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TMDL study flags limited E. coli in Castle Creek; aquifer testing shows no E. coli
Summary
Pam Hackley told the Castle Valley Water Advisory Committee that a recent Division of Water Quality total maximum daily load (TMDL) study found E. coli exceedances at downstream Castle Creek surface sites; USGS and partners plan intensified synoptic sampling while aquifer monitoring wells have not shown E. coli.
Pam Hackley told the Castle Valley Water Advisory Committee that a Division of Water Quality total maximum daily load (TMDL) study found E. coli exceedances in Castle Creek surface water at sites below Castleton, presenting a recreational concern.
Hackley said the detection in Castle Creek refers to surface water and does not equate to contamination of the valley's aquifer. She described planned synoptic sampling by Division of Water Quality staff and the Moab Area Water Partnership to sample many sites intensively over one or two days in the coming one to two months to better locate likely sources of the E. coli flux.
Committee members reminded the public that the town conducts twice‑annual sampling of seven monitoring wells in cooperation with the Utah Geological Survey; those aquifer samples have not shown E. coli and are monitored for other indicators (phosphate is sampled as a low‑cost proxy for septic influence). Members noted that Mill Creek and Pack Creek show worse contamination than Castle Creek and recommended watershed‑scale outreach and targeted sampling.
No enforcement action was adopted; the committee agreed to support expanded sampling and offered staff assistance in identifying additional sampling sites and community outreach to reduce potential nonpoint sources (for example, septic maintenance and management of animal feeding near creeks).
