservation and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers among others. This seems a challenging task but the conversation has started. We are seeking model plans from around the nation to see if we can find a fit for the Lake Taneycomo. If you are interested in attending and learning more about our work on Lake Taneycomo, plan on attending our next meetings. They are tentatively set for November 29 and December 1. Contact Tammy Trantham to sign up for email updates at   tammyyelden@trlwq.org.

Tentative 3rd Stakeholder Meeting Dates

Water Quality Protection;

We're making progress!

By Gopala Borchelt,

Executive Director

This is an update and continuation of our last story on the on-going septic remediation efforts by our local community, particularly in Stone County.

TRLWQ has been working since 1998, together with local citizens to help bring information to people about the water quality issues and to do projects  to protect the lake.  Our progress in this work could not have been possible without partnerships!

Some of our partnerships include the local chamber of commerce, county health departments, other watershed organizations, businesses, lake homeowners, MO Department of Natural Resources (MDNR), MO Department of Conservation (MDC), the Corps of Engineers, local marinas, realtors, city officials and many others concerned with water quality in our lakes.

We are seeing results on both the citizen awareness side and the regulatory side of water protection, which often go hand-in-hand. We have made considerable progress in informing citizens of their role in water quality protection. For example, one of our projects, the septic Pumpout Rebate program (a partnership with MDC) had a survey component that helped us track changes in attitude and awareness of participants from 2007 to 2010.

The first  chart shows answers  from 2007 surveys and the second chart shows answers from  2010 to the question: "Were you aware (prior to participation in this program) that not maintaining your septic system could cause water quality problems and damage your lateral lines?" The number of people that answered no to the question went from 33% in 2007 to 1% in 2010. Granted, this is a two-part question, not the most ideal survey format.

We have also experienced the change in public knowledge and understanding of their individual role in water quality protection through public presentations, community activities and daily phone conversations.

On the regulatory side, we like to feature Stone County's proactive approach to upgrading failing septic systems. Stone County is one of the first in the region to require septic inspections at the time of property transfer or sale. The Stone County Health Department (SCHD) requires a Property Transfer Certificate (PTC) to be used upon sale or transfer of property when the on-site wastewater treatment system (OWTS) is more than 10 years old.

Steps for the PTC process include getting the septic system inspected by a licensed inspector and negotiating between the buyer and seller if the system is found to be failing (leaking or inadequate) and in need of repair. An affidavit can be used by a buyer to complete a purchase of property with an inadequate system and the County will allow up to 1 year for the septic system to be updated.

Many local real estate agents and brokerage companies are very knowledgeable about the PTC process in Stone County and can provide assistance and advice to both buyers and sellers.

To view the current OWTS ordinance for Stone County visit the SCHD webpage at:

http://www.stonecountyhealth-department.com/assets/test/-revis_water_ord.pdf

In conjunction with requiring updates to old, failing septic systems at the time of sale, TRLWQ and our partners have been active in bringing assistance and funding to the local area for people that are unable to afford to replace their leaking septic tanks.

TRLWQ has completed a project with MDNR that helped 27 homeowners in Stone County replace their failing septic systems. We are continuing to offer, in partnership with the Ozarks Water Watch, assistance to people in the Table Rock and Lake Taneycomo watersheds for replacement or repair of their failing septic systems.

For more information on this loan/grant program contact Ozarks Water watch at 417-739-5001 or ronna@ozarkswaterwatch.org