T3 AM Ecological Risk Assessment (Part 2)
Tuesday, 15 November 2005: 8:00 AM - 11:40 AM in Ballroom 3

(YEA-1117-821099) Recovery Monitoring of Kentucky Streams using Benthic Macroinvertebrates and Fish after a Slurry Release.

Yeager, J. ¹, Armstead, M.¹, Kirsch, A. ¹, Ginger, J¹, White, M¹, ¹ Potesta and Associates, Inc, Charleston, West Virginia, USA

ABSTRACT- In October 2000, Martin County Coal Corporation, a subsidiary of Massey Energy Corporation, experienced a catastrophic failure of a slurry impoundment located near the town of Inez in Martin County, Kentucky. This incident resulted in the loss of approximately 250 million gallons of fine coal refuse material (slurry) into two watersheds, Rockcastle Creek and Wolf Creek, which are tributaries of the Tug Fork of the Big Sandy River. The breach created a blackwater event which was visible downstream into the Ohio River. In an effort to evaluate impacts of the release and to monitor recovery of the effected stream biota, benthic macorinvertebrates and fish communities have been evaluated quarterly and semi-annually, respectively, since April 2001. Recovery monitoring sites are located in Wolf Creek, Coldwater Fork, Blacklog Creek, Rockcastle Creek, and the Tug Fork. Benthic macroinvertebrates are being evaluated quantitatively and qualitatively using both state and federal methodologies. Fish communities are being evaluated using traditional methods, such as standing crop estimates, community richness and relative abundance, and age class structure, as well as, through the use of a site specific index of biotic integrity, length/weight regression analysis, and growth analysis using fish scales. The determination of watershed recovery is based on a weight of evidence approach with the return to conditions analogous with pre-spill conditions represented by communities upstream of slurry influenced areas or in adjacent watersheds. Based on these methodologies, recovery has been established in the benthic macroinvertebrates and fish communities in the Tug Fork. Recovery in the Rockcastle Creek and Wolf Creek watersheds is on[:ndash]going as restoration and clean–up activities are coming to completion.

Key words: benthic macroinvertebrate, fish, impact assessment