West Fork of the White River Watershed

The watershed is a 124 square mile sub-watershed of the Beaver Lake Basin and is located in the Boston Mountains of Washington County, AR. The main channel of the WF-WR watershed originates near the town of Winslow, AR and flows north. It passes through several cities including Greenland and Fayetteville and forms a confluence with the White River just east of Fayetteville. The WF-WR watershed is approximately 57% forest, 33% agriculture, and 10% urban.

The West Fork of the White River counts as its tributaries, Town Branch, Cato Springs, Rock Creek, and many other contributing streams. The West Fork joins the White just below Lake Sequoyah, and together, the streams flow for about 13 miles to the upper reaches of Beaver Lake. Beaver Lake is the primary water supply source for the 300,000+ residents of Benton and Washington counties. The West Fork of the White River is within a "Priority Watershed."

Project Goals/Objectives:
To coordinate a watershed group and plan that will develop and implement strategies for reducing non-point source pollutants in the West Fork of the White River, while raising awareness and education for healthy watersheds.
Project Tasks:
o Establish a Watershed Team
o Develop a Watershed Plan
o Information Dissemination
o Media Education Outreach
o Demonstration
o Develop a Watershed Strategy

Why the West Fork Watershed?
The Arkansas Unified Watershed Assessment selected the Beaver Lake Basin as the top priority for the implementation of watershed restoration practices. This priority ranking was in part due to the fact that the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ) classified the WF-WR as an impaired stream and placed it on the 303(d) list in 1998. The 303(d) list is directed by the EPA and lists all waters within the United States that are impaired by point and/or non-point source pollution.

The WF-WR 303(d) listing is indicative of heavy sediment loading from road construction and agriculture activities in the watershed. The habitat-rich White River is known for its diverse aquatic fauna, its beautiful spring-fed tributaries, and its water quality. The White River system supports more than 160 species of fishes and hundreds of species of aquatic insects, mussels, and other invertebrates. Many of these species occur nowhere else in the world including the checkered madtom and yoke darter.

The upper West Fork is known for its good water quality and its small mouth bass and rock bass populations. Closer to Fayetteville, though, water quality deteriorates quickly. The Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality assessed a 33.4-mile section of the West Fork east of Fayetteville and north to the upper reaches of Beaver Lake "as not supportive" of aquatic life.

The issues impairing the West Fork of the White River watershed cannot be addressed by technical fixes alone. A dual approach of education and community partnership building are the best long-term measures to resolve some of the critical water quality issues facing the West Fork and its downstream reservoir, Beaver Lake.

For more information please contact:

Melissa Terry
Conservation Organizer
NWA Field Office
44 North School Ave.
Fayetteville, AR 72701
Phone: 479.527.0700
FAX: 479.527.0701
mterry@audubon.org

The Audubon Mission: To conserve and restore natural ecosystems, focusing on birds, other wildlife, and their habitats for the benefit of humanity and the earth's biological diversity.