Marine Biology Commons^™

Oyster Reef Mapping In The Great Bay Estuary, New Hampshire - 2003, Grizzle, R, Raymond E. Grizzle, Melissa Brodeur

PREP Reports & Publications

In New Hampshire, the locations, sizes, and shapes of the major oyster, Crassostrea virginica, reefs have been determined using a variety of techniques. The most recent survey occurred in 2001 when four (Nannie Island, Woodman Point, Adams Point, and Oyster River) of the six largest reefs were mapped using a combination of acoustic sounders, videography, and quadrat sampling. The present project required mapping the boundaries in order to determine the size of the remaining two major reefs in the Great Bay Estuary: Squamscott River and Piscataqua River. Underwater videography was used in the present study to determine the boundaries of …

Evaluating The Stormwater Treatment Performance Of Abtech Industries Smart Sponge® Plus, Landry, N, Scott Nolan, Stephen H. Jones, Natalie Landry

PREP Reports & Publications

The ability of AbTech’s Smart Sponge® Plus to remove fecal-borne bacteria from stormwater was evaluated in a storm drainage system located in Seabrook, New Hampshire. The Smart Sponge ® Plus was installed into a water quality inlet and samples were collected from influent (pre-treatment) and effluent (post-treatment) for analysis of bacterial concentrations and loadings during 15 storm events from September 3, 2003 to May 24, 2004, excluding winter months. The 15 storms included events with a range of rainfall intensities and amounts, as well as accompanying runoff volumes. Flow weighted composite samples were analyzed for fecal coliforms, Escherichia coli and …

Granite State Poll For New Hampshire Estuaries Project, Andrew E. Smith, Dennis M. Junius

PREP Reports & Publications

The University of New Hampshire Survey Center included a question on its July 2004 Granite State Poll for the New Hampshire Estuaries Project. The major purposes of these questions were to assess the knowledge of New Hampshire residents concerning the meaning of an estuary. Five hundred and nine (509) New Hampshire adults were interviewed by telephone between July 6 and July 20, 2004.

Nhep Monitoring Plan 2004, Version 4- 6/30/04, Trowbridge, P, Phil Trowbridge

PREP Reports & Publications

The NHEP Management Plan presents a series of goals, objectives, and specific actions designed to improve, protect, and enhance the environmental quality of the state’s estuaries, and outlines a process for implementing the Plan’s most critical actions (NHEP, 2000). Measuring the effectiveness of these actions in achieving NHEP goals is an essential part of implementation that will be achieved through a suite of environmental and administrative indicators. This Monitoring Plan describes the methods and data for the indicators that will be used to answer the following question accurately and unambiguously: Are the goals and objectives of the Management Plan being …

Summary Of Freshwater Monitoring Programs In New Hampshire's Coastal Watershed, Trowbridge, P, Phil Trowbridge

PREP Reports & Publications

The New Hampshire Estuaries Project (NHEP) is part of the US Environmental Protection Agency’s National Estuary Program, which is a joint local/state/federal program established under the Clean Water Act with the goal of protecting and enhancing nationally significant estuarine resources. The NHEP uses a Monitoring Plan to track changes in the estuarine environment as a result of the NHEP’s efforts. Up to this point, the Monitoring Plan has focused exclusively on conditions in the estuaries. The purpose of this report is to evaluate the feasibility of including water quality data from the freshwater portion of New Hampshire’s coastal watershed in …

Funding Sources For Key Water Quality Strategies, Craig, M, Matt Craig

PREP Reports & Publications

The New Hampshire Estuaries Project (NHEP) Management Plan, published in 2000, sets forth three goals related to estuarine water quality in the State’s coastal watershed, and twenty Water Quality Action Plans to implement these goals. The goals direct the NHEP to: 1) ensure that New Hampshire’s estuarine waters and tributaries will meet standards forpathogenic bacteria including fecal coliform, E. coli, and Enterocci; 2) ensure that NewHampshire’s estuarine waters, tributaries, sediments, and edible portions of fish, shellfish, other aquatic life, and wildlife will meet standards for priority contaminants such as metals, PCBs, PAHs, and oil and grease; and, 3) ensure that …

Nhep Water Quality Funding Sources, Matt Craig

PREP Reports & Publications

The New Hampshire Estuaries Project (NHEP) Management Plan, published in 2000, sets forth three goals related to estuarine water quality in the State’s coastal watershed, and twenty Water Quality Action Plans to implement these goals. The goals direct the NHEP to: 1) ensure that New Hampshire’s estuarine waters and tributaries will meet standards for pathogenic bacteria including fecal coliform, E. coli, and Enterocci; 2) ensure that New Hampshire’s estuarine waters, tributaries, sediments, and edible portions of fish, shellfish, other aquatic life, and wildlife will meet standards for priority contaminants such as metals, PCBs, PAHs, and oil and grease; and, 3) …

Wetlands Evaluation Project, Joyce El Kouarti

PREP Reports & Publications

This New Hampshire Estuaries Project (NHEP) grant funded a study to identify and evaluate significant wetlands within the six towns that comprise Moose Mountains Regional Greenways (MMRG): Brookfield, Farmington, Middleton, Milton, New Durham and Wakefield. The goals of the study were to heighten awareness of the wetland areas in each town, educate Conservation Commission members and key town officials of the functional values of each selected wetland, and provide educational outreach toward the preservation of the quality of these wetlands using proven planning tools such as outright land purchase, easements, master planning, Prime Wetland designation in zoning, wetlands of special …

Nh Des Site Specific Program Policy Alternatives, New Hampshire Estuaries Project

PREP Reports & Publications

In New Hampshire, the Department of Environmental Services’ (NH DES) Site Specific Program, which enforces Administrative Rule Env-Ws 415 pursuant to RSA 485, is the primary mechanism for regulating stormwater runoff from development sites to surface waters. Rule Env-Ws 415 expires June 30, 2004. Although Program staff will recommend renewing the current Rule to continue regulatory authority over the short term, NH DES has also expressed an intention to organize a committee that will renew and revise Env-Ws 415 during the course of 2004 and 2005.

The purpose of this report is to provide NH DES with applicable stormwater management …

2003 Great Bay Water Quality (Datasonde) Monitoring Program, Jonathan Pennock

PREP Reports & Publications

In situ water quality assessment has become an important source of data for monitoring, research and management activities in estuaries nationwide. As part of the National Estuarine Research Reserve System, the Great Bay System-Wide Monitoring Program (SWMP) produces in situ water quality data for four sites in and around Great Bay. This project extends the SWMP program to include year-round in situ data for a station at the University of New Hampshire Coastal Marine Lab pier at the mouth of the Piscataqua River and summmer data for a station in the Salmon Falls (SF) River. This suite of stations provides …

2004 Nhep Progress Report, Nhep, New Hampshire Estuaries Project

PREP Reports & Publications

This report summarizes progress made toward implementing the New Hampshire Estuaries Project Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan (CCMP) and evaluates the status of environmental and administrative indicators based upon management goals and objectives. The report is divided into two primary sections: (I) Status of Environmental and Administrative Indicators and (II) Action Plan Completion.

2003 Great Bay Organic Nitrogen (Pon & Don) And Light Extinction (Par) Monitoring Program, Jonathan Pennock

PREP Reports & Publications

EPA is developing water qulaity criteria for estuaries that require knowledge of both total nitrogen and light availability (measured as photsynthetically active radiation, PAR). Through the National Estuarine Research Reserve (NERR) System-Wide Monitoring Program (SWMP), inorganic nutrient concentrations, chlorophyll-a concetration, and a number of hydrographic and water quality parameters are sampled on a monthly basis at 7 sites in the Great Bay system. In addition, these same parameters, as well as bacteria concentrations, are measured at a number of sites in Great Bay and Hampton Harbor through the National Coastal Assessment (NCA) funded through the EPA. This project takes advantage …

Dockside Shellfish Aquaculture Project, Smith, B, Jennifer Kennedy, Stanley Sinitski

PREP Reports & Publications

The intent of this project was to train private dock owners and marina personnel how to deploy and maintain “spat collectors” under their docks in an effort to capture commercially important shellfish larvae, scallops and oysters in particular, with a minimum amount of effort and cost. The New Hampshire Estuaries Project (NHEP) provided major funding for this phase of the project, with addition funding from the New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services (NHDES) and the Gulf of Maine Council (GOMC). This year’s effort expands upon the pilot studies that were funded previously by the New Hampshire Coastal Program (NHCP) and …

Eelgrass Distribution In The Great Bay Estuary 2002, Frederick T. Short

PREP Reports & Publications

Eelgrass (Zostera marina) is an essential habitat for the Great Bay Estuary (GBE) because it provides food for wintering waterfowl and habitat for juvenile fish. Eelgrass is the basis of an estuarine food chain that supports many of the recreational, commercial and ecologically important species in the estuary. Additionally, eelgrass filters estuarine waters, removing both nutrients and suspended sediments from the water column. Eelgrass in the Great Bay Estuary is the largest monoculture in the State of New Hampshire and is considered a vital resource to the State’s marine environment. The UNH Seagrass Ecology Group has mapped the distribution of …

Ambient Rivers Monitoring In Nh Coastal Watersheds 2004, Natalie Landry

PREP Reports & Publications

The Department of Environmental Services (DES) received funding from the New Hampshire Estuaries Project (NHEP) to conduct monitoring activities in 2004. The activities described in this report were led by the DES Watershed Assistance Section and involved water monitoring in tidal tributaries. These monitoring activities were completed with the overall purpose of improving the understanding of water quality trends. The Department of Environmental Services completed all tasks as planned. This report includes the sample collection information, field data, and laboratory data. Data summaries and interpretations will come at a later time in other DES and NHEP publications.

Granit Conservation Lands Data Layer Update, Fay A. Rubin, Christopher M. Phaneuf

PREP Reports & Publications

The Complex Systems Research Center (CSRC) at the University of New Hampshire has developed, implemented, and coordinated the GRANIT GIS clearinghouse since its inception in the mid 1980’s. One of the primary data sets maintained by CSRC and served through the clearinghouse is the GRANIT Conservation and Protected Lands Data Layer. This data set contains a digital record of parcels of land of two or more acres that are mostly undeveloped and are protected from future development. Smaller parcels that adjoin previously mapped parcels or represent unique features, such as a bog or state-owned boat ramp, may also be included …

Protecting Hampton Harbor Watershed Project, Degnan, T, Rockingham County Conservation District

PREP Reports & Publications

The purpose of this project was to provide significant educational efforts promoting land and water resource protection for two communities within the Hampton Harbor Watershed. The project was to include educational efforts aimed at promoting the NHEP Management Plan’s action items for protecting critical land and water resources, to provide sustained technical assistance that involved resource prioritization, support for public relations campaigns for open space bond campaigns, and the preparation of funding applications for important shoreland protection projects for the communities of Hampton and Hampton Falls. The project focus area was not defined, as much of the open undeveloped acreage …

Municipal Conservation Outreach And Technical Assistance, Taylor, J, Dorothy Tripp Taylor

PREP Reports & Publications

The New Hampshire Estuaries project awarded a grant of $24,700 to the Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests in May of 2002 for municipal conservation outreach and technical assistance in the area of municipal funds for permanent land conservation. SPNHF, working in close partnership with the Center for Land Conservation Assistance, conducted research into available mechanisms and funding sources for municipal conservation efforts. A publication summarizing the available options and providing information and case studies from a variety of New Hampshire towns was produced. Saving Special Places – Community Funding for Land Conservation, was distributed in December of …

Nhdes Shellfish Program Activities, Jan -Dec 2004, Nash, C, Chris Nash, Matt Wood

PREP Reports & Publications

This report summarizes the activities of the NH Department of Environmental Services (NHDES) Shellfish Program for the period of January 2004 to December 2004. The NHDES Shellfish Program conducts a number of activities to minimize the health risks associated with consuming shellfish, and to continue to comply with National Shellfish Sanitation Program guidelines. Among basic program functions is a routine water quality monitoring program, which involved the collection of nearly 800 samples at over 70 sites in 2004, the results of which are used to ensure that assessments of water quality for all areas are kept up-to-date. Weekly “red tide” …

Ambient Rivers And Shellfish Tissue Monitoring In New Hampshire Estuarine Watersheds 2003, Natalie Landry, Phil Trowbridge

PREP Reports & Publications

The Department of Environmental Services received funding from the New Hampshire Estuaries Project (NHEP) to conduct monitoring activities in 2003. The activities involved water monitoring in tidal tributaries and contaminant analyses of mussel tissue. These monitoring activities were completed with the overall purpose of improving the understanding of water quality trends and the concentrations of toxic contaminants in shellfish tissue. The Department of Environmental Services, in cooperation with the University of New Hampshire Jackson Estuarine Lab and others, completed all tasks as planned. This report includes the sample collection information, field data, and laboratory data, with the exception of contaminant …

Summary Of Coastal And Estuarine Monitoring Programs In New Hampshire (2004), Trowbridge, P, Prep

PREP Reports & Publications

The New Hampshire Estuaries Project (NHEP) compiles data from many coastal and estuarine monitoring programs to assess the status and trends of environmental indicators in the Great Bay and Hampton/Seabrook Harbor. The full list of NHEP environmental indicators has been published in the NHEP Monitoring Plan. http://www.state.nh.us/nhep/publications/pdf/nhepmonitoringplan-nhep-04.pdf The following catalog is a summary of the coastal and estuarine monitoring programs that provide data for NHEP indicators or for State water quality assessments. This list is limited to long-term monitoring programs that do not have an end date.

Great Bay Coast Watch: A Citizen Water Monitoring Program Volunteer Water Quality Monitoring Manual, 2004, B Sharon Meeker, Ann S. Reid, Jeff Schloss, Anita Hayden, Amber Perkins, Steve Cooper

PREP Reports & Publications

The Great Bay Coast Watch is citizen volunteers, working within the UNH Cooperative Extension/NH Sea Grant Program, protecting the long-term health and natural resources of New Hampshire’s coastal waters and estuarine systems through monitoring and education projects.

The purpose of this document is to present step-by-step instructions for conducting water quality testing in support of the Great Bay Coast Watch (GBCW).

Natural Resources Outreach Coalition: Coordination And Program Delivery, Frank Mitchell

PREP Reports & Publications

The Natural Resources Outreach Coalition (NROC) is a multi-organizational initiative providing technical and educational assistance to communities in New Hampshire’s coastal watersheds dealing with the effects of growth. The NROC program offered to communities includes an initial educational public presentation, Dealing with Growth, followed by a series of follow-up meetings to help the community develop an action-oriented work plan, and provide the technical and educational assistance needed to help the community meet its goals.

Support For The 3rd Annual Exeter River Alewife Festival, Exeter River Local Advisory Committee

PREP Reports & Publications

With support from the NH Estuaries Project (NHEP), the Exeter River Local Advisory Committee (ERLAC) held the 3rd Annual Exeter River Alewife Festival on May 31, 2003 in downtown Exeter. NHEP funding enabled ERLAC and the Festival Planning Committee to print and distribute posters and cards advertising the Festival, purchase newspaper advertisements and arrange opportunities for the press to learn more about the event. In addition, ERLAC members worked with area newspapers to write and print eleven articles highlighting aspects of the river and the watershed.

Gbcw Support For Shellfish Activities 2003, B Sharon Meeker, Ann S. Reid

PREP Reports & Publications

The Great Bay Coast Watch (GBCW) is a volunteer estuarine monitoring program established in 1989 that includes teachers, students, and local citizens with a diversity of backgrounds. Volunteers participate in a variety of training programs that enable them to monitor water quality parameters in Great Bay and coastal areas, sample for marine phytoplankton blooms and conduct shoreline surveys and habitat evaluations. Since 1997 the New Hampshire Estuaries Project (NHEP) has relied on the ability of GBCW to recruit and train volunteers to assist with the implementation of its plan to protect, restore and manage the states estuarine systems. This year …

Laboratory Analyses Of Water And Shellfish From Coastal Waters And Watershed Of New Hampshire, Jayne S. Finnigan

PREP Reports & Publications

The Department of Health and Human Services-New Hampshire Public Health Laboratories (DHHS-NHPHL) has participated in providing laboratory analyses as part of the National Estuary Program since it’s inception in New Hampshire in 1995. The NHPHL has continued to carry out various actions dealing with the monitoring program as listed in the NH Estuaries Project Management Plan. Introduction: The NHPHL implemented selected actions from the NH Estuaries Project Management Plan and Year Six workplan to help address the environmental problems affecting the state’s estuarine systems.

Natural Resource Mapping And Land Protection Prioritization For Greenland, Nh, Danna B. Truslow, David Mcgraw

PREP Reports & Publications

This report describes the development of the project team, mapping criteria, and results of natural resource and co-occurrence mapping of the town of Greenland, New Hampshire. Using Geographic Information Systems mapping and analysis, natural resource characteristics were mapped and land parcels were evaluated to determine conservation priorities within the town. Outreach activities were also carried out and planned to distribute information to town decision makers, landowners and citizens and to share the results of the mapping process.

The purpose of the work was to help the Seacoast Land Trust and the Town of Greenland better identify land protection priorities in …

2002 Coastal Municipal Stormwater Infrastructure Mapping Project, Jillian E. Jones

PREP Reports & Publications

This final report describes the grant program funded by NHEP and administered by DES. A Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) between NHEP and DES created a grant program to provide assistance to coastal communities to develop storm sewer infrastructure maps. DES issued a request for proposals (RFP), chose grant recipients, and managed the grant agreements. This report provides details on the grant projects completed by Portsmouth and Seabrook. The deadline for completion of all grant projects was December 31, 2003.

Evaluation Of Effects Of Wastewater Treatment Discharge On Estuarine Water Quality, Carl H. Bolster, Stephen H. Jones, Jonathan M. Bromley

PREP Reports & Publications

This report marks the completion of a two-year project focused on observed and estimated effects of wastewater treatment facilities (WWTFs) on estuarine water quality within the New Hampshire (NH) Seacoast region. This study was designed and carried out in an effort to help the NH Department of Environmental Services (NHDES) and NH Estuaries Project (NHEP) evaluate the effects of WWTF effluent quality on bacterial and nutrient concentrations in New Hampshire’s estuarine waters, as well as to help NHDES/NHEP identify related WWTF infrastructure problems. An extensive database of bacterial and nutrient concentrations in effluent collected post-disinfection from 9 NH WWTFs and …

Peirce Island Pool Discharge Elimination, Natalie Landry

PREP Reports & Publications

The Peirce Island Pool is owned by the City of Portsmouth and serves approximately 19,000 swimmers each summer. The pool was originally constructed in the 1930s and updated in the 1970s and again in the mid 1990s. The pool’s 800,000 gallons of water were cleaned through a rapid sand filter. The filter was then cleaned through a backwash process and that wastewater was discharged directly into the Piscataqua River which is part of the Great Bay Estuary. The City sought and was awarded funds through the New Hampshire Estuaries Project (NHEP) to eliminate the direct discharge to the River. The …