Since the adoption of the criterion, the Illinois River watershed has been the focus of numerous projects to improve water quality and special studies to evaluate the total phosphorus criterion.
OWRB Water Quality Standards staff value stakeholder participation and are committed to a transparent and interactive rulemaking process. Please feel free to contact staff if you have any questions or would like additional information. The webinars were recorded and are posted here.
Throughout the month, the OWRB highlighted the vital work that goes into managing, monitoring, and improving the state's lakes and reservoirs, including the agency's Beneficial Use Monitoring Program, through which staff collect data at approximately 130 lakes on a quarterly basis utilizing a five-year rotation schedule. Data collections include a broad spectrum of chemical, physical, and biological parameters and allow for long-term assessment of beneficial uses and water quality trends. These data are important indicators for determining compliance with water quality standards, tracking general water quality trends, and identifying pollution problems.
Monitoring staff also conduct lake restoration activities and bathymetric mapping to determine lake storage capacity. The OWRB has completed 75 bathymetric surveys in the past 20 years, 18 of which were conducted in the past 6 years on drinking water supply lakes in partnership with the Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality (ODEQ). The surveys provide accurate determinations of the current storage capacities for the lakes.
The OWRB also highlighted outreach by the ODEQ to educate Oklahomans about swimming in Oklahoma's lakes and protecting against potential waterborne microorganisms, such as bacteria, viruses, and protozoa. The ODEQ offers a fact sheet that lists steps to reduce exposure to these microorganisms, a small proportion of which are associated with human illnesses.
The US Army Corps of Engineers National Water Safety Program highlighted the importance of wearing a life jacket through a public service announcement via video and twitter campaign #LifeJacketsWornNobodyMourns, which is a reminder that even if you don't wear a life jacket for yourself, please wear it for those who love and depend on you.
Every year in July, Oklahomans can engage in citizen science by participating in the Secchi-Dip-In, sponsored by the North American Lake Management Society (NALMS). The Secchi Dip-In is an international oportunity for volunteers and professionals to gather and submit data on water bodies to provide annual "snapshots" of water transparency and clarity and track changes in water quality.
OWRB monitoring staff have created at GIS data viewer for the City of Norman to assist with efforts to share data on stormwater monitoring in the Lake Thunderbird watershed. The OWRB began a partnership in 2016 with the City of Norman to meet the requirements of a total maximum daily load (TMDL) report issued by the Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality (ODEQ).
The objective of the Lake Thunderbird TMDL is to reduce loads of sediments and nutrients so that the waterbody meets all applicable Water Quality Standards. Currently, Lake Thunderbird is not maintaining designated beneficial uses for Fish and Wildlife Propagation for both dissolved oxygen and turbidity, and Public and Private Water Supply for chlorophyll-a. In order to meet the requirements of the TMDL, the City of Norman developed a TMDL Compliance Plan to reduce nutrients to a level that achieves the wasteload allocation (WLA) established in the TMDL. If the TMDL is successful, Lake Thunderbird will be removed from the Oklahoma 303(d) list for impaired waterbodies.
The new GIS data viewer focuses on monitoring at ten permanent stations and fourteen rotating stations in the Norman MS4 area. Water samples for parameters of interest are collected both during base flow periods and during runoff events. The OWRB installed stream gauges at the permanent stations in order to collect real-time stage data. This real-time data, combined with discharge measurements, is used to establish a rating curve for each station. Information collected by the OWRB is used by the City of Norman to determine where to implement best management practices (BMPs) for improving water quality, as well as to track TMDL compliance.
The OWRB's Financial Assistance Program (FAP), created by the State Legislature in 1979, provides loans for water and wastewater system improvements in Oklahoma. The tremendous popularity of the bond loan program is due, in part, to extended payoff periods of up to 30 years at very competitive interest rates.
The Clean Water State Revolving Fund (CWSRF) loan program was created in 1988 to provide a renewable financing source for communities to use for their wastewater infrastructure needs. The CWSRF program is Oklahoma's largest self-supporting wastewater financing effort, providing low-interest loans to communities in need.
The Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (DWSRF) loan program is an initiative of the OWRB and ODEQ to assist municipalities and rural water districts in the construction and improvement of drinking water systems. These projects are often mandated for communities to obtain compliance with increasingly stringent federal standards related to the treatment of drinking water.
The Rural Economic Action Plan (REAP) Program was created by the State Legislature in 1996. REAP grants, used for water/wastewater system improvements, primarily target rural communities with populations of 7,000 or less, but priority is afforded to those with fewer than 1,750 inhabitants.
Through the OWRB's Drought Response Program, funding is available for communities in most dire need during state drought emergencies declared by the Governor. A maximum of $300,000 is diverted from existing OWRB Emergency Grant proceeds to fund the Program.
Emergency grants, limited to $100,000, are awarded to correct situations constituting a threat to life, health, or property and are an indispensable component of the agency's financial assistance strategy.
Through the Water for 2060 Grant Program, funding was available in 2015 for municipalities, counties, water/sewer districts and other public entities for projects that highlight the responsible use of water.
Through the Emergency Drought Relief Grant Program, funding was provided in 2013 by the Legislature via the Emergency Drought Relief Commission to address severe drought issues in specific Oklahoma counties.
Applicants eligible for water/wastewater project financial assistance vary according to the specific program's purpose and requirements, but include towns and other municipalities with proper legal authority, various districts established under Title 82 of Oklahoma Statutes (rural water, master/water conservancy, rural sewage, and irrigation districts), counties, public works authorities, and/or school districts. Applications for agency financial assistance programs are evaluated individually by agency staff. Those meeting specific program requirements are recommended by staff for approval at monthly meetings of the nine-member Water Board. For more information, call (405) 530-8800 or go to www.owrb.ok.gov/financing.
