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The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Houston-Galveston Area Council and the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, collected water-quality, streamhabitat, and biological data from five sites on Highland and Marchand Bayous in Galveston County, Texas, during 2006–07. Water-quality data-collection surveys consisted of synoptic 24-hour continuous measurements of water temperature, pH, specific conductance, and dissolved oxygen and periodically collected samples analyzed for several properties and constituents of interest. Bacteria samples were collected monthly at 10 sites on Highland and Marchand Bayous during the study. Stream-habitat data were collected at five sites three times during the study, July–August 2006, March 2007, and July–August 2007. At each site, a representative stream reach was selected. Within this reach, five evenly spaced stream transects were determined. At each transect, stream (wetted channel width, water depth, bottom material, instream cover) and riparian (bank slope and erosion potential, width of natural vegetation, type of vegetation, percentage tree canopy) attributes were measured. Benthic macroinvertebrate and fish data were collected from the same five sites identified for habitat evaluation. Three assessments were done to account for seasonal differences in biotic distribution. Stream-habitat and aquatic biota (benthic macroinvertebrates and fish) were assessed at each site three times during the study to evaluate aquatic life use. A total of 5,126 macroinvertebrate individuals were identified at all sites. During the study, 34 species of fish representing 28 families were collected from all the sites. Introduction The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) administers water-quality management programs with the goal of protecting, maintaining, and restoring water resources in Texas. One such program is the Texas Clean Rivers Program (CRP), which was established by the 1991 Texas Legislature (Texas Administrative Code, 2007). Under the CRP, water-quality monitoring and assessments are conducted in 23 river and coastal basins statewide through contracts with partner agencies. The Houston-Galveston Area Council (H-GAC) is the partner agency for a 13-county service area in southeastern Texas that includes the Houston metropolitan area. Every 2 years (biennium), CRP partners may perform systematic monitoring studies, whereby a variety of data are collected in water bodies that are not monitored routinely. Data from these special studies help to determine whether additional assessment is needed to evaluate human health concerns, the status of ecological conditions, or designated stream uses. The coastal basins of Highland Bayou and Marchand Bayou in Galveston County were chosen for this monitoring study (fig. 1). Both bayous currently (2008) are listed on the 303(d) list of impaired waters in Texas for low dissolved oxygen (Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, 2008). Parts of Highland Bayou (segment 2424A) and all of Marchand Bayou (segment 2424C) also are listed as impaired because of high bacteria concentrations. To better understand the spatial and temporal variability of water quality in the two bayous, and to characterize the habitat of the streams and the status of their biological communities, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with H-GAC and TCEQ, collected data during 2006–07 to document water-quality, streamhabitat, and biological conditions in the bayous. Purpose and Scope The purpose of this report is to document the waterquality, stream-habitat, and biological data collected from 10 sites (reaches) on Highland and Marchand Bayous during 2006–07. Data-collection methods are described, and data are presented to compare water-quality changes at and among Water-Quality, Stream-Habitat, and Biological Data for Highland and Marchand Bayous, Galveston County, Texas, 2006–07 By Dexter W. Brown, Jeffrey A. Mabe, and Michael J. Turco 2 Water-Quality, Stream-Habitat, and Biological Data for Highland and Marchand Bayous, Galveston County, Texas, 2006–07 sites during the study period. In addition, water-quality data were compared to State screening thresholds for selected water-quality constituents. Metrics computed from streamhabitat and biological data were compared to State indexes for aquatic life use (Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, 2007). Description of Study Area Highland Bayou is a tidally influenced stream draining an approximately 39-square-mile area in Galveston County on the Texas Gulf Coast (fig. 1). The water course rises near the town of Santa Fe and runs east-southeastward about 12.6 miles to Jones Bay. Marchand Bayou is a smaller, shallower tributary that joins Highland Bayou near its mid-point. The Highland and Marchand Bayous watershed (study area) contains a mix of developed and undeveloped land (fig. 2). The upper reaches of the watershed are characterized by relatively narrow channels, steeply sloping channel sides, and low banks. Bank vegetation primarily consists of grasses, trees, and shrubs or maintained lawns. The lower reaches are characterized by relatively broad channels, a sinuate shoreline, and gently sloping channel sides that grade into shallow banks. Channel margins in the lower reaches are less developed and generally are lined with cordgrass. Figure 1. Highland and Marchand Bayous watershed and locations of Highland and Marchand Bayous sampling sites (reaches), Galveston County, Texas, 2006–07. 29°25' 29°20' Base from Roads: U.S. Department of Transportation, 1999, 1:24,000 Counties: Texas General Land Office, 1999, 1:24,000 Cities: Texas Natural Resources Information System digital data, 1995 Projection: Texas Centric Mapping System Albers Equal Area Datum: NAD83 EXPLANATION Study area U.S. Geological Survey sampling site (reach) and number (table 1) J o n e s B a y G a l v e s t o n B a y D o l l a r B a y G A LV ESTO N CO U N TY B R A ZO R IA CO U N TY Fa i r w o o d R d. Bayou Dr M o s e s L a k e hland ayou M ar ch an d Bayou FM 519 08077710 Texas City Hitchcock Santa Fe La Marque Galveston Island 08077780 08077738 08077725 08077720 08077700 08077745 08077730 08077715 08077705 94°55' 95° 95°5' TEXAS 0 3 6 Kilometers 0 3 6 Miles 08077700 Data Collection and Analysis 3 Climatic conditions in the study area are classified as humid subtropical (Larkin and Bomar, 1983) and characterized by cool temperate winters, long hot summers, and high relative humidity. Data from a National Weather Service station on Galveston Island about 10 miles south of Hitchcock (Jamaica Beach, COOP ID 414531) indicate weather conditions during the study period, July 2006–September 2007 (National Climatic Data Center, 2008). During the study period, mean temperatures ranged from about 55 degrees Fahrenheit (°F) in winter (December–February) to about 83 °F in summer (June– August), with maximum temperatures frequently higher than 90 °F. Total rainfall at Jamaica Beach during the 15-month study period was 96.24 inches; the maximum monthly total was 14.89 inches in October 2006, and the minimum monthly total was 0.16 inch in February 2007 (fig. 3). Data Collection and Analysis Data for this report were collected from 10 sites (reaches) in the Highland and Marchand Bayous watershed (fig. 1; table 1). Hereinafter, reaches are referred to by their short names as listed in table 1. Water-quality data for this report are categorized by the way they were collected: (1) continuously monitored data—water-quality properties measured with a multiprobe instrument at each site; and (2) periodically Figure 2. Land-cover distribution in Highland and Marchand Bayous watershed, Galveston County, Texas (Houston-Galveston Area Council digital data, 2002). J o n e s B a y G a l v e s t o n B a y D o l l a r B a y G A LV ESTO N B RA ZO IA C O U N TY ai r w o o d R d. Bayou Dr M o s e s L a k e hland Bayou M ar ch an d Bayou FM 519 Texas City Hitchcock Santa Fe La Marque 94°55' 95° 95°5' 29°25' 29°20' Base from Roads: U.S. Department of Transportation, 1999, 1:24,000 Counties: Texas General Land Office, 1999, 1:24,000 Cities: Texas Natural Resources Information System digital data, 1995 Projection: Texas Centric Mapping System Albers Equal Area Datum: NAD83 EXPLANATION U.S. Geological Survey sampling site (reach) Land cover Low intensity developed High intensity developed Cultivated land Grassland Woody land Open water Palustrine woody wetland Palustrine emergent wetland Bare/transitional TEXAS 0 3 6 Kilometers 0 3 6 Miles Galveston Island 4 Water-Quality, Stream-Habitat, and Biological Data for Highland and Marchand Bayous, Galveston County, Texas, 2006–07 collected data—water-quality properties and constituent concentrations obtained from analysis of discrete samples collected periodically at the sites. Four properties (water temperature, pH, specific conductance, and dissolved oxygen) were monitored continuously at five sites (table 1) for periods ranging from 24 hours to several days during July–October 2006, and March, May, July, and August 2007. At each site, monitors were located where depth and flow conditions were typical of the reach used for biological data collection. Properties were measured and logged by the monitors at 15-minute intervals. The same four properties plus transparency and turbidity were measured, and the constituents listed below were sampled periodically (one to five times per month during the 2006–07 study period) at five sites (table 1): 1. Chloride and sulfate 2. Residue on evaporation and total residue 3. Nutrients (ammonia plus organic nitrogen, ammonia nitrogen, nitrate plus nitrite nitrogen, nitrate nitrogen, nitrite nitrogen, organic nitrogen, total nitrogen, orthophosphate phosphorus, total phosphorus) 4. Total organic carbon 5. Biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) and carbonaceous biochemical oxygen demand (CBOD) 6. Phytoplankton (chlorophyll-a, pheophytin-a) 7. Suspended sediment Water temperature,

Water-quality, stream-habitat, and biological data for Highland and Marchand Bayous, Galveston County, Texas, 2006-07