Ohio State University Extension Fact Sheet

Food, Agricultural and Biological Engineering

590 Woody Hayes Dr., Columbus, Ohio 43210

Butler County Water Resources

AEX-480.09

Steve Bartels
Kristina M. Boone
Larry C. Brown

Water is a resource often taken for granted. In recent years, water availability and quality have become important public concerns in Butler County. The county's population of 291,479 (1990 census data) is predominantly suburban, and almost all households rely on ground water for their water supply. By understanding where water is obtained and how it is used in the county, residents can gain a better appreciation for their water. Providing a brief overview of Butler County's water resources, this fact sheet is intended to help increase public awareness and understanding of water resources. Water resources terminology used in this publication is included in Surface and Ground Water Terminology, Fact Sheet AEX 460, which provides a listing of generally accepted water resource definitions. Ohio State University Extension publications are available through all Ohio county Extension offices.

Precipitation

An average of approximately 39 inches of precipitation fall on Butler County annually. Figure 1 illustrates the average monthly precipitation for the county for the period 1961 to 1990. Based on this 30-year record, the average precipitation is 3.3 inches per month, with January (2.3 inches) typically being the driest month, and May (4.3 inches) the wettest. There can be, however, extreme variations in some years and in certain months within a year. Such seasonal and yearly extremes, which may have serious consequences, often are not apparent from the long-term precipitation information.

Figure 1. Average monthly precipitation (in inches) in Butler County, Ohio (1961-1990); Data collected at Middletown.

Surface-Water Resources

Approximately 85 percent of the county lies in the Great Miami River basin, which flows south to the Ohio River. A small portion of the southeast corner of Butler County lies in the Mill Creek drainage basin, which also leads to the Ohio River. A generalized surface-water map of Butler County is given in Figure 2.

Surface waters are affected by the soil type and topography of the land adjacent to them, and the way humans use the land. Land use, such as residential development, construction and agricultural production, can increase the amount of sediment entering a body of water. The type of soils in an area also influences surface water because of the soil's infiltration capacity. With some soils, rainfall is more likely to run off, while other soils allow water to infiltrate more readily. Butler County contains approximately 301,000 land acres, of which 55 percent is farmland. Forty different soil types are present within the county, the majority of which are moderately well-drained silt loams and silty clays.

The county water acreage consists of about 700 acres of lakes, including about half of Acton Lake. There are 29 other lakes and ponds that are at least five acres in size. Most of the water acreage is used for recreation. There are approximately 304 linear miles of major streams and rivers (estimated from ODNR Div. of Water river basin maps). In addition to 960 miles of township ditches that are co-maintained by the townships and the county, there are 490 miles of county maintained ditches, 441 storm structures such as catch basins, 54,000 feet of county maintained storm sewer, and 8,600 feet of paved gutters maintained under the ditch section of Ohio Revised Code 6137.

Figure 2. Surface-water resources in Butler County, Ohio (adaped from ODNR Division of Water river basin maps by R. A. Roberts).

Ground-Water Resources

Butler County's primary ground-water source consists of glacial outwash deposits of stratified clay, sand and gravel in buried valleys. Along the Miami River, Four Mile Creek and Seven Mile Creek, wells may yield up to 1,500 gallons per minute (gpm). However, in areas away from the streams, the aquifer is a shaly limestone bedrock, which is too fine-grained to yield appreciable amounts of water. This extreme variation in ground-water yields in the county is demonstrated by two wells within two miles of each other. The well drilled in the glacial outwash is only 40 feet deep and yields 1,500 gpm, while the well in the shaly limestone is 125 feet deep and yields less than 1 gpm. Ground-water supplies in the county have a high natural mineral content resulting in hard water. For water with hardness beyond 150 ppm of CaCO₃, which is a measure of hardness, softening is usually desired. Water in Butler County generally ranges between 300 and 500 ppm of CaCO₃. Varying amounts of iron have been detected. Most wells produce iron levels that are considered a nuisance. An overview of the ground-water resources in the county is given in Butler County Ground-Water Resources, AEX-490.09.

The yield of a well will vary considerably depending on the age and depth of the well, well construction, the diameter of the casing, pump capacity and age, and more importantly, properties of the geologic formation. Specific information on ground-water availability and wells can be obtained by contacting the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR), Div. of Water.

Where Does the Water Go?

Based on long-term weather records, Ohio receives an average of 38 inches of precipitation per year. These 38 inches move through a complex path called the hydrologic cycle. Of these 38 inches, about 10 inches (26 percent) become runoff, which moves immediately to surface-water bodies like streams and lakes. Two inches are retained at the ground surface and evaporate back into the atmosphere in a relatively short period of time. Twenty-six of the 38 total inches enter the soil surface through infiltration. Twenty of these 26 inches go into soil storage and later are returned to the atmosphere by the combination of evaporation and transpiration (evapotranspiration). The remaining 6 inches of precipitation (16 percent of the total) have the potential to recharge the ground-water supply. Two of these 6 inches eventually move to springs, lakes, or streams as ground-water discharge. The remaining 4 inches either return to the atmosphere by evapotranspiration or are withdrawn to supply water needs. For further reading, refer to Ohio's Hydrologic Cycle, AEX 461.

Statewide averages applied to the county's average annual precipitation provide a rough estimate of how many inches will result in runoff and how many inches have the potential to reach aquifers. Based on statewide averages of runoff and ground-water recharge, Butler County's 39 inches of average annual precipitation result in about 10 inches (26 percent of total) of runoff to streams and lakes, and about 6 inches have the potential to recharge aquifers, annually. Values for particular locations will differ according to local conditions.

Water Use

Water use for each of Butler County's public water-supply systems is given in Table 1. For each water system, this table presents an estimate of the population served, water source, estimated daily usage and treatment plant capacity. In some cases, the figures for population served are not based upon actual counts, but on estimates of the number of people using each connection.

The county's largest public-water system is Hamilton, which uses ground-water sources for its supply. The Water Association, Butler County Water and Sewer, Fairfield, Middletown, Monroe, New Miami, Oxford, Seven Mile and Trenton use ground water for their source of water. Only Port Union uses surface water, which the system purchases from Cincinnati.

Ground water is a major water source for rural households in Butler County. Approximately 19 percent of all households obtain their water from private wells. Based on an estimated usage of 75 gallons per person per day, 4.2 million gallons per day (gpd) is used from private wells. Additional private water uses include industry (16,430,000 gpd), golf course and crop irrigation (30,000 gpd), and livestock use (70,000 gpd), mostly from ground-water supplies. The remaining 81 percent of households use public-water supplies with ground or surface water as the source, as identified in Table 1.

Table 1. Water Use in Butler County, Ohio.1
Public Water System	Population Served	Primary Water Source	Water Usage (GPD)2	Treatment Plant Capacity (GPD)
Butler Co. Port Union Sys.3	808	Surface Water	280,000	0
Butler Co. Queen AC Sewer & Water Dist.4	925	Ground Water	70,000	259,000
Butler County Sewer District5	43,250	Ground Water	5,240,000	0
Fairfield	35,000	Ground Water	4,440,000	5,900,000
Hamilton	60,000	Ground Water	17,490,000	24,000,000
Middletown	50,728	Ground Water	11,000,000	13,000,000
Monroe	4,805	Ground Water	802,000	1,500,000
New Miami	2,575	Ground Water	288,000	700,000
Oxford6	22,500	Ground Water	1,880,000	3,370,000
Seven Mile	841	Ground Water	85,000	216,000
The Water Association	18,500	Ground Water	2,240,000	4,600,000
Trenton	6,400	Ground Water	621,000	1,224,000
Other7	2,262	Ground Water	390,000	864,000
1 Estimates from Ohio EPA using 1993 data, adjusted by Leonard Black, ODNR Div. of Water.
2 GPD = gallons per day.
3 Water supplied by Cincinnati.
4 Water supplied by The Water Association.
5 Water supplied by Hamilton.
6 Includes university student population; Oxford resident population, excluding students, is 8,750.
7 Other includes the Airway, Catalina, Crouse, Edgewood, Linda and Village mobile home park, Ross Meadows and two regional water associations.

Some water users in Ohio must register their withdrawals with the ODNR Div. of Water. Through the Water Withdrawal Facility Registration Program, owners of facilities that could withdraw 100,000 gpd (70 gpm) or more must register those facilities. Information collected through this program includes withdrawal capacity, ground- or surface-water sources, location and type of water use, and location of discharge points. The program is for registration only, and not for allocation or permission. Registered withdrawers file annual reports of their water use. This information helps planners at ODNR determine the availability of water for projected needs and better manage and protect Ohio's water resources. Documenting water use also provides official records for individual uses. For more information, contact ODNR, Div. of Water.

Butler County also has six non-transient non-community public water supplies. Non-transient non-community systems are small public supplies, such as some schools and businesses, that serve more than 25 of the same people for six months of the year. In Butler County, 1,217 people are served by non-transient non-community systems and the total usage is 4,100,000 gpd.

Water Quality

Natural processes and human activities affect the quality of our water supplies. Throughout Ohio, human activities contribute to nonpoint source pollution, through which a major portion of the sediment, nutrients, acids and salts, heavy metals, toxic chemicals, and pathogens enter the state's water resources. Nonpoint source pollution is the introduction of impurities into a surface-water body or an aquifer, usually through a non-direct route and from sources that are "diffuse" in nature. This type of pollution affects both ground and surface water. Examples include automobile emissions, runoff from parking lots, runoff and drainage from agricultural fields, feedlots, and home gardens, and runoff and drainage from construction, mining and logging.

Ground Water

As water moves through the glacial outwash, stratified clay, sand and gravel underlying Butler County, it dissolves and carries in solution minerals contained within these sediments. AEX-490.09 summarizes some of the county's natural ground-water quality aspects.

Human activities, such as agricultural production, domestic waste disposal, and lawn and turf care, may have some influence on the county's ground-water quality. In a 1989 study by Heidelberg College, 493 wells in the county were sampled for nitrate content, of which 152 (30 percent of total) contained nitrate-nitrogen concentrations in the range of 0 to 0.3 parts-per-million (ppm). This range is assumed to represent natural background levels. Two hundred two wells (41 percent) were tested in the range of 0.3 to 3.0 ppm; these values may or may not indicate human influence. The 108 wells (22 percent) that tested in the range of 3.0 to 10 ppm, may indicate elevated concentrations resulting from human activities. Only 31 wells (6 percent) tested at over 10 ppm nitrate-nitrogen, which exceeds the safe drinking-water standard. The average test value for the 493 wells tested was 2.9 ppm. Design, location and condition of a well, as well as the characteristics of the soils and geologic formations in which the well is constructed, influence the potential for pollutants to enter the well.

Bacterial counts are another indicator of ground-water quality. The Butler County Department of Health tests water samples for concerned citizens. Results of these tests indicate that of the 347 private water systems tested in 1992, 129 (37 percent) were found to be contaminated with bacteria. According to the Ohio Fire Marshall's office, there are 375 registered facilities with 1992 underground storage tanks in Butler County. If not properly monitored and maintained, these tanks potentially can pose a threat from leaks.

Surface Water

Runoff and sediment from residential development, construction sites and agricultural lands may enter the county's streams and lakes. Also, runoff may carry other pollutants, such as lawn and agricultural chemicals (pesticides and fertilizers), effluent from septic systems, oil and gas from spills, and industrial wastes.

Through the Ohio Nonpoint Source Assessment and Water Resources Inventory, Ohio Environmental Protection Agency (Ohio EPA) and ODNR have found that 13,000 stream miles in Ohio have been affected by nonpoint source pollution. Butler County contains portions of several streams and their tributaries that have been classified by the Assessment as being affected by nonpoint source pollution. Based on the findings of the Assessment and Inventory, the Ohio Nonpoint Source Management Plan has been implemented to help improve the quality of the state's waters. For specific information on results of the Assessment and details of the Management Plan for the county, contact the Ohio EPA Southwest District Office (40 S. Main St., Dayton, OH 45402).

Overall, Butler County has a safe supply of water. County citizens have a major challenge to protect water resources from pollutants that could affect the quality of the water supply. For more information about nonpoint source pollution, refer to Nonpoint Source Pollution: Water Primer, AEX 465, available from your county Extension office.

Summary

Water availability and quality are important public concerns. Water problems can be both costly and inconvenient. While the present and future availability of water is good for Butler County, water is a precious resource that must be conserved and protected. We must all work together to maintain an adequate supply of good quality water.

This fact sheet provided information on water facts for Butler County. For more information on water resources and drinking-water quality in the county, contact the Butler County office of Ohio State University Extension. In addition, the following agencies may be able to provide information on other water resources topics in the county: Butler Soil and Water Conservation District; Butler County Health Department; ODNR Div. of Water (Fountain Square, Col., OH 43224); U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), Ohio District (975 W. Third Ave., Col., OH 43212); Ohio EPA (1800 WaterMark Dr., Col., OH 43266); and Ohio Department of Health (PO Box 118, Col., OH 43226).

Bibliography

Butler County Ground-Water Resources. 1993. S.R. Bartels, A.W. Jones, L.C. Brown and K.M. Boone. AEX-490.09. Ohio State University Extension.

Butler County, Ohio Soil Survey, 1980. USDA-SCS.

Doane's Agricultural Report. 1992. Farm Water Systems.

Estimated Water Use in Ohio, 1990, Public Supply Data. 1993. USGS. Open-File report 93-72.

Gazetteer of Ohio Streams. 1960. Ohio Water Inventory Report No. 12. ODNR Div. of Water.

Ground-Water Resources of Butler County. 1993. J.J. Schmidt. ODNR Div. of Water. (map).

Ground-water Resources of the Cincinnati Area, Butler and Hamilton Counties, Ohio. 1948. USGS. Water-Supply Paper 999.

A Hydrologic Study of the Valley-fill Deposits in the Venice Area (Butler County), Ohio. 1961. USGS. Tech. Report 4.

Hydrologic Atlas for Ohio: Average Annual Precipitation, Temperature, Streamflow, and Water Loss for the 50-Year Period 1931-1980. 1991. L.J. Hartstine. Water Inventory Report No. 28. ODNR Div. of Water.

Inventory of Municipal Water-Supply Systems by County, Ohio. 1977. Ohio Water Inventory Report No. 24. ODNR Div. of Water.

Inventory of Ohio's Lakes. 1980. Ohio Water Inventory Report No. 26. ODNR Div. of Water. >Monthly Station Normals of Temperature, Precipitation, and Heating and Cooling Degree Days, 1961-90, Ohio. 1992. Climatology of the United States, No. 81 (by state). NOAA.

Nitrate and Pesticides in Private Wells of Ohio: A State Atlas. 1989. Water Quality Laboratory, Heidelberg College.

Nitrate In Drinking Water. 1987. K.M. Mancl. Bulletin No. 744. Ohio State University Extension.

Nonpoint Source Pollution: Water Primer. 1993. R. Leeds and L.C. Brown. AEX 465. Ohio State University Extension.

Ohio Ground-Water Quality. USGS National Water Summary - Ohio. 1986. USGS. Water-Supply Paper 2325.

Ohio Ground-Water Resources. USGS National Water Summary - Ohio. 1984. USGS. Water-Supply Paper 2275.

Ohio Nonpoint Source Management Program. 1993. ODNR. Fountain Square, Col., OH 43224-1387.

Ohio Surface-Water Resources. USGS National Water Summary - Ohio. 1985. USGS. Water-Supply Paper 2300.

Ohio Water Resource Inventory: Executive Summary and Volumes 1-4. 1992. Ohio EPA. Col., OH 43266-0149.

Ohio's Hydrologic Cycle. 1990. L.C. Brown and K.M. Coltman. AEX 461. Ohio State University Extension.

Potential Development and Recharge of Ground Water in Mill Creek Valley, Butler and Hamilton Counties, Ohio, Based on Analog Model Analysis. 1970. USGS. Water-Supply Paper 1893.

Private Water Systems Handbook. 1987. MWPS-14. Midwest Plan Service, Ames, IA.

Soil and Water Conservation District Resource Inventory. 1985. USDA-SCS.

Southwestern Ohio Water Plan. 1976. ODNR Div. of Water.

State of Ohio Nonpoint Source Assessment: Volumes 1-6. 1990. Ohio EPA. Col., OH 43266-0149.

Surface and Ground Water Terminology. 1990. L.C. Brown and L.P. Black. AEX 460. Ohio State University Extension.

Water - Ohio's Remarkable Resource. 1982. ODNR Div. of Water.

Withdrawal and Distribution of Water By Public Water Supplies in Ohio, 1985. USGS. Open-File Report 89-423.

Acknowledgments

This publication was produced through the Ohio Water Resources Education Project, in cooperation with: ODNR Div. of Water; Ohio EPA; USGS, Ohio District; and Ohio Department of Health (ODH). Project leaders are Larry C. Brown and Kristina M. Boone. Support was provided, in part by: the cooperating agencies; Butler County office of OSU Extension; Butler County Commissioners; Overholt Drainage Education and Research Program; and USDA Extension Service Grant No. 90-EWQI-1-9018.

The project leaders express appreciation to the following reviewers: Bob Hubbard (The Water Association); Richard Fleming (Hamilton City Dept. of Public Utilities); James M. Raab, David Cashell and Leonard Black (ODNR Div. of Water); Scott Golden (Environmental Health, ODH); Steve Hindall and Ron Veley (USGS, Ohio District); Jay Fleming (Ohio EPA, Div. of Drinking and Ground Water); James Wade (USDA-SCS); Rich Bendula (Ohio EPA, Southwest District); and Larry Antosch (Ohio EPA Div. of Surface Water). A special thanks to Michelle Roby and Ross A. Roberts (Agricultural Engineering Undergraduate Assistants) for help in manuscript and graphics preparation, and Judy Kauffeld, Publications Editor (Section of Communications and Technology, Ohio State University), for editorial and graphic production.