Creek water violates standards

By Stephen Shunk

Squaw Creek runs clean and clear most of the year, but from Alder Springs to the Maxwell Ditch, the Sisters stream is in violation of federal water quality standards.

Squaw Creek was recently classified as "water quality limited" by the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality, for non-compliance with the 1972 Federal Clean Water Act.

The creek joins 869 other Oregon waterways listed under Section 303 of the federal legislation.

In addition to its listing for sub-standard water quality, the creek ranks among bodies of water in Section 303(d) with no current management strategy in place.

Total Maximum Daily Load, or TMDL, is the accepted strategy for bringing a water body back into compliance.

According to Barbara Lee, Watershed Resource Coordinator for the Deschutes County Watershed Council, "TMDL looks at identifying pollution problems and linking them to watershed characteristics and management practices while establishing objectives for water quality improvement."

Squaw Creek made the 303(d) list due to impacts from stream flow modification and water temperature.

"Flow modification is a result of over-appropriation of the water," Lee explained. "More (water) has been allowed to be pulled out than the stream can provide during the summer months when (Squaw Creek) has been known to run dry."

Lee also described the temperature criteria for Squaw Creek.

"DEQ establishes a standard for different times of year, but Squaw Creek exceeded the seven-day daily maximum temperature of 64 degrees Fahrenheit 45 of 365 days in 1995," she said.

Lee explained further that the TMDL plan will be the responsibility of watershed residents.

"Each of us affects the water quality in our watershed. (We will have to decide) what steps can be taken to bring (Squaw Creek's) water quality back into compliance," she said.