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Fast Facts
Environmental Creek Assessments |
Photo Gallery |
| Fast Facts |
| Population |
2000: 665
2030: 2,941 |
| Creek Length |
2 miles
|
| Drainage Area |
1 square
mile |
| Drains To |
Colorado
River at Town Lake at the Tom Miller Dam spillway |
| Well Known Sites |
|
| Land Use |
Residential
Business
Civic
Parks
Roadways
Undeveloped |
56%
0%
1%
5%
12%
25% |
Watershed Facts
- The Little Bee Creek watershed passes through
the environmentally sensitive Edwards Aquifer Recharge Zone
where water travels through caves and sinkholes to “recharge”
the aquifer.
- Little Bee Creek spring is at the mouth
of the creek where it enters Lake Austin; water in this area
of the lake is noticeably cooler from the ground water input.
However, there is very little baseflow in most of the Little
Bee Creek watershed.
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Creek Assessments
Environmental
| Index |
Score |
Category |
Notes |
| Overall
Score |
63 |
Good |
Little Bee ranks 20 out
of 46 watersheds in overall quality |
Water
Chemistry |
46 |
Marginal |
Water quality is average,
ammonia is high, nitrate is high, conductivity is high, orthophosphorus
is high |
Sediment
Quality |
70
|
Good |
PAHs are high, herbicides/pesticides
are very low, metals are very low |
| Recreation |
79 |
Very
Good |
During dry weather conditions,
bacteria is not a threat |
| Aesthetics |
84 |
Very Good |
Litter is not a problem,
no odor, algae covers 10-20% of creek, some of the creek bed
is dry |
| Habitat |
48 |
Marginal
|
Some sediment deposition,
cover is insufficient, some channel alteration, bank vegetation
is marginal |
| Aquatic
Life |
49 |
Marginal |
Benthic macroinvertebrate
community is fair, diatom community is good |
- Absence of pollution-intolerant diatom species
suggests water quality may be impacting aquatic life.
- Aesthetics scores improved in Little Bee
more than other watersheds in the City.
- Residential development and associated fertilizers
may be the cause of high nutrients.
- Staff research indicates the source
of high PAH levels may be from parking lot sealants.
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