An estuary is an area where a river meets and mixes with the sea, and is influenced by changing tides, temperatures and salinity.
To Bernadette Taber and her colleagues at Buzzards Bay National Estuary Program (BBNEP), it’s more simply defined as the battleground on which her agency succeeds or fails. And it hasn’t failed yet.
Taber, stormwater specialist, has overseen the distribution of grants to help area communities with a variety of water quality programs since 1985. On “extended loan” from the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, she is one of five specialists who make up the program. “It’s a tight group with a sharp focus, and that really helps us get things done,” Taber says. “The newest member of our team has been here for 13 years, so we do know how to work together.”
Their mission is to protect the environmental quality of Buzzards Bay and its watershed — no small task with 17 municipalities, seven major rivers, and over 350 miles of coastline under their watch. John Rockwell, wetlands specialist, adds, “We’ve had full cooperation from the stakeholders. Private citizens, town councils, corporations, the fishing industry; they all truly care about the quality of the bay.”
Organizational intricacies
The BBNEP acts as an advisory arm of the Massachusetts Office of Coastal Zone Management (MCZM). With offices in Wareham, Mass., on the north end of the bay, the staff is in continuous contact with entities throughout the 430-square-mile bay watershed. “It’s a huge area,” notes Taber, “but the sense of shared mission among stakeholders helps us meet our mutual goals.”
Those goals are spelled out in the Comprehensive Conservation Management Plan (CCMP), which identifies four environmental priorities:
• Fecal coliform contamination, especially via stormwater discharge.
• Nitrogen loading and resultant eutrophication of coastal embayments.
• Toxic contamination in the ecosystem and in seafood.
• Habitat loss (especially wetlands) within the bay and its watershed.
To meet these ambitious goals, the BBNEP works with stakeholders to suggest solutions (best management practices, or BMPs) and provide resources. An essential part of their work is a municipal grant program. Using U.S. EPA or state funds, often matched or exceeded by local agencies, the BBNEP disburses mini-grants of up to $25,000 for individual water quality and habitat protection and restoration projects.
“The grant system is push-pull, with some projects created within the BBNEP, and others applied for by outside agencies,” Taber observes. In a typical year, BBNEP provides mini-grants totaling about $100,000, working with municipalities and their partners throughout the watershed.
The balance of the $450,000 budget funds on-staff specialists who provide technical assistance to municipalities. Those specialists design and review projects, write proposals, draft local laws and regulations, write planning documents, prepare maps, coordinate between agencies, and serve as a clearinghouse for information.
Stormwater solutions
One of the earlier grant programs helped all 17 watershed municipalities make the move to GIS mapping of stormwater infrastructure. The entire watershed is almost fully mapped and modeled. To facilitate the sharing of data, the BBNEP uses the ever-popular ArcGIS software, from Environ-mental Systems Research Institute (ESRI).
The Storm Drain Atlas is a byproduct of the mapping effort. Available online, this comprehensive GIS database of storm drain locations and specifications facilitates planning for maintenance, rehabilitation, and remediation. Notes Rockwell, “Stormwater quality was a huge issue, since what goes down the drains ultimately ends up in the bay.”
The atlas also identifies the presence of road cuts and their associated drainage. Many roads in Buzzards Bay are built with “country drainage,” and before the environment was an issue. Carelessly planned cuts cause significant runoff problems that bring pollution into the bay.
BBNEP is working with several communities to address stormwater issues, focusing on improving the status of shellfish beds. Problems with bacterial contamination, primarily from wild and domestic animal waste, frequently close these beds, and have shut down a few permanently.
Two of the most recent storm-water projects are in the towns of Westport and Marion. In Marion, the waterbody of concern is Sippican Harbor, where the shellfish status ranges from permanently closed to conditional closures to open. The site conditions within Marion, especially along the coastal fringe, make the remediation of storm-water outfalls challenging.
Low permeability and high groundwater levels (a mere two to four feet below the surface in some areas), plus tidal backflow, dictated the use of custom-built biofilters in an area known as Island Wharf. Biofilters, also known as bio-retention facilities or rain gardens, consist of a volume of porous soil covered by a thin layer of mulch. A stand of grasses, shrubs, and small trees is established to allow evapotranspiration, maintain soil porosity, encourage biological activity, and promote the uptake of some pollutants.
At Island Wharf, the existing soil had to be removed and replaced. Four separate biofilters were built, all strategically located between the town and the bay. The size and number of biofilters were dictated by the area drained (7.5 acres in this case). Several difficulties were encountered during excavation in this high-use area, not the least of which was the discovery of old infrastructure, some of it not yet in the GIS.
The final phase involved re-grading and/or crowning drainage areas to ensure that they feed the biofilters. In addition, pre-treatment filters were installed along some roads to mitigate loading from winter road sand. On BBNEP’s recommendation, Marion chose a proprietary pre-filter called Downstream Defender by Hydro International of Clevedon, U.K. Like most passive, mechanical pre-filters, it efficiently extracts both floating debris and that which sinks.
The plant cover on the biofilters was well established after only two growing seasons. The pre-filters, of course, begin working immediately. Analysis of discharge water quality shows both are working as designed. Regular inspection and monitoring will ensure their continued efficacy.
Still at work
The Town of Marion is continuing with remediation under its overall sewer and water improvement program. As part of this project, the town expects to use tree boxes to treat stormwater pollutants. In addition to site conditions similar to those at Island Wharf, there is limited space for treatment at the site. The tree boxes will be placed within the road layout and along private property. The design of this project is being funded through the BBNEP mini-grants program.
The other stormwater site is in the Town of Westport, along the west edge of Buzzards Bay. Drainage from Westport and several other communities flows into the Westport River. Here, stormwater remediation focuses on the headwaters of the east branch of the river, in an area called the Head of Westport.
On the east side of the Head, one stormwater discharge has been re-routed through a constructed wetland on land owned by the town. Issues at the site were high groundwater, pipe outfall elevations, and tidal floods. Several partnerships helped get the project in the ground — local organizations and boards were the driving force. State and federal agencies provided the planning assistance and construction funding.
The remaining discharges are on the west side of the river. The project there is in its early planning stages; the contributing drainage is much larger and involves runoff from a local school.
Options discussed include biofilters, grass swales, green roofs, and use of stormwater to irrigate recreational fields. Once planning is complete and the alternatives selected, the town will proceed with the design, funded through BBNEP mini-grants.
The results of these efforts to treat and manage stormwater are evident. For example, closures of shellfish harvesting areas peaked in 1990 and have steadily declined since. “There’s a lot of other fishing here too,” says Taber, “but shellfish are a good indicator of the general health of the bay.”
Nixing nitrogen
Nitrogen loading is also on the BBNEP priorities list. Nitrates and ammonia enter the system primarily from human waste disposal and fertilizer use, causing what is termed coastal eutrophication. Algae love nitrogen and respond by growing rapidly like any well-fed plant. This excessive algal growth smothers animals, shades seagrasses, reduces the oxygen content of the water (bad for fish and mollusks), increases water opacity, and generally destabilizes the ecosystem.
Most homes in the watershed still use septic systems, often the largest source of nitrogen. In the 1990s, the BBNEP helped enact new regulations that required inspection of these systems at the time of home sales, but even these new septic systems do not remove nitrogen. Only through sewering, or the use of new types of nitrogen-removing septic systems will progress be made.
Even then, remediation on this pollution source will take years because of the slow travel time of contaminants in groundwater, so it could take decades to improve the eutrophic conditions in some estuaries. Fortunately, the bay itself enjoys good tidal mixing, so that if this form of pollution can be reduced, the bays can quickly recover.
No discharge zone
Toxic contamination is the BBNEP’s third priority. Work is still being done at the infamous New Bedford Superfund site. Conta-minated sediments have been removed and PCB levels are dropping. The program has also been involved with assessing the impacts of the 2003 oil spill in Buzzards Bay. BBNEP is not directly involved with the cleanup but acts as a local clearinghouse for information on project status and progress.
Buzzards Bay is also designated by the EPA as a “no discharge zone.” For commercial and recreational boaters, this means no dumping of sanitary waste from marine toilets. Boat pump-outs are widely available and more are being added. “Our harbor masters do a good job of enforcing this,” says Taber. “It’s really not a large problem anymore.”
Some 12,000 boats use the bay during the peak summer season, but they add little to the environmental load. Boaters recognize the value of clean water. Bilge socks (oil-absorbent sacks) help capture motor oil that has leaked into bilge water compartments. Notes Rockwell, “We helped the towns get a grant to buy a bilge sock for every boat in the bay. This reduced oil leaking into the bay.”
Wetlands preservation
BBNEP’s final priority is wetland preservation. Early projects focused on restoring wetlands damaged by development and making sure new development had minimal impact. Current efforts also include working with local environmental groups, encouraging enforcement of existing laws, and educational programs on wetland ecology.
Massachusetts has lost 40 to 50 percent of its original freshwater and saltwater wetlands since colonial times. State law, in the form of the Wetlands Protection Act and Wetlands Restriction Program, has been immensely successful in stemming these losses.
Still, the law allows areas of wetland up to 5,000 square feet to be altered or filled for a number of reasons, although these permitted losses must be offset by the construction of new wetlands. Not surprisingly, because wetland replication is not always successful, and because of smaller unpermitted and illegal wetland filling, incremental wetland losses continue.
BBNEP is working with cities and towns to enact effective local wetland bylaws to provide another layer of protection above and beyond what the state mandates as a minimum standard. Other efforts by towns to mitigate the effects of increased boat traffic, non-point-source pollution, and nitrogen loading are complementing these wetlands protection efforts.
Making a difference
BBNEP helps document trends in water quality, and Taber expects that to continue. The change of attitude within the community in response to the degradation of the bay, and the benefits observed from these restoration projects, is incontrovertible and perhaps a more significant outcome of the program’s efforts. Notes Rockwell, “When we first started talking about these issues, way back in the 1980s, everyone was worried about government regulation intruding on private property rights. But after we explained the issue to them, and it came to a vote, it went like 250 to 4. People care about this water and are willing to do what it takes.”
Taber adds, “Our web site is a great resource too, and an important part of our outreach program. It has a real impact in shaping public opinion on these environmental issues.” The site is the creation of Joe Costa, PH.D., BBNEP executive director.
It’s the nature of government in New England to have a town committee for just about everything. The public interest was there, but inter-committee communication was severely lacking. Says Taber, “When it comes to a specific issue, we try to bring these disparate committees together and get them talking to each other, one on one. That’s really helped us to pool our resources and meet our goals. We’re making a difference.”
