Stream Redesignation Evaluation Report
Water Quality Standards Review

UNNAMED TRIBUTARY TO LIZARD CREEK
CARBON COUNTY
Segment: basin
Drainage list: D
Stream code: 03876

Water Quality Monitoring And Assessment Section (DSB)
Division of Water Quality Assessment And Standards
Bureau of Water Supply and Wastewater Management
Department of Environmental Protection
April 2004

Unnamed Tributary to Lizard Creek is located in the Lehigh River watershed. It flows through East Penn Township, Carbon County (Figure 1). This basin covers an area of 0.61 square miles and contains 0.96 stream miles. This basin currently has the protected water use designation of Trout Stocking (TSF). As a result of a request from staff in the Department’s Northeast Regional Office, this basin was evaluated for redesignation as High Quality-Cold Water Fishes (HQ-CWF) or Exceptional Value Waters (EV). This report is based on a field survey conducted in April of 2001.

Land use in this basin consists primarily of second growth mixed hardwood forest with a few single-family residences. There is also an inactive sandstone quarry located in this watershed.

No long-term water quality data were available to allow a direct comparison to water quality criteria so the indigenous aquatic community was used as an indicator of long-term conditions and a measure of ecological significance.

There are no surface water withdrawals for public water supply or NPDES permitted surface water discharges in the candidate basin.

Habitat assessments and biological samplings were conducted at one station during the April 2001 survey (Table 1). The physical habitat assessment revealed that conditions at Station 1UNT and Reference Station R1 scored in the optimal range for benthic macroinvertebrates and fish (Table 2). The habitat score of 202 at Station 1UNT indicates excellent instream conditions. The only parameters that scored in the suboptimal category were Velocity/Depth Regimes, because there were no areas of slow flow due to the stream’s high gradient, and Channel Alterations, because the stream flows through a culvert under the road.

Benthic macroinvertebrate samples were collected at Stations 1UNT and R1 using the Department’s antidegradation sampling protocol (adapted from the EPA’s 1989 Rapid Bioassessment Protocols manual). Taxonomic diversity was good with 31 total taxa at Station 1UNT. Individuals from several genera that are sensitive to water quality degradation were common at this station (e.g. Epeorus, Amphinemura, and Diplectrona). Although the drainage area is very small, the presence of benthic taxa such as the dragonfly nymph Cordulegaster erronea and several genera of stoneflies indicates that this is a perennial stream with a portion of the base flow derived from groundwater discharge.

The Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission conducted a survey on the candidate stream in January 2000. This survey confirmed the presence of a naturally reproducing brook trout population along with blacknose dace and creek chubs at Station 1UNT.

The biological use qualifying criterion applied to UNT Lizard Creek was the integrated benthic macroinvertebrate score test described at § 93.4b(a)(2)(i)(A) and § 93.4b(b)(1)(v). This score is calculated from the macroinvertebrate samples referenced above. Following the Department’s antidegradation protocol, a subsample was randomly selected from the total sample and enumerated (Table 3). Selected benthic macroinvertebrate community metrics were generated from these subsamples. Candidate station metrics were compared to those of a reference station with a comparable drainage area (Table 4). In this case, Wild Creek (03959) was used as the reference stream. Wild Creek has a protected use designation of EV and is a tributary to Pohopoco Creek located in Carbon County. All sampling was conducted on the same day to minimize the effects of seasonal variation. This comparison was done using the following metrics which were selected as being indicative of community health: taxa richness; modified EPT index (total number of intolerant Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera, and Trichoptera taxa); modified Hilsenhoff Biotic Index; percent dominant taxon; and percent modified mayflies.

Based on these five metrics, Station 1UNT had a biological condition score of 100%. This exceeds the Department’s 92% criterion found at § 93.4b(b)(1)(v) and thus qualifies the UNT Lizard Creek for an EV designation.

The Department provided public notice of this redesignation evaluation and requested any technical data from the general public through publication in the Pennsylvania Bulletin on April 27, 2002 (32 Pa.B 2162). A similar notice was also published in the Lehighton Times News on April 26, 2002. In addition, East Penn Township and the Carbon County Planning Commission were notified of the evaluation in a letter dated April 27, 2002. To date, no information has been received in response to these notices.

Based on applicable regulatory criteria, the Department recommends that the use designation of UNT Lizard Creek 03876 basin be changed from the current TSF to EV based on biological condition scores greater than 92% of the reference station score. This recommendation affects 0.96 stream miles.

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