Planning for what would be the first phase of an ambitious, multiyear plan to clean up roughly 20 miles of watershed on a local creek and its tributaries was discussed Thursday.

The discussion took place in Greeneville at a meeting of the Middle Nolichucky Watershed Alliance (MNWA).

The waterway in question is College Creek, which runs from the site of the former Wal-Mart department store on the 11-E Bypass through the Tusculum municipality and then on to the Nolichucky River.

Paul Hayden is a soil conservationist for the Greene County Soil Conservation District, which is spearheading the project.

Hayden on Thursday asked MNWA attendees for, and received, their approval in principle for the proposed creek clean-up project.

Cost 'Extremely Variable'

However, a big question remains. That is, who will step forward and contribute toward a required 40 percent in local support of the plan's implementation costs.

In follow-up comments in phone interviews conducted after the MNWA meeting, Hayden said that since he has yet to survey College Creek and its tributaries, he could not yet estimate the total clean-up cost.

"It's extremely variable, but based on the mileage (or length) of College Creek and because it's on an Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) list of impaired streams, that means there are significant problems" with College Creek and its tributaries, Hayden said.

He continued, "I would say we're talking $200,000-$300,000 in total cost" spread out over three or five years.

"It might turn out to be $400,000; we won't know the total until the plan is completed," he added.

The proposed plan for work and funding Hayden is working on must be turned in to the EPA by Dec. 1.

Funding will be spread out over the length of the project, which will probably be either three or five years, Hayden said.

'319 Grant'

The joint local, state, and federal government grant Hayden is applying for is officially called a "319 Grant".

"There's no limit on the amount you can ask for (from the EPA), except to provide the 40 percent match," Hayden said.

He explained, "If all we can round up is $40,000, the most we can get (in a grant from the EPA) would be $60,000," for a total project budget, or funding, of $100,000.

Minimum 40 Percent Needed

"You must provide a minimum 40 percent match and justify the use of the funds" in the plan he'll be working on from now until the end of November, Hayden said.

"Each month (from June through November), Dana (Ball, president of the MNWA) and I will make a report to the MNWA members and better hone in on what (money) we need" as they near the December deadline and after Hayden has surveyed College Creek and its watershed, he said.

Hayden Seeking Local Donations

Hayden on Thursday asked MNWA members to ask their local contacts, and their "friends of friends," for financial donations.

"I'm really seeking your help," Hayden said before the unanimous vote by eight MNWA attendees.

"I need cash from citizens interested in watershed clean-up," Hayden added.

In the phone interviews, Hayden said the federal EPA grant he is seeking stipulates that none of the required 40 percent in local funding can come from State of Tennessee or federal government agencies.

'Free' Labor Sought To Offset Cost
However, Hayden said part, but not all, of the required 40 percent goal in local funding may be met by "in-kind" labor.

Hayden defined "in-kind" labor as labor to implement the project that does not require any money outlays by the Soil Conservation District.

He said, for example, that the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) can supply trees to the Soil Conservation District for the project at no cost.

Following that, Tusculum municipal employees could perhaps plant those trees needed to bolster the watershed within the town's limits without charging the Soil Conservation District.

'A Good Probability' of Achieving Funds
When Hayden was asked the probability of attaining the full 40 percent in funding or "free" labor, he replied, "We're going to have to work at it. I think there's a good probability we can get it."

Hayden said the project will likely entail installing setback fences along College Creek and its tributaries, as well as the installation of livestock watering systems from College Creek to cattle that presently drink from the creek.

In addition, he said, grass, shrubs, and trees will likely be planted to filter runoff polluted by cow manure on farmland adjacent to the creek and tributary banks.

Hayden said the Tennessee Department of Agriculture is responsible for initially selecting, or approving, the watershed plan, which is the first phase of the project.

If the plan is approved, Hayden added, then the same department will disburse the combination local and federal funds for the proposed clean-up project to the Soil
Conservation District.

Creek Is 9.2 Miles Long

Hayden said College Creek is 9.2 miles long. He added, however, that the total area of the project probably covers roughly 3,000 acres, or 20 miles of creek bank along College Creek and all tributaries that feed water into it.
Hayden said he hoped the initial plan and project would be duplicated in the future to cover 55 other so-called "303D impaired streams" in Greene County identified as such by the EPA.

There are a total of 85 streams in Greene County, he said.

Hayden added that work on the project could begin as early as next March, or when the weather warms up, and continue through part of November, until winter weather arrives.

"I'm almost sure we'll have a five-year plan," Hayden said.

Drafting Plan

Hayden said that he hoped to draft the initial plan in time for the MNWA's November meeting.

He added that as early as March 2007 the project could be awarded the matching 60 percent in funds from the EPA.

Hayden said that according to the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC), College Creek has two major sources of pollutants: pasture grazing, including animals that enter the creek; and land development.

Hayden said composing the plan will involve a lot of time and work.

"You need to walk or drive and inspect every
foot of the main channel (College Creek) and tributaries to identify what has to be done," he said.

He also said "hundreds" of photographs will have to be taken of the watershed area and included in the proposed plan.

Hayden defined the watershed in question as "all water running into College Creek from anywhere."

Seeking Tusculum College Assistance
He said he chose College Creek as the first waterway in Greene County to clean up with a 319 Grant "because it's short," and because it runs close to Tusculum College, whose support he hopes to enlist in the project.

"They (Tusculum College) have the knowledge and the capabilities ... to help out," he said.

People interested in providing specific amounts of money, for example $500 over the course of the multiyear project, will be asked to sign a simple letter of commitment to their donation that Hayden will soon draft, he said.

Other Matters Discussed

Also discussed at the MNWA meeting were plans for the annual Ogle Neas Kids' Fishing Day, which will take place Saturday, June 10, on the former Dillard Property on Upper Paint Creek.

The property, now part of Cherokee National Forest, is located about three miles on Viking Mountain Road from the Asheville Highway turnoff.

Registration will begin at 8:30 a.m. and conclude one hour later.

Kids may begin fishing at 9:30 a.m., and do so up until 1 p.m.

Each child will be allowed to catch a maximum of two fish from stocked ponds and Paint Creek.