Some direct and indirect impacts to water quality are anticipated to result from 

 wildfire effects, but are expected to be low to moderate. 



Wallace Creek 



There are several dry draws with no discemable stream channel located in the 

 project area. Just below the project area in section 13, T12N, R16W, the 

 headwaters of Wallace Creek begins, which is a class 1 perennial stream 

 channel. 



Wallace Creek is listed on the 1996, 2000 and 2002 TMDL 303d list of 

 impaired streams. Agriculture, drinking water and industry are full supported. 

 Aquatic life support and fisheries are partially supported. "Partially 

 Supporting" is defined as a beneficial use determination, based on sufficient 

 credible data, that a waterbody is not achieving all the water quality standards 

 for the use in question, but the degree of impairment is not severe. Probable 

 causes are copper, metals and zinc. Probable sources are resource extraction 

 and abandoned mining. Assessment methods and information sources used 

 were ambient toxicity testing (acute), ambient toxicity testing (chronic) and 

 non-fixed station physical/chemical (conventional + toxicants) (Montana 

 Department of Environmental Quality). 



Erosion and sediment delivery are expected to increase as a result of moderate 

 to high intensity bums associated with recent wildfires within the project area. 

 Some direct and indirect impacts to water quality are anticipated in Wallace 

 Creek downstream of the proposed project area. There is a strip of mixed 

 severity bum between Wallace Creek and the high severity bum in which 

 some canopy and ground cover did not bum. Ground cover vegetation and 

 large woody debris that was not consumed would provide energy dissipation 

 and sediment filtration. 



4.3.1.3 Water Yield Cumulative Impacts 



Existing cumulative impacts to water quality are those impacts caused by 

 cumulative effect from past and present activities within the watershed. These 

 impacts include increased channel instability, detrimental increases in water 

 yield and increased sediment yield. 



Water yields are expected to increase as a result of the recent fire and 

 suppression activities. However, those increases are expected to be low to 

 moderate, well below those associated with detrimental water yield increases. 

 Anticipated water yield increases are expected to increase erosion on steep 

 slopes and existing roads in the bumed area. 



Donovan Creek 



Approximately 36 acres in the Donovan Creek watershed was bumed. There 

 has been extensive harvest and road construction in the middle and upper 



Dirty Dee Salvage Environmental Assessment 3-6 



