Keywords
E. coli
GPS collars
off-stream water
best management practices
How to Cite
Abstract
Excessive levels of fecal bacteria are the leading cause of water quality impairment in Texas, and livestock with direct access to water bodies are potentially a significant source of these bacteria. To help address this, the effect of providing alternative off-stream watering facilities to reduce manure, and thus bacterial, deposition in or near surface waters was evaluated from July 2007 to July 2009 in Clear Fork of Plum Creek in central Texas. An upstream-downstream, pre- and post-treatment monitoring design was used with off-stream water provided only during the second year of the study. Flow, Escherichia coli (E. coli) concentration, and turbidity were measured twice monthly. Cattle movements were tracked quarterly using global positioning system collars to assess the effect of providing alternative water on cattle behavior. Results showed that when alternative off-stream water was provided, the amount of time cattle spent in the creek was reduced 43%. As a result, direct deposition of E. coli into Clear Fork of Plum Creek was estimated to be reduced from 1.11 × 107 to 6.34 × 106 colony forming units per animal unit per day. Observed pre- and post-treatment instream E. coli loads suggested similar reductions; however, these reductions were not statistically significant.
Citation: Wagner KL, Redmon LA, Gentry TJ, Harmel RD, Knight R, Jones CA, Foster JL. 2013. Effects of an off-stream watering facility on cattle behavior and instream E. coli levels. Texas Water Journal. 4(2):1-13. Available from: https://doi.org/10.21423/twj.v4i2.6460.
References
Agouridis CT, Workman SR, Warner RC, Jennings GD. 2005. Livestock grazing management impacts on stream water quality: A review. Journal of the American Water Resources Association 41(3):591-606.
Ball DM, Hoveland CS, Lacefield GD. 2002. Southern Forages: Modern Concepts for Forage Crop Management. 3rd edition. Norcross (Georgia): Potash and Phosphate Institute and the Foundation for Agronomic Research. 322 p.
Berg M, McFarland M, Dictson N. 2008. Plum Creek Watershed Protection Plan. College Station (Texas): Texas AgriLife Extension Service.
Brady AMG, Bushon RN, Plona MB. 2009. Predicting recreational water quality using turbidity in the Cuyahoga River, Cuyahoga Valley National Park, Ohio, 2004–7. Scientific Investigations Report 2009–5192. Reston (Virginia): U.S. Geological Survey.
Brenner FJ, Mondok J, McDonald RJ Jr. 1994. Impact of riparian areas and land use on four nonpoint source pollution parameters in Pennsylvania. Journal of the Pennsylvania Academy of Science 65:65-70.
Brenner FJ. 1996. Watershed restoration through changing agricultural practices. In: Proceedings of the American Water Resources Association Annual Symposium, Watershed Restoration Management: Physical, Chemical, and Biological Considerations. American Water Resources Association, Herndon, Virginia, TPS-96-1, p. 397-404.
Buchanan B. 1996. Clean water boosts cattle performance. Prairie Water News 6(1).
Byers HL, Cabrera ML, Matthews MK, Franklin DH, Andrae JG, Radcliffe DE, McCann MA, Kuykendall HA, Hoveland CS, Calvert VH II. 2005. Phosphorus, sediment, and Escherichia coli loads in unfenced streams of the Georgia Piedmont, USA. Journal of Environmental Quality 34:2293-2300.
Clawson JE. 1993. The use of off-stream water developments and various water gap configurations to modify the behavior of grazing cattle [thesis]. [Corvallis (Oregon)]: Oregon State University, Department of Rangeland Resources.
Collins R. 2003. Relationships between streamwater E. coli concentrations and environmental factors in New Zealand. In: M. Bruen, editor. Proceedings of the 7th International Specialised IWA Conference on Diffuse Pollution and Basin Management; Dublin, Ireland. 3:176-180. London, England: International Water Association.
Cook MN. 1998. Impact of animal waste best management practices on the bacteriological quality of surface water [thesis]. [Blacksburg (Virginia)]: Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University.
Dickard ML. 1998. Management strategies for improved cattle distribution and subsequent riparian health [thesis]. [Moscow (Idaho)]: University of Idaho.
[EPA] United States Environmental Protection Agency. 2006. Method 1603: Escherichia coli (E. coli) in water by membrane filtration using modified membrane-thermotolerant Escherichia coli agar (Modified mTEC). EPA-821-R-06-011. Washington, DC: Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Water.
[FCA] Florida Cattlemen’s Association. 1999. Water quality best management practices for cow/calf operations in Florida. Kissimmee (Florida): Florida Cattlemen’s Association.
Gary HL, Johnson SR, Ponce SL. 1983. Cattle grazing impact on surface water quality in a Colorado front range stream. Journal of Soil and Water Conservation 38(2):124.
Godwin DC, Miner JR. 1996. The potential of off-stream livestock watering to reduce water quality impacts. Bioresource Technology 58:285-290.
Grant DM. 1991. Isco open channel flow measurement handbook, 1st edition. Lincoln (Nebraska): Isco: Inc.
Hagedorn C, Robinson SL, Filtz JR, Grubbs SM, Angier TA, Reneau RB Jr. 1999. Determining sources of fecal pollution in a rural Virginia watershed with antibiotic resistance patterns in fecal Streptococci. Applied and Environmental Microbiology: 65:5522-5531.
Hagedorn C. 2012. Overview of case studies. Paper presented at: 2012 Bacterial Source Tracking: State of the Science Conference, New Braunfels, Texas.
Hamilton WP, Kim M, Thackston EL. 2005. Comparison of commercially available Escherichia coli enumeration tests: Implications for attaining water quality standards. Water Research 39(20):4869-4878.
Harmel RD, Karthikeyan R, Gentry T, Srinivasan R. 2010. Effects of agricultural management, land use, and watershed scale on E. coli concentrations in runoff and streamflow. Transactions of American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers 53(6):1833-1841.
Huey GM, Meyer ML. 2010. Turbidity as an indicator of water quality in diverse watersheds of the upper Pecos River basin. Water 2:273-284.
Jackson T, Smith A, McMullan G, Orear R, Fuller R, Dalman NE. 2011. A comparison of Escherichia coli levels in the Chattahoochee River between drought and non-drought years. In: Proceedings of the 2011 Georgia Water Resources Conference, University of Georgia, Athens Georgia. Athens (Georgia): Georgia Water Resources Institute.
Kauffman JB, Krueger WC. 1984. Livestock impacts on riparian ecosystems and streamside management implications…a review. Journal of Range Management 37(5):430-438.
Larsen RE, Buckhouse JC, Moore JA, Miner JR. 1988. Rangeland cattle and manure placement: A link to water quality. Proceedings of Oregon Academy of Science 24:7.
Larsen RE, Miner JR, Buckhouse JC, Moore JA. 1994. Water-quality benefits of having cattle manure deposited away from streams. Bioresource Technology 48:113.
Line DE. 2002. Changes in land use/management and water quality in the Long Creek watershed. Journal of the American Water Resources Association 38:1691-1701.
Line DE. 2003. Changes in a stream’s physical and biological conditions following livestock exclusion. Transactions of the American Society of Agricultural Engineers 46(2):287.
Lombardo LA, Grabow GL, Spooner J, Line DE, Osmond DL, Jennings GD. 2000. Section 319 Nonpoint Source National Monitoring Program Successes and Recommendations. Raleigh (North Carolina): North Carolina State University Water Quality Group, Biological and Agricultural Engineering Department.
McCarthy DT, Deletic A, Mitchell VG, Fletcher TD, Diaper C. 2008. Uncertainties in stormwater E. coli levels. Water Research 42:1812-1824.
McDonald JL, Hartel PG, Gentit LC, Belcher CN, Gates KW, Rodgers K, Fisher JA, Smith KA, Payne KA. 2006. Identifying sources of fecal contamination inexpensively with targeted sampling and bacterial source tracking. Journal of Environmental Quality 35:889-897.
McIver S. 2004. Using off-stream water sources as a beneficial management practice in riparian areas – a literature review. Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, Prairie Farm Rehabilitation Administration.
Meals DW. 2001. Water quality response to riparian restoration in an agricultural watershed in Vermont, USA. Water Science and Technology 43:175-182.
Meals DW. 2004. Water quality improvements following riparian restoration in two Vermont agricultural watersheds. In: Manley TO, Manley PL, Mihuc TB, editors. Lake Champlain Partnerships and Research in the New Millenium. New York: Kluwer Academic/Plenum Publishers. p. 81-95.
Metcalf and Eddy Inc. 1991. Wastewater engineering: Treatment, disposal, and reuse. 3rd edition. New York: McGraw-Hill, Inc.
Miner JR, Buckhouse JC, Moore JA. 1992. Will a water trough reduce the amount of time hay-fed livestock spend in the stream (and therefore improve water quality). Rangelands 14(1):35-38.
Mosley JC, Cook PS, Griffis AJ, O’Laughlin J. 1999. Guidelines for managing cattle grazing in riparian areas to protect water quality: Review of research and best management practices policy. Idaho Forest, Wildlife and Range Policy Analysis Group, Report No. 15. Moscow (Idaho): University of Idaho.
Omernik JM. 1987. Ecoregions of the conterminous United States. Map (scale 1:7,500,000). Annals of the Association of American Geographers 77(1):118-125.
Pandey V, Kiker GA, Campbell KL, Williams MJ, Coleman SW. 2009. GPS monitoring of cattle location near water features in South Florida. Applied Engineering in Agriculture 25(4):551-562.
Porath ML, Momont PA, DelCurto T, Rimbey NR, Tanaka JA, McInnis M. 2002. Offstream water and trace mineral salt as management strategies for improved cattle distribution. American Society of Animal Science 80:346-356.
Sheffield RE, Mostaghimi S, Vaughan DH, Collins ER Jr., Allen VG. 1997. Off-stream water sources for grazing cattle as a stream bank stabilization and water quality BMP. Transactions of the American Society of Agricultural Engineers 40(3):595-605.
Soil Survey Staff. 2011. Web Soil Survey: Caldwell County, Texas (TX055) [Internet]. Natural Resources Conservation Service, United States Department of Agriculture. [cited 14 February 2011]. Available from http://websoilsurvey.nrcs.usda.gov/
Tate KW, Atwill ER, McDougald NK, George MR. 2003. Spatial and temporal patterns of cattle feces deposition on rangeland. Journal of Range Management 56(5):432-438.
[TCEQ] Texas Commission on Environmental Quality. 2007a. Seventeen TMDLs for Adams Bayou, Cow Bayou, and their tributaries. Adopted June 13, 2007. Austin (Texas): Texas Commission on Environmental Quality.
[TCEQ] Texas Commission on Environmental Quality. 2007b. One TMDL for Guadalupe River Above Canyon Lake, Segment 1806. Adopted July 25, 2007. Austin (Texas): Texas Commission on Environmental Quality.
[TCEQ] Texas Commission on Environmental Quality. 2008. Executive Summary – 2008 Texas Water Quality Inventory and 303(d) List (March 19, 2008). Austin (Texas): Texas Commission on Environmental Quality.
Tiedemann AR, Higgins DA, Quigley TM, Sanderson HR, Marx DB. 1987. Responses of fecal coliform in streamwater to four grazing strategies. Journal of Range Management 40(4):322-329.
Veira DM. 2003. Livestock water: Impacts on production and behavior. In: Proceedings of the Western Range Science Seminar on Rangelands and Ranching: Achieving a Viable Future, Medicine Hat, AB, Canada.
Wagner KL, Redmon LA, Gentry TJ, Harmel RD. 2012. Assessment of cattle grazing effects on E. coli runoff. Transactions of ASABE (In Review).
Willms W, Colwell D, Kenzie O. 1994. Water from dugouts can reduce livestock performance [Internet]. Prairie Water News 4(1). Available from: http://www.prairiewaternews.ca/back/vol4no1/v41_st1.html
Willms WD, Kenzie OR, McAllister TA, Colwell D, Veira D, Wilmshurst JF, Entz T, Olson ME. 2002. Effects of water quality on cattle performance. Journal of Range Management 44:452-460.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Copyright (c) 2013 Kevin L. Wagner, Larry A. Redmon, Terry J. Gentry, R. Daren Harmel, Robert Knight, C. Allan Jones, Jamie L. Foster