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FY 1996 ABSTRACTS
FY 1996 Water Problems and Issues
Introduction:
The State of New Hampshire takes pride in the fact that it is
well-endowed in natural beauty. This natural landscape translates
to a very large and dominant tourism industry. As with any industry,
care is taken to ensure that it is compatible with society and its
values. Given the fact that a core aspect of the tourism industry
and New Hampshire's scenic attractions is water, exceptional care
must be taken to accommodate tourism, especially because the water
itself has many other demands placed upon it.
Although New Hampshire is considered a small, rural state, it is
receiving development pressures, from within and without, that will
have long-term consequences on its water resources. This fact underscores
the need for a state-based program for water research, education,
and information dissemination.
Surface Water
New Hampshire surface water has been long used as a receiving
water for pollution (sewers, stormwater) as well as drinking water
(one-half of the population is served by surface water sources).
With the advent of the Clean Water Act, the most notoriously polluted
water bodies are again swimmable. There is little that the State
can do about the air pollution that invades New Hampshire and gets
deposited on the land and in the waters. Continuing studies show
that this problem persists.
The basic question of water availability received additional attention
this past year as one and one-half years of below-average precipitation
resulted in September streamflows lower than those ever recorded
at most of the State's long-term gauging stations. Statistically,
some streams exhibited low flows with a return frequency on the order
of 1000 years (7Q1000)! Low stream flows served to highlight the
fact that even though New Hampshire is in a humid region, competition
for water, in certain locales, is keen enough to result in water
scarcity. This included uses for water supply, hydropower, recreation,
and instream flows. Out-of-basin transfers were also harshly criticized,
although such transfers enjoy adjudication through the State Legislature
or the Public Utilities Commission.
Wetlands are receiving significant interest and protection at the
local and State levels. Nearly all development proposals seem to
have some impact on some wetland, and therefore, more effort is needed
on the utility, ecological niche, function, and replacement characteristics
of wetlands. A growing concern is that of private property rights
being limited by wetlands delineation.
Stormwater and its impact on receiving streams continues to be problematic.
The USEPA National Urban Runoff Program of the 1980's led to various
recommendations and guidelines for stormwater systems; however, there
has been no follow-up to these recommendations, especially considering
the fact that New Hampshire is a cold region and certain designs
(wet systems, vegetative systems) do not often function as desired.
Ground Water
Equally blessed with ground water resources, New Hampshire has
had most unconsolidated formations mapped, especially those that
are aquifers. At this writing, the State has completed the general
guidelines for wellhead protection and aquifer protection and has
left the implementation of these guidelines to the towns. The towns
are developing aquifer protection districts; however, the sticky
issue is that of private property rights. Rarely is there any form
of compensation to landowners when their property is designated as
part of an aquifer protection district, thus limiting the prospects
for development. This has now led to legal challenges.
Ground water is increasingly being targeted as a non-point pollution
source: not only septic systems, but larger land use practices that
can result in pollution. One such practice under intense scrutiny
now is the land application of biosolids, especially those imported
from our neighboring states. There are obviously right and wrong
ways of performing the land application; however, little data is
available for the typical New Hampshire soils and flora.
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DETERMINATION OF LOSS OR DEGRADATION OF WETLAND HABITATS
IN NORTHERN NEW ENGLAND UTILIZING REMOTE SENSING (CONDITION AND
CHANGE ANALYSIS): REFINEMENT OF METHODOLOGY, APPLICATION TO STUDY
SITES IN NEW HAMPSHIRE AND PUBLICATION OF RESULTS
Principle Investigators: Dr.
Larry G. Ward, Dr.
Arthur Mathieson, and Dr.
David M. Burdick, University of New Hampshire
Descriptors: Tidal wetlands, remote sensing, marsh loss and degradation
Research Objectives:
In order to address the need to document present conditions
of tidal wetlands in northern New England, as well as document changes
in the conditions, the following objectives were addressed:
- Create an aerial photographic data base to establish the conditions
of the marshes through time for the last half century.
- Adopt and refine a methodology utilizing aerial photography to
detect losses and changes in tidal marshes (marsh condition and
change analysis).
- Apply the methodology to determine present conditions of selected
marsh systems on the Squamscott River with respect to degradation
(boundary changes, marsh fragmentation, increase in interior ponding,
or presence of invasive species).
- Determine changes and trends of these parameters during the last
several decades (1950's to 1990's).
- Present the information in a format useful to managers and planners.
Principal Findings and Significance:
A major goal in undertaking this project was the establishment
of an archive of aerial photographs of tidal marshes along the Squamscott
River, as well as at other selected marsh sites in the Great Bay/Piscataqua
River Estuary and along New Hampshire's open ocean coast. The photographs
cover a time period from earlier in this century (1940's) to present.
This extensive data base allowed assessment of the present conditions
of the tidal wetlands of New Hampshire, as well as documentation
of changes in the conditions of the marshes over the last century.
In addition, other photographs were identified which will be studied
in subsequent research of tidal marshes of the northern New England
area.
A second major goal of this project was to refine a method utilizing
remote sensing to determine the present health, as well as changes
in the conditions over various time periods (years to decades) utilizing
commonly available computer hardware and software. The successful
development of this methodology (describe in the methods section)
has made possible the ability to scale, correct and enhance images,
conduct image analyses using the Marsh Surface Condition Index, and
display the results.
Finally, this methodology was applied to selected tidal marshes
(ten) along the Squamscott River. The results of these analyses show
that many of the marshes in the lower Squamscott River have undergone
some degree of deterioration. These changes are likely due to anthropogenic
effects (e.g. tidal restrictions), as well as natural processes (e.g.
sea level rise). In contrast, most of the marshes in the upper Squamscott
appear to be stable, with little evidence of marsh degradation except
where major man-made changes have taken place.
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HYDROGEOLOGY OF THE SPRUCE HOLE AQUIFER
Principle Investigators: Dr.
Thomas P. Ballestero, Dr.
James P. Malley, Jr., Dr. George O. Estes, University of New
Hampshire
Descriptors: Aquifer characteristics, groundwater recharge, groundwater movement,
groundwater modeling, geophysics, ecosystems, wetlands
Problem and Research Objectives:
The Spruce Hole Bog, located in the central portion of the formation,
is the only remaining "kettlehole" bog in southeastern New Hampshire.
Its uniqueness has been recognized by the National Park Service,
which designated the bog a National Natural Landmark. Bogs are ecosystems
whose species composition is potentially greatly influenced by water
table characteristics and chemical composition of incoming water.
Given the possible use of the Spruce Hole Aquifer as a water source
for Durham, and given the possible influence of such development
on the hydrologic characteristics of the bog, some baseline information
on the biological characteristics of the bog seems desirable.
The research objectives of this project include: delineation of
the lateral and vertical extent of the aquifer through the use of
seismic geophysics; completion of monitoring wells and a test pumping
well; biotic and ecologic assessment of the bog; delineation of the
ground water connection to the bog; hydrogeology of the formation;
and potential for the formation to serve as a water supply with and
without the use of artificial recharge.
Principle Findings and Significance:
The bog is a perched system. There is a 10-ft unsaturated zone
below the bog margin and above the lower aquifer zone. It responds
rapidly to rainfall; however, the underlying aquifer does not. Initial
data analysis indicated that the production zone is highly transmissive
(transmissivity of about 6000 ft2/day), and though not intimately
connected to rainfall, environmental isotopes imply a relatively
recent water source.
The bog was inspected every two weeks during Summer 1993 and cursory
examinations were made during Summer 1994 to confirm our findings.
Five species were added to the flora in 1994. Fifty plant species
representing 21 families inhabit Spruce Hole Bog. The Sphagnaceae
and Dicranaceae families were prominent among the mosses (45% and
38% of the moss flora respectively), and 32% of the vascular plant
species were members of the Ericaceae, or heath family. One species,
the Grass-pink (Calopogan tuberosus [L.] BSP) that was present in
1969 was not found during the 1993 or 1994 field seasons.
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CONSENSUS
INVESTIGATION AND CONFERENCE ON RESEARCH NEEDS
Investigator: Dr. Larry K. Brannaka, University
of New Hampshire
Descriptors: Research, future planning, consensus survey, research needs
Research Objectives:
This project consisted of two phases. The first phase entailed
conducting interviews of various governmental and non-governmental
agencies which are in some way related to research in water resources.
The interviews were directed toward identifying the research priorities
for the next five years in the view of the respective agency for
New Hampshire and the seacoast region. The objective of this phase
was to gain a consensus of the future directions that research in
water resources should take, and which issues should have priority.
The second phase of the project entailed a half-day conference for
representatives from the interviewed agencies and research oriented
organizations to come together and discuss the future research priorities
of the region, and refine or resolve the conclusions obtained from
the Phase I activities. The objective of this phase of the project
is to provide a forum for the exchange of ideas and communication
between the various agencies involved in water resources research,
and to come to an understanding as to the priorities for research
in the near- and long-term future.
Principle Findings and Significance:
The preliminary findings identified several areas which were
commonly referenced. Several agencies suggested that research be
directed toward looking at water quality in both surface and groundwater
from a total biological systems approach, looking at the entire watershed.
By dealing with a broader based approach, many agencies are concerned
about non-point source (NPS) pollution (non-point source pollution
topics such as roadway contaminants, pesticides and herbicides used
in the residential zones, and agricultural nutrients). Biosolids
is another topic which should have priority for research. The effect
of land farming of biosolids on both ground water and surface water
were of concern. Buffer zones are designed to protect surface waters
from NPS pollutants, such as might occur with biosolids or roadway
contaminants. Research should be directed toward identifying suitable
buffer zones based on the site conditions, and evaluating their effectiveness.
The effectiveness of common BMPs should also be included.
Research is also needed into the effects of land use on water quality.
Included in this topic are the effects of proposed change, such as
land development, timber harvest, and gravel extraction. In addition,
many agencies cited the need for more detailed delineation of the
ground water aquifers in the state, especially bedrock aquifers.
There is also a need for baseline water quality monitoring of the
surface waters in the state on a regular, long-term basis, to both
evaluate the existing conditions, and also to identify real time
changing conditions. Finally, many agencies cited technology transfer
and public education as research needs. In this instance, the research
is needed into how to best educate the public and make research results
available to public and planning officials who do not have access
to many of the academic journals.
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