Low-flow Estimates for Cedar Creek at Galesburg, Illinois

Transcription

1 ISWS CR 587 ntract Report 587 Low-flow Estimates for Cedar Creek at Galesburg, Illinois by Krishan P. Singh and Robert S. Larson Office of Surface Water Resources: Systems, Information & GIS Prepared for the Galesburg Sanitary District September 1995 Illinois State Water Survey Hydrology Division Champaign, Illinois A Division of the Illinois Department of Natural Resources

2 ILLINOIS STATE WATER SURVEY LIBRARY COPY DATE DUE sws CR 587 c.2 LOW-FLOW ESTIMATES FOR CEDAR CREEK AT GALESBURG, ILLINOIS DEMCO

3 LOW-FLOW ESTIMATES FOR CEDAR CREEK AT GALESBURG, ILLINOIS Krishan P. Singh and Robert S. Larson Office of Surface Water Resources: Systems, Information & GIS Prepared for the Galesburg Sanitary District Galesburg, Illinois Illinois State Water Survey Champaign, Illinois September 1995

4 This report was printed on recycled and recyclable papers.

5 CONTENTS Page Introduction 1 Acknowledgments 1 Low-Flow Statistics and Flow Durations 2 Monthly 7-Day Low Flows 3 Fitted Monthly 7-Day 10-Year Low-Flow Curves 3 Fitted Monthly 7-Day 2-Year Low-Flow Curves 5 Flows at Specified Durations 5 Flow Estimates: Cedar Creek at Galesburg WWTP 12 Flow Augmentation 13 Upstream Reservoir 13 Galesburg's Standby Wells 14 Pumping Water from Cedar Creek 16 Conclusions 17 References 18 i

6 INTRODUCTION The Galesburg Sanitary District (GSD) discharges municipal wastewater effluents into Cedar Creek from a wastewater treatment plant located 40.2 river miles above the mouth of Cedar Creek. In 1994 the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (IEPA) proposed significant changes in the water quality standard for ammonia (Illinois Pollution Control Board Docket R94-1). Initial work performed for the GSD by Huff & Huff Inc. indicated that the GSD effluents may cause the proposed ammonia standards to be violated in Cedar Creek. Among the recommendations made by Huff & Huff Inc. to the GSD was that the low-flow conditions of Cedar Creek be defined on a monthly and seasonal basis. The primary objective of this project is to develop estimates of particular low-flow parameters, which the GSD can use to manage its effluent discharge into Cedar Creek. The following parameters will be estimated: Q 7,10 flows by month (January through December) Q 7,2 flows by month (January through December) Seasonal Q 7,10 flows (April 1 to October 31 and November 1 to March 31) Flows of 10, 50, and 90 percent flow duration Additionally, the feasibility of 7-day flow augmentation from the following sources will be evaluated for the month of November: Water stored in a lagoon City-owned standby wells Water pumped from Cedar Creek where it passes under County Line Road to upstream of the GSD outfall Acknowledgments This study was funded by the Galesburg Sanitary District under the direction of Jim Browning. Jim Huff of Huff & Huff Inc. supplied water quality data for Cedar Creek and the GSD effluent discharges. The efforts of Ellis Sanderson of the Illinois State Water Survey in evaluating well data are greatly appreciated. Sarah Hibbeler edited and Kathleen Brown typed the final manuscript. 1

7 LOW-FLOW STATISTICS AND FLOW DURATIONS Cedar Creek basin lies in the Galesburg Plain physiographic region (Leighton et al., 1948). This plain is level to undulatory, glacial drift is thin to thick, and it has rather sharply incised valleys as compared to the Springfield Plain. The drainage area of Cedar Creek just above the Galesburg wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) is 14.2 square miles (sq mi). Streams with gaging stations draining small to medium-sized drainage areas near and surrounding the location of interest are given below. Drainage area, No. Stream USGS No. sq mi Record 1 Gimlet Creek at Sparland & Indian Creek at Wanda Bay Creek at Pittsfield Hadley Creek near Barry Indian Creek near Wyoming North Henderson Creek near Seaton Edwards River near Orion & Duck Creek at Liverpool Streams 2, 3, and 7 have 50 or more years of daily flow data; streams 1 and 5 have 24 and 32 years of data; streams 4 and 6 have 11 years of data; and stream 8 (Duck Creek) has only 3 years of daily flow data. Streams 1, 5, 6, 7, and 8 are in the Galesburg Plain; while streams 3 and 4 are in the adjoining Lincoln Hills Section (partially drift-covered dissected plateau underlain by Osage limestone, with closely spaced valleys and ridges); and stream 2 (Indian Creek at Wanda) lies in the southwest portion of the Springfield Plain (a level portion of Illinoian drift sheet, with shallow entrenchment of drainage and thinning of drift toward the southern and southwestern boundary). The shallow entrenchment of drainage in the Springfield Plain relative to the Galesburg Plain and Lincoln Hills Section points to somewhat lower flows during dry weather conditions than in the other two physiographic regions. 2

8 Monthly 7-Day Low Flows Daily flows for the period of record at the eight gaging stations were stored on a computer. A computer program was developed to compute the lowest average 7-day flow in each month by considering the last three days of the preceding and first three days of the succeeding month. The monthly 7-day low flows in cubic feet per second (cfs) for each year of record for each of the eight gaging stations are given in Appendix A. The start date for each month indicates the middle date of the 7-day low-flow period. If a month and the last three days of the preceding month have zero flow, the start date or middle of the period will be the first of the month. The monthly 7-day low-flow values are ranked in ascending order. A table of these ranked values together with percent probability (determined by (m/n+1) x 100, where m is the rank order and n is the length of record in years) and recurrence interval, T-year, obtained from (n+l)/m, follows the monthly 7-day low-flow table in Appendix A. The end of the table gives the 7-day low flows for applicable recurrence intervals such as 25, 10, 5, and 2 years. The program computes these values by straight-line interpolation between higher and lower T-year values of 7-day low flows. These low flows are higher for Indian Creek near Wyoming ( ) than for North Henderson Creek ( ) near Seaton. Fitted Monthly 7-Day 10-Year Low-Flow Curves The 7-day 10-year monthly low flows as determined from the computer program outputs are given in Table 1 for the seven gaging stations having 11 or more years of daily flow data. In order to investigate the significance of short-term data (11 years) for Hadley Creek near Barry ( ) and North Henderson Creek near Seaton ( ), the computer program was run for the five relatively long-term stations for concurrent periods where the record allowed such runs. Table 1 lists the 7-day 10-year monthly flows for the concurrent records. The data yielded lower monthly values than did the long-term data, while the data yielded higher monthly values than the long-term data. For Hadley Creek near Barry, the computer-generated 7-day 10-year low-flow values are lower than those expected if it were a long-term station. And for North Henderson Creek near Seaton, the computer-generated 7-day 10-year low-flow values are higher than those expected if it were a long-term station. 3

9 Table 1. Monthly 7-Day 10-Year Low Flows in Selected Streams Record Oct Nov Dec Jan Feb Mar Apr May June July Aug Sept Gimlet Creek at Sparland & Indian Creek at Wanda Bay Creek at Pittsfield Hadley Creek near Barry Indian Creek near Wyoming N. Henderson Creek near Seaton Edwards River near Orion &

10 The 7-day 10-year low-flow values were plotted against drainage area on log-log paper for each month of the year for all seven stations. In fitting smooth monthly low-flow curves, the fact that monthly values are lower/higher for Hadley Creek/North Henderson Creek because of short record periods was taken into account. Because the fitted curves showed monthly 7-day 10-year low-flow values from June through February (nine months) as zero for a drainage area of 14.2 sq mi, the fitted curves are shown in Figure 1 only for March, April, and May. Fitted Monthly 7-Day 2-Year Low-Flow Curves The 7-day 2-year monthly low flows as determined from the computer program outputs are given in Table 2 for the eight gaging stations. Duck Creek at Liverpool has daily flow data for water years , a very short period of record. However, to determine the possible usefulness of these data in developing low-flow curves, the 7-day 2-year low-flow values were developed for the concurrent 3-year record ( ) at other stations where such data were available. These values are also included in Table 2. It is evident that all stations with daily flow data for have low-flow values that are about 1.5 to 12 times (or more) than those derived from longer records. Because of the variability of the multiplier ratio from month to month and from one basin to the other, the 3-year flow information for Duck Creek at Liverpool could not be used. The 7-day 2-year low-flow values were plotted against drainage area on log-log paper for each month of the year for all seven stations. In fitting smooth monthly low-flow curves, the fact that monthly values are lower/higher for Hadley Creek/North Henderson Creek was taken into account. The low-flow versus drainage area curves on log-log paper are shown in Figures 2 and 3. Flows at Specified Durations Flows at durations of 90, 50, and 10 percent (i.e., flow was exceeded or equaled 90, 50, and 10 percent of the time) were obtained through a computer program using the available data at seven selected stations (excluding Duck Creek at Liverpool with only three years of data). These flows (Table 3) were calculated using the entire daily flow data at a station. The flows were plotted against drainage area on log-log paper as shown in Figure 4. 5

11 DRAINAGE AREA, square miles Figure 1. Monthly Q(7,10) versus drainage area curves, March through May, for selected stations 6

12 Table 2. Monthly 7-Day 2-Year Low Flows for and Entire Record Record Oct Nov Dec Jan Feb Mar Apr May June July Aug Sept Gimlet Creek at Sparland & Indian Creek at Wanda Bay Creek at Pittsfield Hadley Creek near Barry Indian Creek near Wyoming N. Henderson Creek near Seaton Edward River near Orion & Duck Creek at Liverpool

13 DRAINAGE AREA, square miles Figure 2. Monthly Q(7,2) versus drainage area curves, October through March, for selected stations 8

14 DRAINAGE AREA, square miles Figure 3. Monthly Q(7,2) versus drainage area curves, April through September, for selected stations 9

15 Table 3. Flows at 90, 50, 10 Percent Durations Flow, cfs, at duration of 90% 50% 10% Gimlet Creek at Sparland Indian Creek at Wanda Bay Creek at Pittsfield Hadley Creek near Barry Indian Creek near Wyoming North Henderson Creek near Seaton Edwards River near Orion

16 DRAINAGE AREA, square miles Figure 4. Flow duration versus drainage area curves for selected stations 11

17 Flow Estimates: Cedar Creek at Galesburg WWTP The 7-day 10-year or Q(7,10) and 7-day 2-year or Q(7,2) low flows in Cedar Creek just upstream of the Galesburg WWTP outfall, obtained from the fitted low-flow versus drainage area curves, are given below. Law flow, cfs Jan Feb Mar Apr May June July Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Q(7,10) Q(7,2) Seasonal low flows for the periods April 1 to October 31 and November 1 to March 31 are given below. Low flow, cfs April 1 to October 31 November 1 to March 31 Q(7,10) Q (7,2) Flows at durations of 90, 50, and 10 percent are: 90% duration 0.02 cfs 50% duration 0.90 cfs 10% duration 17.2 cfs 12

18 FLOW AUGMENTATION Under the pending change in the IEPA ammonia standard (Illinois Pollution Control Board Docket R94-1), a more stringent unionized ammonia standard 0.02 miligrams per liter (mg/l) is proposed for the months of November to March than for the rest of the year. Initial work by Huff & Huff Inc. indicates that the more stringent standard may not always be met during November because of the possibility of warm water temperatures. The portion of total ammonia present in the unionized form increases with higher water temperatures. The feasibility of providing 5 million gallons per day (mgd) of additional flow for one week to Cedar Creek (as suggested by GSD and Huff & Huff Inc.) for diluting the wastewater effluent from the Galesburg WWTP was evaluated so that the 0.02 mg/l unionized ammonia standard could be met during November. Possible sources of additional flow include: 1) A reservoir upstream of the Galesburg city limits 2) Galesburg's standby wells 3) Water pumped from Cedar Creek where it passes under County Line Road to upstream of the GSD outfall. County Line Road is located 2.1 river miles downstream of the GSD outfall. This report will only consider the hydrologic feasibility of the alternatives. It is beyond the scope of this project to estimate costs or to suggest specific sites for the alternatives considered. Upstream Reservoir The drainage area of Cedar Creek upstream of Galesburg and Interstate 74 is about 1 sq mi. The estimated mean annual runoff from this area is 448 acre-feet. This value was determined using the mean runoff of 0.7 inches per month at the gaging station on Gimlet Creek. The amount of water required to augment flows by 5 mgd for one week during November is 35 million gallons (107.4 acre-feet). The reservoir storage capacity should be about 20 percent greater to account for bottom water that cannot be pumped out, as well as to allow for capacity reductions due to sediment. This would increase the required storage capacity to 129 acre-feet. Assuming a reservoir surface area of 20 acres, the annual evaporation 13

19 losses for a drought with a 10-year return period would be 27 acre-feet (Terstriep et al., 1982). Thus the total initial capacity needed will be 156 acre-feet. Galesburg's Standby Wells The city of Galesburg operates two standby wells adjacent to Cedar Creek on Henderson Street. A review of annual pumpage data supplied by the Galesburg Water Department indicated that one well, Henderson #1, has a reported maximum pump rate of 1,300 gallons per minute (gpm). The Henderson #2 well has a reported maximum pump rate of 1,000 gpm. The combined flow rate from the two pumps would yield 3.31 mgd. Thus, the pumps alone would fall 1.69 mgd short of providing the required 5 mgd. This determination, however, is based on the reported maximum pump rates. Data are insufficient to determine if the yield from the Henderson #1 well could be increased. During a drawdown test performed on the Henderson #2 well in June 1944, a specific capacity of gpm/ft was measured (Woller et al., 1988), indicating that increasing the well's yield may be possible (Ellis Sanderson, personal communication). Drawdown tests should be performed on both wells to determine if increased yields would be possible by refurbishing them with pumps of greater capacities. Another option would be to construct a small side-channel reservoir near the WWTP to temporarily store water. The reservoir could be filled with water from standby wells in September and/or October. Water could be transported to the reservoir via a pipeline or could be discharged from the wells into Cedar Creek and then pumped into the reservoir. The required 5-mgd flow augmentation could be provided in November by the combined flows of the wells and water released from the reservoir. Such a reservoir would have to be capable of delivering 1.69 mgd for 7 days, a total of 36 acre-feet. For a reservoir with a total capacity of 45 acre-feet and an average depth of 4.5 feet, the required surface area would be 10 acres. A search of the Illinois State Water Survey's Ground-Water Quality Database found a total of ten ammonia measurements from the two standby wells, with a mean of (range ) mg/l ammonia as N. Table 4 lists ammonia concentrations at the outfall for dates in November of 1992, 1993, and 1994 that would result from mixing the effluent with 5 mgd of well water containing mg/l ammonia. Also in Table 4 are the concentrations achieved if 14

20 Table 4. Total and Unionized Ammonia Concentrations Resulting from Mixing Galesburg Sanitary District Effluents with Well Water and with Recirculated Cedar Creek Water Ammonia, mg/l as N At GSD outfall if mixed with Unionized Ammonia, mg/l as N Waste- Cedar Mixed with Effluent water Creek at Recir- Wastewater Cedar Creek recirculated flow, effluents* County culated 5.0 mgd 3.31 mgd effluents at at County water, Date mgd GSD outfall Line Road water well water well water GSD outfall Line Road GSD outfall 11/02/ /03/ /10/ /17/ /24/ /01/ /08/ /15/ /22/ /29/ /07/ /14/ /21/ /28/ Mean Maximum Notes: Streamflow in Cedar Creek upstream of the GSD outfall has been taken as zero. * from GSD data

21 the effluent is mixed with the 3.31 mgd from the standby wells alone. Diluting the effluent with 5 mgd of well water results in a mean ammonia concentration 18 percent lower than the undiluted effluent. Diluting the effluent with the 3.31 mgd of water currently available from the existing wells results in a 13 percent lower mean ammonia concentration. Predictions of resultant unionized ammonia values were not possible because of the scarcity of temperature data for the well water. Pumping Water from Cedar Creek The Galesburg Sanitary District operates aeration equipment in Cedar Creek 2.1 miles downstream of the WWTP outfall, where Cedar Creek passes under County Line Road. At this location, the water quality standards for ammonia are often violated in November. During Q 7,10 low-flow conditions, Cedar Creek flows at County Line Road would consist of wastewater effluent only. Data supplied by Huff & Huff Inc. for 1993 and 1994 show the mean effluent discharge from the WWTP to be 7.25 mgd. Pumping 5 mgd of this flow back to the WWTP outfall would increase flows between the outfall and County Line Road to mgd, assuming that seepage through the channel bed is negligible within this reach. The ammonia concentrations at County Line Road that would result from recirculating 5 mgd of water are difficult to estimate given the existing data. This is because: 1) the added flows would decrease travel times, thereby reducing the assimilative capability of the stream to lower ammonia concentrations within the reach, and 2) the recirculation introduces a feedback loop within the system. Calculations of the resultant concentrations of ammonia and unionized ammonia by simple mixing were performed, however, for all days in November of 1992, 1993, and 1994, where data were available at both the GSD outfall and County Line Road locations (Table 4). These calculations indicate that slight reductions in ammonia and unionized ammonia may occur. These reductions, however, are insufficient to lower the frequency with which water quality standards were violated. 16

22 CONCLUSIONS The 7-day 10-year or Q(7,10) and 7-day 2-year or Q(7,2) low flows were derived at seven gaging stations draining small to medium-sized drainage areas near and surrounding Galesburg. The Q(7,10) low flows in Cedar Creek just upstream of the Galesburg WWTP are 0.17, 0.74, and 0.04 cfs, respectively, in March, April, and May, and zero for the nine remaining months. The Q(7,2) low flow is zero for August, September, and October, and positive for the remaining months (with a minimum of 0.03 cfs in November and a maximum of 2.80 cfs in April). Seasonal Q(7,10) is zero for April 1 to October 31 and November 1 to March 31. Corresponding Q(7,2) values are zero for April 1 to October 31 and 0.03 cfs for November 1 to March 31. Flow durations of 90, 50, and 10 percent just upstream of the Galesburg WWTP are 0.02, 0.90, and 17.2 cfs, respectively. This analysis determined that the watershed area of Cedar Creek upstream of Galesburg is adequate to support a reservoir capable of providing the required 5-mgd augmentation flow for one week during November. The two standby wells alone cannot provide enough water for adequate dilution. It may be possible to increase the yield of the wells by refurbishing them with pumps of greater capacity. Therefore, a drawdown test should be performed on the wells to determine if greater yields are possible. Another alternative is to construct a reservoir near the WWTP to provide storage of about 45 acre-feet of water from the wells. The reservoir could be filled with water from the wells in September and/or October. Then in November, the required 5-mgd flow augmentation could be provided for one week by the combined flows of the wells and water released from the reservoir. The feasibility of recirculating water from the point at which Cedar Creek passes under County Line Road back upstream to the GSD outfall is limited by the marginal water quality at the County Line Road location. Only slight reductions in ammonia and unionized ammonia were determined to be possible by recirculation. 17

23 REFERENCES Leighton, M.M., G.E. Ekblaw, and L. Horberg Physiographic Divisions of Illinois. Illinois State Geological Survey Report of Investigation 129, Urbana, EL. Terstriep, M. L., M. Demissie, D.C. Noel, and H. V. Knapp Hydrologic Design of Impounding Reservoirs in Illinois. Illinois State Water Survey Bulletin 67, Champaign, IL. Woller, D.M. E.W. Sanderson, M. Sargent, and R.D. Olson Public Ground Water Supplies in Knox County. Illinois State Water Survey Bulletin 60-34, Champaign, IL. 18

24 APPENDIX A Monthly 7-Day Low-Flow Data at Selected Gaging Stations

25 Gimlet Creek at Sparland, IL ( & ): monthly 7-day low flows a. assorted 7-day low flows WATER YEAR OCT NOV DEC JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUN JUL AUG SEP b. Ranked 7-day low flows PROB T-YR OCT NOV DEC JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUN JUL AUG SEP C. Low flow statistics 10-yr flow yr flow yr flow

26 Indian Creek at Wanda, XL ( ): monthly 7-day low flows a. Unsorted 7-day low flows WATER YEAR OCT NOV DEC JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JON JUL AUG SEP S b. Ranked 7-day low flows PROB T-YR OCT NOV DEC JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUN JUL AUG SEP

27 PROB T-YR OCT NOV DEC JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUN JUL AUG SEP C. Low flow statistics 25-yr flow yr flow yr flow yr flow

28 ' b. Ranked 7-day Low Flows PROB T-YR OCT NOV DEC JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUN JUL AUG SEP Bay Creek at Pittsfield, IL ( ): monthly 7-day low flows a. Unsorted 7-day low flows WATER YEAR OCT NOV DEC JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUN JUL AUG SEP

29 PROB T-YR OCT NOV DEC JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUN JUL AUG SEP c. Low-Flow Statistics 25-yr flow yr flow yr flow yr flow

30 Hadley Creek near Barry, IL ( ): monthly 7-day low flows a. Unsorted 7-day low flows WATER YEAR OCT NOV DEC JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUN JUL AUG SEP ' b. Ranked 7-day low flows PROB T-YR OCT NOV DEC JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUN JUL AUG SEP C. Low flow statistics 10-yr flow yr flow yr flow

31 Indian Creek near Wyoming, IL ( ): monthly 7-day low flows a. Umsorted 7-day low flows WATER YEAR OCT NOV DEC JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUN JUL AUG SEP b. Ranked 7-day low flows PROB T-YR OCT NOV DEC JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUN JUL AUG SEP