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Little Bear Creek Reservoir

Ecological health rating

Ecological health conditions in Little Bear Creek Reservoir rated at the upper end of the fair range in 2009. The reservoir rated fair all previous years except 2005, when it rated poor due primarily to a lower rating for chlorophyll.

TVA monitors one location on Little Bear Creek—the deep, still water near the dam—usually on a two-year cycle.

Little Bear Creek Reservoir Ecological Health Ratings, 1994-2009

rating chart

Click chart for raw data.  

 

The table below shows the ratings for individual ecological health indicators at Little Bear Creek in 2009.These ratings are briefly explained in the paragraphs that follow.

Ecological Health Indicators at
Little Bear Creek Reservoir, 2009

Monitoring
location

Dissolved oxygen

Chlorophyll

Fish

Bottom life

Sediment
Forebay

Dissolved oxygen

As in previous years, dissolved oxygen rated poor. The lower half of the water column contained little oxygen (less than two milligrams per liter) during the summer months.

Chlorophyll

Consistent with previous years, chlorophyll rated good in 2009. The exception was in 2005 when slightly elevated chlorophyll concentrations resulted in a fair rating for this indicator.

Fish

The fish community rated good. Fish community scores have consistently been at the upper end of the fair range to good.

Bottom life

Bottom life rated fair.  Ratings have varied between fair and poor.  Most of the animals collected in 2009 were those known to be tolerant of poor water quality conditions but the occurrence of some less tolerant individuals (i.e., Hexagenia mayflies) resulted in the fair rating. 

Sediment

Sediment quality rated fair. No pesticides or PCBs were detected, but the concentration of arsenic equaled the upper limit of expected background levels. Sediment quality rated good all previous years, except in 2001 when arsenic levels also exceeded expected background concentrations, resulting in a fair rating.

 

See definitions of ecological health indicators and monitoring locations.

 

Fish consumption advisories

Little Bear Creek Reservoir - TVA maintains a program to examine contaminants in fish fillets from TVA reservoirs and their major tributary streams on a rotational basis.  The data collected from this program is distributed to the state officials who are responsible for placing or removing fish tissue consumption advisories on those bodies of water. For information on advisories currently in effect for Little Bear Creek Reservoir, visit the Epidemiology Division of Alabama Department of Public Health’s web page. http://www.adph.org/tox/index.asp?ID=1360     

 

lake photo

Little Bear Creek Reservoir is located in Franklin County in northwestern Alabama. It is one of four reservoirs on Bear Creek and its tributaries.

 

More about Little Bear Creek

Sport fishing ratings

Spring sportfish survey results

General information

To see monitoring results for other TVA reservoirs, choose from the list below.

 

 

           
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