2019 Otter Creek Tactical Basin Plan

Excerpts and summary taken from the 2019 Otter Creek Tactical Basin Plan.

The Otter Creek Tactical Basin Plan (TBP) provides an assessment of surface water conditions within the Otter Creek, Little Otter Creek, and Lewis Creek watershed The plan identifies current and future strategies to protect high quality waters and restore impaired water resources (see Vermont Surface Water Management Strategy (VSWMS). The five chapters in this plan are a framework for understanding Basin 3’s unique characteristics and water quality issues, and where and how to implement projects to protect and restore water qualityin the basin.

Chapter 1 provides broad context for the plan by presenting the following: climate change and implications for water resources, a basin description, and a high-level summary of water resource conditions. This plan centers on Basin 3, which drains 936 square miles and includes the Otter Creek watershed plus the watersheds of Lewis Creek, and Little Otter Creek, which drain directly to Lake Champlain. The basin covers portions of Bennington, Rutland, and Addison counties and includes all surface waters that flow into the Otter Creek, the longest river in Vermont.

Chapter 2 of the plan identifies high quality surface waters in the basin and recommends other waters as potential protection candidates. Despite dedicated efforts to maintain existing conditions, numerous stressors degrade water quality in the basin. Many of these are linked to the following:

1. Encroachment of unpermitted stream alterations, non-buffered agricultural fields, and development within river corridors, floodplains, wetlands, and lake shores;
2. Stream channel erosion due to undersized crossing structures, lack of riparian vegetation for bank stabilization, and increases in stormwater flow and volume;
3. Land erosion due to unmanaged stormwater runoff from roads, developed lands, and agricultural lands; and 4.Pathogens from sources that likely stem from bacterial communities in soils, waste runoff from domesticated animals and livestock, and out-of-date and failed septic systems.

Chapter 3 of the plan identifies degraded surface waters in the basin, i.e., impaired and stressed waters and those with a Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) and recommends restoration candidates. More details are presented for Potential B1 Fishing Reclassification, for Potential Class I Wetland Reclassification, Current A1 surface waters, for Potential A1 Aquatic Life Support Reclassification, and for Potential B1 Aquatic Life Support Reclassification.

Despite dedicated efforts to maintain existing conditions, numerous stressors degrade water quality in the basin. Many of these are linked to the following:

1. Encroachment of unpermitted stream alterations, non-buffered agricultural fields, and development within river corridors, floodplains, wetlands, and lake shores;
2. Stream channel erosion due to undersized crossing structures, lack of riparian vegetation for bank stabilization, and increases in stormwater flow and volume;
3. Land erosion due to unmanaged stormwater runoff from roads, developed lands, and agricultural lands; and
4. Pathogens from sources that likely stem from bacterial communities in soils, waste runoff from domesticated animals and livestock, and out-of-date and failed septic systems.

Chapter 3 of the plan identifies degraded surface waters in the basin, i.e., impaired and stressed waters and those with a Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) and recommends restoration candidates.

Chapter 4 of the plan is a guide for the next 5 years to address pollution from land use sectors contributing to water quality issues. Information from assessments in the basin and derived from public input have been compiled to guide the development of strategies for the following sectors: agriculture, developed lands—stormwater and roads, wastewater treatment facilities, and restoration of forest lands, lakes, rivers, and wetlands. A total of 56 strategies are listed in the Chapter 5implementation table and rivers and lakes that have been identified for water quality monitoring are in the monitoring priorities table. Individual implementation projects are listed in the Watershed Projects Database.