Honey Creek IA 05-CHA-1337

Assessment Comments

Two stream use assessments in November 1990.

Basis for Assessment

Continue to assess support of the Class B(LR) aquatic life uses as FST based on assessment developed for the 1996 report.   Information is older than 5 years, however, and assessment should be considered "evaluated" vs.  "monitored" as defined by U.S.  EPA guidelines for Section 305(b) reporting.   Also used sampling by the U.S.  Army Corps of Engineers in the Rathbun Lake watershed in 1997.   Results of this sampling show no violations of the Class B(LR) WQ criterion for ammonia in 6 samples collected between May and Sept.  1997.   In addition, none of the seven samples analyzed for atrazine and alachlor exceeded their MCLs (atrazine:  ranged from 0.34 to 2.24 ug/l; alachlor ranged from 0.05 to 0.26 ug/l).  The Honey Creek site was one of the few Rathbun Lake tributaries sampled for this study that did not have a violation of an MCL.   Honey Creek is not desigated for Class C drinking water uses.   A summary of the 1997 ACOE monitoring is available.  A review of the field sheets from the November 1990 DNR stream use assessments in Lucas County shows relatively poor diversity of the fish community (4 species from 2 families and 6 species from 3 familes) for streams in the Central Irregular Plains ecoregion.   Notes on field sheets indicate that presence of beaver dams may have influenced sampling results.  Additional biological monitoring is needed to update this assessment and to determine the status of the aquatic communities of this stream.   Field sheets for both assessments indicate relatively good habitat quality with no serious threats to support of the Class B(LR) uses, with the possible exception of channelization.