Statistics

Basin size: 186 sq km (71.9 sq mi)

Land use: Land use in the Muddy Creek watershed is predominantly agricultural; about 72 percent of the watershed is cropland or pasture, 26 is percent forested, and 1 percent is urban land use.

Population: Population in the Muddy Creek watershed from the 1990 census was 16,500.

Geology/Soils: The Muddy Creek watershed is underlain by crystalline rock, which includes igneous and metamorphic rocks such as schist, gneiss, gabbro, phyllite, metavolcanic rocks, and quartzite. . The crystalline bedrock is covered by a mantle of soil and heavily weathered bedrock. These unconsolidated materials are called regolith and form an important part of the groundwater flow system. Flow through the consolidated bedrock is primarily in small fractures. Ground water in areas underlain by crystalline bedrock exists primarily in the bedrock fractures and pores in the saturated part of the regolith above the crystalline bedrock. Soils formed from crystalline rocks have good infiltration capacity and are generally good for agricultural crop production.

Water resources: Muddy Creek is not used as a major source of public water supply. Ground water is used in the basin for domestic supply and small municipal water supplies.

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Hydrology

Recharge is 24 to 29 cm/year (9.5 to 11.5 inches/year). Drainage patterns are dendritic. Baseflow is variable, ranging from 30 to 80 percent of streamflow with a median of about 60 percent. The ground-water flow systems are generally separate, local systems defined by the perennial stream basins, and flow generally does not cross topographic divides Although the predominant land use in the basin is agriculture, 37.2 percent of the stream miles in this area have riparian forest buffers (forested areas that run parallel to the stream) on both sides of the stream extending to 300 ft or more (Day and others, 1996).

Major issues in the basin

Nutrients, pesticides, and bacteria: The Piedmont Crystalline setting does not have as high a percentage of agricultural land use as the adjacent Piedmont Carbonate setting; however, this area still has as high amount of agricultural land. USGS studies in the Piedmont Crystalline setting showed a median nitrate concentration of 7 mg/L of nitrate in wells in agricultural areas, with water from several wells exceeding the USEPA maximum contaminant level of 10 mg/L. Coliform bacteria were detected in over 70 percent of the wells sampled in this area, and fecal coliform bacteria were detected in over 20 percent of the wells sampled. The agricultural pesticide atrazine was detected in over 70 percent of the wells in this setting also. Although crystalline rocks are typically not perceived to be as susceptible to contamination as the carbonate rocks, these data indicate that the aquifer is in fact susceptible to contamination. The reasons for this susceptibility have not been determined. Several reports detailing this contamination are available from the USGS.

Sewage discharge: There are no permitted point source discharges to Muddy Creek.

Development: This area is relatively undeveloped, with no major cities in the watershed; however, the proximity of the watershed to Baltimore, Md., and York, Pa. give the area potential for future growth and development.

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Existing monitoring

Water Quality Monitoring: The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection/USGS Water Quality Network program collects water-quality samples monthly at a monitoring station on Rambo Run, a tributary to Muddy Creek.

Stream gages: Muddy Creek at Muddy Creek Forks, Pa., Bald Eagle Creek near Fawn Grove, Pa., Muddy Creek at Castle Fin, Pa. are all discontinued USGS streamgaging stations, however, the Muddy Creek at Castle Fin site has data from 1928 through 1972.

Weather stations/atmospheric monitoring: The National Weather Service has a station near York, Pa.

GIS: The U.S. Geological Survey and Penn State all have GIS databases for the basin.

Geochemical labs: Labs are available at local universities and colleges (see logistics).

Experimental plots: The USGS has conducted a wellhead protection study at Stewartstown, near the headwaters of Muddy Creek. Well inventory and sampling of residential wells was done for the National Water-Quality Assessment Program study. These are potential sites for future monitoring studies. A study of nutrient management best management practices was conducted at Bald Eagle Creek near Fawn Grove.

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Agencies & cooperators

USGS (NAWQA study)

Susquehanna River Basin Commission

Townships, York Co

DEP

EPA

York County conservation district

Logistics

The site is near the Harrisburg International Airport, and is about 2 hours from Philadelphia International Airport.

The basin is in between Penn State University and the Universities in Philadelphia. Local colleges in Lancaster, York and Cumberland Co. include Franklin and Marshall, Millersville, Dickinson, Elizabethtown, York. (The first 3 have geology departments.)

Future work

Follow up work can be done to conduct further studies of issues such as the storage and movement of water through the unconsolidated regolith. Studying fracture patterns of bedrock can be done to help the understanding of the affect of fractures on well production and contributing areas, and ground-water flow. These studies may lead to a better understanding of the reasons for the vulnerability of the crystalline rocks to contamination. This setting also has potential for studies of the affect of riparian buffers stream water quality. Also, the urbanization of this relatively undeveloped area can be monitored to assess the affects of urban growth on water quality and runoff.

Muddy Creek Basin highlighted in gray over the Lower Susquehanna River Basin

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References

Bickford, T.M., B.D. Lindsey, and Beaver M.R., 1996. Bacteriological quality of ground water used for household supply, lower Susquehanna River Basin, Pennsylvania and Maryland, U.S.Geological Survey WRI-96-4212.

Barton, G.J., Risser, D.W., Galeone, D.G., and Conger, R.W., 1999, Case Study for Delineating a Contributing Area to a Water-Supply Well in a Fractured Crystalline-Bedrock Aquifer, Stewartstown, Pennsylvania, U.S. Geological Survey Water-Resources Investigations Report 99-4047.

Daly, M.H., and Lindsey, B.D., 1996, Occurrence and concentrations of volatile organic compounds in shallow ground water in the Lower Susquehanna River Basin, Pennsylvania and Maryland: U.S. Geological Survey Water-Resources Investigations Report 96-4141.

Fishel, D.K., Langland, M.J., and Truhlar,Hydrology and the hypothetical effects of reducing nutrient applications on water quality in the Bald Eagle Creek headwaters, southeastern Pennsylvania prior to implementation of agricultural best management practices, U.S. Geological Survey Water-Resources Investigations Report 91-4006.

Gerhart, J.M., and Lazorchick, G.J., 1988, Evaluation of the ground-water resources of the Lower Susquehanna River Basin, Pennsylvania and Maryland: U.S. Geological Survey Water-Supply Paper 2284.

Langland, M.J., and Fishel, D.K., 1993, Hydrology and the effects of selected agricultural best-management practices in the Bald Eagle Creek Watershed, York County, Pennsylvania, prior to and during nutrient management, U.S. Geological Survey Water- Resources Investigations Report 93-4069.

Lindsey, B.D., Breen, K.J., Bilger, M.D., and Brightbill, R.A., 1998, Water Quality in the Lower Susquehanna River Basin, Pennsylvania and Maryland, 1992-95: U.S. Geological Survey Circular 1168.

Lindsey, B.D., Loper, C.A., and Hainly, R.A., 1997, Nitrate in ground water and stream base flow in the Lower Susquehanna River Basin, Pennsylvania and Maryland: U.S. Geological Survey Water-Resources Investigations Report 97-4146.

Siwiec, S.F., Hainley, R.A., Lindsey, B.D., Bilger, M.D., and Brightbill, R.A., 1997. Water Quality Assessment of the Lower Susquehanna River Basin: Pennsylvania and Maryland: Design and Implementation of Water Quality Studies, 1992-1995. U.S. Geological Survey OFR 97-583.

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