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5/12/05 - Bow Committee Works to Protect Water Source 2/14/05 - NY Rural Water & the Village of Wellsville complete Source Water Protection Plan This is an article Kier Dirlam (Village of Wellsville) submitted to a posted - 1/11/05
Warren
Committee Completes Plan to Protect Local Drinking Water 1/6/05 - Dear Specialists: Plaistow NH Source Water Protection Plan Meredith Officials want to preserve lake's purity State plans to study Waukewan watershed By REBECCA TSAROS DICKSON April 06. 2004 8:00AM MEREDITH - What's not to love about Lake Waukewan? Nine hundred twelve pristine acres of water in the heart of the Lakes Region. The fourth-largest lake in the state. Quietly nestled nine miles away from the bustle of Laconia. But perhaps most importantly, the water collection basin for 8,400 acres in five towns. It's the latter that officials hope to address tomorrow night. Residents of Meredith, New Hampton, Center Harbor, Ashland and Holderness will hear from town and state officials and the Northeast Rural Water Association about the merits of preserving the Waukewan - Winona watershed. Aside from the lake's obvious recreational value, Waukewan is particularly important to Meredith residents because about 3,000 of them rely on it for their drinking water - and 67 percent of the land that influences it is outside Meredith. All five towns contain tributaries and aquifers that feed Bear Pond, Otter Pond, Hawkins Pond, Lake Winona and Waukewan, which then trickles into Lake Winnipesaukee. During the past decade, annual tests in Waukewan and Winona have shown dramatically increased levels of salt, while oxygen levels at the bottom of the lake have dropped, according to officials at the Department of Environmental Services. "Now is the time to start planning," said Jody Connor, state limnology director. "Catch it now before you get too much development in that watershed and you can't stop the phosphorous or turbidity," which would require extensive filtering and chlorination. Tomorrow night, officials hope to muster up more than a dozen volunteers for a watershed committee. The first task will be to inventory threats to the watershed, prioritize them and consider ways to address them. The information will eventually be used to form a watershed plan. The Northeast Rural Water Association will oversee much of the project, facilitating meetings and offering educational material. Paulo Susca, the environmental program manager at DES, said the Source Water Protection Department evaluated the watershed and found high susceptibility to pollution in two categories: potential contamination sources and the density of septic systems near the shoreline. Meredith's treatment plant has a floor drain, and the state estimates that more than one septic system exists for every two acres within 500 feet of shoreline. Any fluids that drain into the land that makes up the watershed could pose a contamination threat. "But what these ratings don't take into account is how these different sites are managed," Susca said. "Any floor drain we know of is considered high (susceptibility). . . . It doesn't mean either is affecting water quality. What the assessment is about is identifying areas that need study. It's all about future protection and hopefully it'll motivate people to work on improving source protection." Connor said the elevated salt levels are typically caused by septic systems or road salt. High conductivity indicates excessive salt. In the early 1990s, Lake Waukewan's test results for conductivity showed levels at 71; the state mean is 62. In 1999, Waukewan jumped to 80, and the last couple of years it has been over 100. The surrounding tributaries and Perkins Cove also showed a hike, he said; the latter jumped to 117 last year. Another persistent, but unrelated, problem is the lack of oxygen on the bottom of the lake. As it's depleted by decaying plants and bacteria, the fish move out by July or August, Connor said. And without oxygen, a chemical change releases phosphorous, which promotes algae. (Phosphorous can also come from septic system runoff.) "So not only do you have it (phosphorous) from the tributaries, now you also have it from the bottom of the lake," he said. It's a trend that no one wants to see continue. John Edgar, Meredith's town planner, said the committee is the first step in addressing all of that. And he's optimistic: "No matter what we do, it's going to be more than we are doing now." (The meeting is scheduled for tomorrow at the Inter-Lakes High School auditorium from 7 to 9 p.m. For more information, call Meredith town hall at 279-4538. Rebecca Tsaros Dickson can be reached at 524-3132 or by e-mail at rtsaros@cmonitor.com.) The Meredith News, © 2004, February 19, 2004 Meredith looks to protect water N.E. Rural Water Association to make water supply a top priority BY MARY SALIBA MEREDITH (New Hamshire)— In December, Town Planner John Edgar told the select board about a planning effort to protect Meredith’s primary water source, Lake Waukewan. Protecting Lake Waukewan means protecting the Lake Waukewan-Lake Winona watershed, which is the entire area of land that serves as the drainage system for those two lakes. In December, Edgar said to the board, “We, unlike some other towns, don’t have a readily acceptable water backup plan,” emphasizing the need to protect that water source. An added concern is the fact that “67 percent of the land area that influences that lake is outside of our jurisdiction.” Edgar told the board that the Northeast Rural Water Association (NeRWA), an organization dedicated to the protection of water and wastewater systems, was looking at Meredith as a 2004 priority. NeRWA offers assistance with developing and implementing source water protection plans. Due to funding secured by NeRWA, its programs are available at no charge to both systems and communities. (Costs to the town involve only administrative services such as reproducing plans.) The organization only chooses one community per year, and works with the DES in protection planning. The question to be addressed in this protection plan is: “what does it take to protect the lake?” “In our case,” Edgar said, “it is looking at 8400 acres spread over five towns, so it’s not something we can do alone.” "Source water" includes all untreated waters from streams, rivers, lakes, and underground aquifers that supply public water systems and private wells. Whether a public water system relies on groundwater or surface water, protection of the system's source is crucial. NeRWA describes the efforts of source protection planning as helping to minimize threats to public health, preventing expensive treatment upgrades and the need for source replacement, and increasing the public confidence in drinking water quality. NeRWA's programs are driven in part by the Safe Drinking Water Act and
the Clean Water Act. The watershed affects not just Lake Waukewan but water from other area sources as well. Beyond that, the Lake Waukewan watershed is part of the Lake Winnipesaukee watershed. In fact, though, as Lake Waukewan is the primary water source for Meredith, serving 45 percent of it’s residents, protecting it is identified as a priority in the Community Plan. Currently, the Lake Waukewan Watershed Partners include the Town of Meredith, the Meredith Water Department, NeRWA, the NH DES and NH Project WET. Edgar stated that he hopes to gain participation from as many individuals and communities as possible — homeowners, sister municipalities, planning boards, conservation commissions — “There’s something for everyone to learn,” whether to protect your well, the value of your property, or the water you drink. “The totality of protecting wells, streams and other water resources is creating various awareness.” The next step will be to form a planning committee, which, ideally, will be made up of a diverse group, including individuals from local businesses, campgrounds, shoreowner’s associations, fishermen, etc. The committee will inventory the watershed for potential risks to Lake Waukewan and Lake Winona, then prioritize threats and consider measures to deal with those threats. The committee will then begin to create a watershed plan. While Lake Waukewan and Lake Winona are still in good shape, data collected by the Volunteer Lake Assessment Programs showed that “certain ecological indicators” suggest that “human activity is starting to effect water quality.” Edgar noted that one might not notice incremental changes, “It’s only when we lose or degrade something” that we really take action. “We cannot afford to do this.” He said, “We have to be mindful and proactive in the sense of mitigating or deterring anything that can damage our watershed.” At the April 7 meeting, a representative from NeRWA will address
concerns that people might have as well as discuss the issues and risks
involved with protecting the Lake Waukewan watershed. |
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