James River Basin - Non Agricultural Activities
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News articles about water quality in the Ozarks are accessible on the Springfield News Leader’s website at: http://springfield.news-leader.com/specialreports/stewardshipozarks/.

Sewage Treatment PlantsAerial view of the Southwest Wastewater Treatment Plant

City sewage treatment facilities, industries, apartment complexes, mobile home parks, and subdivisions have permits to release treated wastewater into streams.  There are many sewage treatment plants in the James River Basin.  Sewage treatment plants take wastewater and treat it. If your house is connected to the sewer, the water that leaves your house when you flush your toilet or take a shower, and the water that leaves your house after you use the dishwasher or clothes washer travels in pipes to the city’s wastewater treatment plant.  The city treats the water and releases it into a nearby stream.  Sewage treatment plants in Fordland, Rogersville, and Galena all release their treated wastewater into the James River.  The sewage treatment plant in Springfield, the Southwest Wastewater Treatment Plant, releases its treated water into Wilson’s Creek.  Wilson’s Creek then runs into the James River.  The water that the treatment plants releases has to be clean enough before it is released into the stream.  The treatment facility has to make sure there are not too many chemicals or bacteria in the water that they are releasing into the stream. 

Image Source: http://www.ci.springfield.mo.us/egov/publicworks/sanitary/sw_plant.html

Septic Tanks

If your house is not connected to the sewer, then the wastewater from your house goes into a septic tank.  This septic tank is located under the ground in your yard.  The wastewater in a septic tank must be pumped out every 3 years.  If it is not pumped out, the wastewater might leak out.  This might pollute groundwater.  In southwest Missouri, the rock is mostly  limestone.  Limestone dissolves easily when water runs against it.   Over time, large natural tunnels can form under the ground.  Because of this, it is very important that people take good care of their septic tanks.  If they do not pump them regularly and have them checked out by professionals, wastewater from household septic tanks can travel very far in a short period.  This wastewater can flow underground and enter  rivers through springs.  Rivers will then be polluted.  If you live in a house that has a septic tank, ask your parents if they have pumped it out recently.  It is very important that they pump it out every 3 years.

According to the James River Basin Partnership, there are nearly 60,000 septic tanks in southwest Missouri.  70% of septic tanks in Missouri are not functioning correctly.  The result is that 100 million gallons of untreated sewage is available everyday to enter local lakes and streams.  Some local incidents of sewage spills have occurred in recent years in the James River Basin http://springfield.news-leader.com/specialreports/stewardshipozarks/sewage031903.html. 

In 2001 Table Rock Lake Water Quality, Inc. conducted a study of septic tanks around the lake and discovered that as many of 10,000 septic tanks in the lake area were in need of repair or maintenance.

Since many septic tanks were installed years ago before permits were required, there is no record of exactly how many septic tanks lie underground across the Ozarks.  Most counties in the James River Basin began to issue permits for septic tanks in 1992 or 1993.  Since 1992, Christian County has issued 5,681 septic tanks permits and Stone County has issued over 3,000 septic tanks permits since 1993.  The city of Springfield has over 2,000 septic tanks within its city limits while Greene County has an estimated 15,000 septic tanks.  There could be thousands more that are not accounted for.  Information about septic tanks can be found from county health departments.

From: http://ohioline.osu.edu/aex-fact/0743.html

Dams

In some areas river flow is controlled by constructing dams on the river or by trying to make the river run straight instead of curving through the landscape.  Dams are used to create lakes, control floods, and produce hydroelectricity. Dams affect the river by blocking fish migration up and down the river.  Dams can also cause the water to change temperature or have different levels of oxygen in the water. This can affect plants and animals in the water. There are a few dams in the James River Basin. A total of 44 miles of the James River has been blocked off by dams. The largest dam on the James River is the dam at Lake Springfield.  The dam blocks and slows the river forming Lake Springfield.  Lake Springfield covers 318 acres.  Water from the lake is used to cool down the coal-burning power plant located close to the lake. The power plant supplies Springfield citizens with electricity for household lights, heaters, air conditioners, stoves, refrigerators, and anything else that is plugged into a socket in the wall. Lake Springfield is a rich habitat for plants and animals.  Many people from Springfield fish at the lake. The is a recreational park at the lake.

Before the 1950’s, the James River used to flow into the White River.  In 1958, a dam was built on the White River resulting in the formation of Table Rock Lake.

Today, the James River runs into Table Rock Lake near Cape Fair, MO.

There are other small dams on streams (tributaries) flowing  into the James River.  These small dams were once used to generate electricity or run mills for grinding grain into flour.  The small dams in the James River Basin are:

  • Lindenlure Dam on Finley Creek at Missouri Highway 125,
  • Ozark Dam on Finley Creek at Ozark
  • Riverdale Dam one mile east of Missouri Highway 160 on Finley Creek
  • Hurley Dam on Spring Creek in Hurley
  • Calton Mill Dam on Little Flat Creek east of Purdy
  • McDowell Mill Dam on Flat Creek east of Purdy (Castillon 1994)

Riparian Vegetation

Lack of Riparian Vegetation - If there are not enough plants along the shoreline of a river, more pollutants will flow into the river. The soil on the bank will also be loose and run into the river.   Plants along a river are called “riparian vegetation”. To help the stream, you can plant trees or other plants along the shoreline

All Terrain Vehicles

Riding all-terrain vehicles, like four-wheelers or three-wheelers, through a stream is harmful to the water quality and habitat of a stream.  Riding ATV’s through a river can cause erosion of the banks, causing more soil and pollutants to be washed into the river.  The habitat of the plants and animals that live in the river will also be disturbed.

Urban Land Use

Many urban areas contain parking lots, buildings, paved drainage ditches, and other areas that do not allow water to infiltrate into the soil.  These areas are termed “impervious surfaces”.  When a large percentage of the land in a watershed is covered by impervious surfaces, pollution enters  into our rivers and lakes very quickly.  Rainwater can move very fast across impervious surfaces, picking up soil and pollutants along the way, and eventually flowing into area lakes and streams.   Impervious surfaces also restrict rainwater from sinking into the ground after a storm.  Because of this, the amount of groundwater in the area goes down.  In addition to the lowering of the groundwater table, the large amount of impervious surfaces can cause Ozark streams to go dry during the summer.

Pollutants from urban areas include metals, gasoline, paint, oil, and other chemicals.  Weed and bug sprays and fertilizers from yards and gardens, bacteria from animal and human wastes, and soil from homes, construction sites, and landscaping, are all pollutants that can harm a stream. 

Heat can be a pollutant too. When rainwater falls on impervious surfaces like concrete and pavement, the water is warmed up.  When the warm water reaches the stream, this can put stress on the plants and animals living in the stream.  Some fish, like trout, require cool water to live and cannot survive in unusually warm water.

In a 1992-1995 study by the USGS, 39 organic compounds were detected in water samples from the James River south of Springfield.  Three chlordane compounds were found in the tissue of Asiatic clams in the James River south of Springfield. These results indicated the effects of urbanization on the water quality of the James River.  The levels of chlordane found (0.0223 mg/kg) were still within the “safety limit’ (1.0 mg/kg).

Best management practices are used to reduce polluted runoff from cities and towns.   These include the following:

  • Seeds are planted or mulch is added to areas with loose soil so that the soil is not easily washed away into a nearby stream after a rainstorm.
  • Soil at construction sites is stopped from flowing away when it rains. Hay bales and fences are used to make the soil more stable.
  • Downspouts on gutters are pointed towards grassy areas instead of towards paved areas. This allows water to soak into the ground before it runs into the streams.
  • Stormwater is collected in holding basins.  This lets the soil and pollutants decrease in number before they reach a stream.

Gravel and Limestone Mining

There are many limestone quarries in the James River Basin. Runoff of mining sediments and acids leaking from these mines are a water quality concern.

Limestone Quarries with permits from Missouri Department of Natural Resources

Facility Name Address City Issue Date Expiration Date
Barry Co Ready Mix, LLC PO Box 542 Cassville, MO 2/8/2002 10/4/2006
Corles Ray Stehlik PO Box 542 Cassville, MO 2/22/2002 10/4/2006
Hutchens Construction Co. 1007 Main Street Cassville, MO 3/1/2002 10/4/2006
Bailey Quarries Inc. PO Box 430 Republic, MO 2/8/2002 10/4/2006
Kay Concrete Company PO Box 78 Republic, MO 2/8/2002 10/4/2006
Leo Journagan Const. Co. 3003 E. Chestnut Expy. Springfield, MO 2/22/2002 10/4/2006
Christian Co Concrete Co. PO Box 50685 Springfield, MO 2/22/2002 10/4/2006
Smith Calhoun, President 1817 Farmer Branch Road Ozark, MO 7/23/2003 10/4/2006
Leo Journagan Const. Co. 3003 E. Chestnut Expy. Springfield, MO 2/8/2002 10/4/2006
Concrete Co. of Springfield PO Box 50685 Springfield, MO 2/8/2002 10/4/2006
Table Rock Asphalt Construction Box 1165 Branson, MO 4/17/2003 10/4/2006
Prestressed Casting Company 1600 South Scenic Springfield, MO 3/1/2002 10/4/2006
Leo Journagan Const. Co. 3003 E. Chestnut Expy. 1200 Springfield, MO 3/1/2002 10/4/2006
Rich-Mix Corporation 3045 W. Atlantic Springfield, MO 2/22/2002 10/4/2006
Springfield Ready Mix Co. 2836 West Division Springfield, MO 5/3/2002 10/4/2006
David Harrison 928 S. Glenstone Springfield, MO 2/22/2002 10/4/2006
Chris W. Nattinger PO Box 4007 Springfield, MO 7/31/1998 2/15/2001
Prestressed Casting Company 1600 South Scenic Springfield, MO 3/1/2002 10/4/2006
Apac-Missouri Inc. 1591 A Prathersville Rd Columbia, MO 4/23/1999 2/15/2001
Concrete Co.-Springfield 510 Sherman Parkway Springfield, MO 2/22/2002 10/4/2006
Suhor Industries, Inc. 10965 Granada Ln, Ste 200 Overland Park, KS 2/8/2002 10/4/2006
Smith Calhoun Trucking Co 1948 NW Bypass Springfield, MO 6/14/2002 10/4/2006
Lobo Concrete Inc. Box 807 Angel Fire, NM 1/28/2000 2/15/2001
Table Rock Asphalt Construction PO Box 1165 Branson, MO 4/21/2003 10/4/2006
Leo Journagan Const. Co. 3003 E. Chestnut Expwy. Springfield, MO 2/8/2002 10/4/2006
Samuel M Hunsucker PO Box 139 Rogersville, MO 2/22/2002 10/4/2006

When water flows over rocks in a stream, rocks are slowly worn away.  After some time, pebbles and gravel are formed from larger rocks.  If the stream is old, sand will form from the constant flow water across rock surfaces. In the past 150 years in Missouri, the amount of gravel and sand has increased in streams.  When land is cleared for construction vegetation is cleared.  This causes increased runoff from land during heavy rains resulting in increased erosion and more gravel and sand entering into the streambeds.

Gravel is used for construction of roads, sidewalks, and gardens. It is obtained from streambeds via a process called gravel mining.   Sometimes gravel removal from a stream is done incorrectly resulting in the disruption of the streamflow and damage to plants and animal habitat. 

The Missouri Department of Conservation and Missouri Department of Natural Resources have programs designed to educate citizens, businesses, and landowners proper gravel mining techniques.  They can assist in determining appropriate areas  to obtain gravel. Permits are required to remove gravel from streams.

Regulations pertaining to gravel mining:

  • Do not drive trucks or heavy equipment like bulldozers in the stream.  This will cause more erosion.
  • Do not remove gravel from the stream between March 15th and June 15th. This is the time that fish are reproducing - gravel mining will disrupt the reproduction. Fish may not produce many young fish that year.
  • Do not wash the gravel that has been removed in the stream.  This will pollute the water in the stream by adding more soil to the stream.
  • Plant trees and other riparian vegetation along  stream banks. This will cause the bank to be more stable, resulting in less soil and gravel entering the stream. 

Operations in the James River Basin that had permits for sand and gravel washing from the Missouri Department of Natural Resources

Facility Name Address City Issue Date Expiration Date
J. Stanke & W. Partridge HCR, Box 3532 Reeds Spring, MO 4/26/1996 4/11/2001
Scott Van Haitsma PO Box 1376 Kimberling City, MO 12/17/1999 4/11/2001
Wes Partridge PO Box 1376 Kimberling City, MO    

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Missouri Department
of Natural Resources

Missouri Watershed Information Network (MoWIN)
Send comments to: mowin1@missouri.edu
205 Agricultural Engineering
Columbia, MO 65211
Phone: (573) 882-0085
Toll Free: (MO only): 1-877-H20-shed (426-7433)
Fax: (573) 884-5650

Page last updated August 26, 2008