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Protecting water quality in Illinois : nutrient and pesticide management strategies PDF

66 Pages·1991·2.5 MB·English
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laiNOIS ^^ L'SRARy CAMPAIGN Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2011 with funding from University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign http://www.archive.org/details/protectingwaterq1315univ XLLL These nnaterials were developed by Susan Brewer, Foods and Nutrition Specialist, Illinois Cooperative Extension Service. If Urbana, Illinois April 1992 you have questions, please call 217-333- Issued in furtherance ofCooperative 0520. Extension work, Acts of May 8 and June 30, 1914, in cooperation with the U.S. Editor: Tom McGeary Department of Agriculture, DONALD L. Graphic designer: Lynn H. Smith UCHTMANN, Director, Cooperative Extension Service, University of Illinois The Illinois Cooperative Extension Ser- at Urbana-Champaign. vice provides equal opportunities in pro- grams and employment. 2.5M—Crouse^-92—TM UNIVEJ^SITY OF ILLINOIS ^ AGRICULTURE LIBRARY Water Protecting Quality in Illinois Nutrient and Pesticide Management Strategies United States Department ofAgriculture, Cooperative Extension Service, Champaign, Illinois In cooperation with the Soil Conservation Service June, 1991 MbrtiGULTURE LIBRARY C1315 bLP 1 8 1991 UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS Issued infutheranceofCooperativeExtensionWork,ActsofMay8andJune30,1914,incooperationwith theSoil Conservation Service. Donald L. Uchtmann, Director,CooperativeExtensionService, UniversityofIllinoisat Urbana- Champaign. TheIllinoisCooperative ExtensionServiceandtheSoilConservationServiceprovideequalopportunities in programs andemployment. Water Protecting Quality in Illinois: Nutrient and Pesticide Management Strategies Contributing Authors D. E. Kuhlman, ProgramLeaderforEnvironmental Issues, Cooperative Extension Service (editor) T. J. Bicki, AssistantProfessor, Pedology Extension, DepartmentofAgronomy L. V. Boone, Agronomist, Soil Fertility, DepartmentofAgronomy A. S. Felsot, Professional Scientist,CenterforEconomic Entomology, Illinois Natural History Survey R. G. Hoeft, Professor, Soil Fertility Extension,DepartmentofAgronomy J. W, Scott,WaterQuality Coordinator, Soil ConservationService, USDA F. W. Simmons, AssistantProfessor, Soil andWaterManagement, DepartmentofAgronomy Reviewers Thanks to the following people who contributed suggestions, assistance, andreview forthe development ofthis publication: D. P. McKenna, AssociateProfessional Scientist, Illinois StateGeological Survey M. D. McGlamery, ProfessorofAgronomy, DepartmentofAgronomy D. R. Pike, Extension SpecialistinWeed Science, DepartmentofAgronomy E. L. Knake, ProfessorofAgronomy, DepartmentofAgronomy K. L. Steffey, AssociateProfessor, Office ofAgricultural Entomology United States DepartmentofAgriculture, Cooperative ExtensionService UniversityofIllinois at Urbana-Champaign Incooperation withthe Soil Conservation Service June, 1991 Table of Contents Chapter 1 Introduction 1 Chapter 2 Chemical andPhysical Properties ofSoils 5 Chapters Potential Sources ofWaterPollution 9 Chapter4 Chemical PropertiesofFertilizers 13 Chapters PesticideProperties 17 Chapter6 Soil-Pesticide Interactions 21 Chapter? GroundwaterandAquiferContaminationVulnerability inIllinois 25 Chapters ManagementOptions to PreventWaterQuality Degradationfrom Nutrients 31 Chapter9 ManagementOptions toPreventWaterQuality DegradationfromPesticides 35 Appendix Pesticide Properties and Potential forMovement 41 SuggestedReadings 47 Glossary 49 Chapter 1 Introduction Illinois is rich in surface water, with ap- large numberofabove-ground storage and dis- proximately 900 interior streams and 85,305 man- posal sites such as petroleum storage areas, made and natural inland lakes and ponds. agriculturalchemical operations, saltpiles, and However, more than 34 percentofthe lakes have landfills. In addition, groundwater is at shallow shown a definite decline in waterquality between depths throughout muchofIllinois. 1972 and today. The decline is ofconcernbe- )»CBBQ0BflBQ0QOOO»0QOWOBBOO0WOPQQ0QPOOWWOOWWWQOggQQQOOPQ» cause these surface waters are used as a source of Illinois'Rich WaterResources drinking water by many Illinois communities. The waterquality problems also limitrecreation Illinois hasawidevariety of surfacewater and shorten the life spanofthe lakes. rIlelsinoouirsciensc.luRdeivaertsotaalndofs1t4r,e0a8m0sriinvearnmdilbeosr.deTrhineg Surface waters (lakes and streams) are more state is bordered bythree majorrivers:the Mis- sissippitothe west andthe Ohio andWabashto impairedby agricultural activities, hydrologic/ the southeast. These rivers constitute 880 bor- habitatmodification, andpoint sources thanis der river miles. Theother large rivers include groundwater. These activities contribute to sedi- the Rock, Fox, Des Plaines, Kankakee, Illinois, Sangamon, Kaskaskia, and Big Muddy. ment and nutrientloads, suspended solids, pes- Streams rangefrom high gradientbrooksto ticides, organic enrichment, andovergrowthof cypress-lined lowland backwaters. The Missis- aquatic plants. Lakes also inherently function as sippi, Illinois, Ohio, and Kaskaskia Rivers are traps orsinks forpollutants fromtributary water- equipped with locks, dams, and maintained channelstoserve as importanttransportation sheds or drainage basins. routes. Approximately 75 percentof Illinois in- Whileoverall statewide groundwaterquality land lakes are man-made impoundments, includ- ing reservoirs ranging upto26,000 acres in has been assessed as being good, pastand present surface area, dammed stream and sidechannel activitieshavecontributedto groundwatercon- impoundments, and stripmine, borrowpit, and tamination in Illinois. Studies have shown that 12 excavated lakes. percentofprivate rural wells inIllinois have looeoeoeooeooeoeooow nitrate-nitrogenlevelsexceeding the drinking waterstandards often parts ofnitrate-nitrogenper Pesticides andplantnutrients areused exten- millionparts ofwater (10 ppm), and 45 parts of sively by Illinois farmers. Herbicides are applied nitrate per million parts ofwater (45 ppm). In ad- to anestimated 97 percentofthe com and 96per- dition, 25 percentofthe wells have bacterial cent ofthe soybean acreage. Approximately 2 of contamination problems. Approximately 12 per- every 3 acres ofland inrural areas ofthe state are centofthe population in Illinois depend on these treated withpesticides. private rural wells for theirdomestic watersupp- As aresultofthe widespread use ofpesticides ly. An estimated 49 percent ofthe total popula- and fertilizers, Illinois faces thecontinuingdanger tion use groundwater in theirhouseholds. ofincreasing contamination ofsurface water and Many activities, past and present, contribute to groundwaterthatisused widely by humans. groundwater contamination in Illinois. Major sourcesofidentifiedcontamination include leak- ing underground gasoline storage tanks and the Page 1 . Chapter 1 Government Regulations and Policy The WaterQualityProgram Plan The President's initiative in his 1990budget The Federal governmenthas several laws p1r9o8p9o,sdaelfipnreesseantveidgotroouCsonefgfroertsstoopnroFteebctrugarroyun9,d designed, atleast in part, to control pollutionof and surface waterfromcontamination by non- waterresources. Through the Federal WaterPol- pointsources. The USDA has implemented a lutionControl Amendmentsof 1972, commonly WPraetseirdeQnuta'lsitiynitPiratoigver,acmonPtlaainniinngstuhprpeoertcoofm-the known as the CleanWaterAct (CWA), Congress ponents: Education and TechnicalAssistance, established a national strategy toreduce waterpol- Research and Development, and Data Base Developmentand Evaluation. lution. The objective ofthe law was to restore and maintainthe chemical, physical, andbiologi- NWWOeOOOO0O«MeDeeOOOe99OOQOQOQQQWOe9eO«QQOQOQOM cal integrity ofthe nation's waterand to eventual- Integrated Pest ly eliminate the discharge ofpollutants altogether. Management The CleanWaterActestablishes three categories ofpollutionsources: pointsources, non-point sources, and dredge and fill operations. Theprin- Although the use ofpesticides has become a CWA cipal regulatory programsofthe focuson standardpractice forreducing pestpopulations, surface waterquality. problems sometimes arise whenthey are used as InSeptember, 1987,GovernorThompson the sole method ofcontrolling pests. The primary signed legislationforprotectionofIllinois concern is thedetectionoftrace levels ofpes- groundwater from contamination. The Illinois ticides insome groundwater and surface water GroundwaterProtectionAct(P.A. 85-0863) resources. While the potential for pesticides to be- responds to the needtomanage groundwater come pollutants does notmeanthat they should quality through a prevention-orientedprocess. Al- notbe used, itdoesrequire thattheiruse be care- though the Actis directed toward protectionof fullycontrolled toeliminateunnecessarypesticide groundwater as anatural and public resource, spe- applications. cial provisions targetdrinkingwaterwells. The useofIntegratedPestManagement (IPM) Then, in 1990, PresidentBushrecommended tactics canreduce the amountofpesticides that inhis budgetproposal a new initiative forenhanc- are applied to cropland, helping to protectwater ing waterquality thatfocusesonprotecting quality and maximize profit. IPM emphasizes groundand surface waterfrompotential con- natural pestcontrols and taking advantageofthe taminationby agricultural chemicals and wastes, weaklinks in life cycles ofpests. Pesticides can especially pesticides and nutrients. The plan in- be used inIPM, but only aftersystematic monitor- tegratedthe combined expertise ofUSDA agen- ingofpests and considerationofotherfactors has cies to promote the use ofenvironmentally and indicated a need. economically soundfarmproductionpractices The following tactics are examples ofcom- andto develop improvedchemical andbiological ponents ofa successful IPMprogram: pestcontrols. 1 use ofresistantcrop varieties, Inhis statementofprinciples and policies, the 2. croprotation, Presidentmade itclearthatfarmers are ultimately responsible foravoidingcontaminationofwater 3. proper fertilization, resulting from managementpractices they apply 4. biological control, to the land. One ofhis principles states that water 5. variation ofplanting orharvestdates, quality programs mustaccommodate the immedi- 6. changing tillage practices, ate need tohaltcontamination. 7. field scouting forpests. Page 2

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