Adams County conservation district to monitor Blue and Yellow Creeks for E. coli sources in 2026
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Summary
The county conservation district outlined 2026 plans including edge‑of‑field monitoring with USGS support, pilot phosphorus filters, and efforts to secure LARE grant funding and rewrite watershed management plans to reduce nutrient loading.
County conservation staff told commissioners they will expand water‑quality monitoring in 2026, focusing on Blue Creek and Yellow Creek subwatersheds with high E. coli readings.
The district has been running comparative conservation practice demonstrations and will collaborate with the U.S. Geological Survey to install edge‑of‑field monitoring equipment on private land to track sediment and nutrient overland flow. Staff said biological testing may help determine whether contamination is bovine, equine or human, which would shape targeted mitigation.
The district is pursuing grant options (including a LARE grant) and considering a rewrite of watershed management plans to support long‑term projects. Staff noted prior sampling and outreach efforts (soil and manure sampling, farm demos, cover‑crop promotion), community signage and education, and a staffing grant application to support summer student field work.
"We have over a 100 impaired waterways here in Adams County primarily for E. coli and for nutrient loading," a district representative said, and added that isolating the contamination source is essential to developing corrective measures. Commissioners welcomed the proposals and asked staff to pursue funding and report back on grant outcomes and planned pilot work schedules.