Watershed improvements groups already exist on Shoal Creek and the Elk River in Newton and McDonald counties, and residents are forming a watershed improvement group on the North Fork of the Spring River, but no one has formed a group to look after the largest river in Jasper County.
Jasper County Eastern District Commissioner Jim Honey, the County Health Department Director Tony Moehr and Bob Nichols, Webb City resident who has spearheaded the creation of such groups as the Tri-State Water Resources Coalition, all said they are exploring ways to do something to improve the quality of the water in the Spring River.
A watershed is a geographic area that is drained by a river, including tributaries and small streams that flow directly into the river.
With groups such as the Carthage Stream Team and the Jasper County Health Department already monitoring the quality of the water in the river, Health Department Director Tony Moehr said it's clear the river has problems.
"These figures show what we've been saying all along," Moehr said. "People should not be swimming in the natural waters of Jasper County, especially after a heavy rain."
Moehr said the health department tested at 21 locations on Center Creek, Turkey Creek, the North Fork of the Spring River, the Spring River, Dry Fork and Jones Creek.
They tested between May and October and found that levels of the E. coli bacteria were at, or slightly above accepted levels established by the Environmental Protection Agency on most of the tests.
E. coli bacteria typically live in the lower intestines of many species of mammals, including humans, but some strains of the bacteria can cause food poisoning in people.
On days immediately after significant rain storms, levels of E. coli bacteria shot to as high as 10 times acceptable levels.
Moehr displayed graphs that showed how periods with high levels of E. coli bacteria coincided with periods of heavy rain.
Nichols said he was surprised by those results. He said he would have expected the E. coli levels to be lower as the rains diluted the bacteria in the water.
Moehr said instead of diluting the bacteria, the rains were washing enormous amounts of the bacteria from septic systems, fields and other sources into the streams.
Nichols said he would like to see a watershed improvement organization formed for the Spring River along the model of the Elk River Watershed Improvement Association in McDonald County, or other similar groups formed on the upper and lower Shoal Creek basins.
The Elk River Watershed Improvement Association was formed in 2003 to educate residents of the Elk River watershed of ways to prevent pollution and maintain or even improve the quality of that river.
The group applies for federal and state grant money and uses the money for educational programs on maintaining septic systems and other ways to prevent pollution.
The three agreed to meet with officials with the University of Missouri Extension Service who are experienced in setting up watershed groups and applying for grants, then set up an exploratory committee to decide how much of the Spring River watershed they wanted to tackle and what kind of group to form.
