Estuaries Update #67: New Hampshire Estuaries Project

November 2008, #67

Featured Item

2008 Local Grants

The NHEP has awarded funding for seven projects proposed to the Local Grants program in 2008. Projects include an optical brightener study of Spruce Creek (Town of Kittery/Spruce Creek Association); a Maine shoreland mapping project (Southern Maine Regional Planning Commission); a State of the River newsletter (Exeter River Local Advisory Committee); implementation of the Great Works River NPS Pollution Watershed Management Plan (Wells National Estuarine Research Reserve); land protection around Stonehouse Pond in Barrington (Trust for Public Land); implementation of Strategic Conservation Plan (Bear-Paw Regional Greenways); conservation of Pawtuckaway River and Kennard Hill Focus Areas (Southeast Land Trust of New Hampshire). Total NHEP funding awarded was $46,964.00.

October NHEP Activities		New Publications
	Wells Land Conservation Event 10-02-08:NHEP staff attended a regional forum on southern Maine land conservation initiatives hosted by the Wells National Estuarine Research Reserve. The event included presentations on a number of successful land protection initiatives and a scoping session on future challenges and opportunities.	Portsmouth Vernal Pool Inventory Through the NHEP Community Technical Assistance Program, West Environmental, Inc. conducted a city-wide vernal pool inventory to locate, document and map vernal pools in Portsmouth. This effort was coordinated with the Portsmouth Planning Department and Conservation Commission. Currently the City’s wetland regulations exempt wetlands less than 5,000 square feet from the local 100 foot buffer zone. This study identified smaller wetlands which have the potential to provide vernal pool habitat. A field workshop was held for the Conservation Commission members to provide hands-on training in vernal pool ecology. Based on the results of this study and the recent revisions to the NHDES Wetlands Bureau regulations which added rules for vernal pool protection, the Portsmouth Conservation Commission has recommended a change to the Article 8 - Environmental Protection Standards of the City of Portsmouth to include vernal pool identification and protection with a 100 foot buffer. Read Report Town of Chester Stormwater Management Project Through the NHEP's Community Technical Assistance Program, Great Bay Environmental Consulting worked with the Town of Chester Planning Board to improve regulatory approaches to stormwater management. The project was conducted in two phases: Phase I involved an inventory and assessment of existing regulations for their treatment of stormwater management, with recommendations for an approach to improve stormwater management in the town. The Planning Board opted to focus on specific changes to existing subdivision and site planning regulations, so Phase II of the project involved the development of specific recommendations for those regulations. Read Report Eelgrass Distribution in the Great Bay Estuary for 2006 The University of New Hampshire mapped the distribution of eelgrass in the Great Bay Estuary using 2006 imagery. Eelgrass in Great Bay itself decreased substantially (43%) between 2005 and 2006, due to losses in both biomass and distribution. Little Bay and the Piscataqua River showed a change (loss of 40%) between 2005 and 2006, with very low levels of eelgrass compared to historical distributions. The large beds of ruppia in the Bellamy, Oyster and upper Piscataqua Rivers also diminished. The Portsmouth Harbor – Little Harbor area experienced a decrease in eelgrass abundance (14%) between 2005 and 2006. The entire Great Bay Estuary has decreased eelgrass beds compared to historic distributions. In the decade from 1996 to 2006, the Great Bay Estuary has lost almost half its eelgrass. Read Report Conservation Lands Database Update For Three Maine Towns The Wells NERR has established a GIS layer for the Southern Maine Conservation Lands for the Mount Agamenticus region of southern York county. In 2008, the NHEP expanded their area of interest in the Salmon Falls Watershed to include southwestern York County, Maine. It coincided with the Wells Reserve GIS Department's update of its Southern Maine Conservation Lands layer and NHEP provided funding to conduct the update for the towns of Sanford, Acton and Lebanon. This joint venture between the Wells Reserve and the NHEP allowed 112 parcels in three towns (Acton, Lebanon, and Sanford) and 3938 acres to be added to this essential and widely used Southern Maine Conservation Lands Database. Read Report Danville Town Forest Stewardship Plan Through the NHEP’s Community Technical Assistance Program, Ibis Wildlife Consulting worked with a number of Danville boards and committees to develop a Stewardship Plan for the 420+ acre town forest that includes the headwaters of the Exeter River. The plan identifies the ecological features, surrounding land use, site history, cultural resources, and current conditions. It outlines a number of stewardship goals to maintain and protect the biological diversity, ecosystem integrity, and other qualities of the site. Specific recommendations were developed based on each of the stewardship goals, taking into account the existing conditions, site capabilities, specific stewardship issues, feasibility, and opportunity to achieve the desired outcomes. Read Report Click to see full image
	Strategic Planning Meeting 10-09-08: NHEP staff and seven others met for a second time to further develop a strategic plan to guide NHEP activities in the next several years.
	Nutrient Criteria Presentation 10-10-08: NHEP staff made a presentation at a meeting of state and federal regulators regarding numeric nutrient criteria for estuaries. The meeting was organized by the New England Interstate Water Pollution Control Commission and was held at the EPA Regional Laboratory in Chelmsford, MA.
	Restore America's Estuaries Conference 10-12-08: Staff attended the 4th National Conference on Coastal and Estuarine Habitat Restoration, hosted by Restore America's Estuaries. The conference had over 900 attendees from around the country and provided sessions on estuarine and stream restoration techniques, coastal monitoring, restoration funding sources, estuarine mapping, partnership approaches to restoration, and legislative initiatives relating to coastal management and climate change.
	Local Grants Review 10-14-08: The NHEP Local Grants Review Team discussed the merits of fifteen proposals that were received in response to this year’s Local Grants Request for Proposals. After ranking the proposals the team selected the top seven to receive NHEP funding, totaling $46,964.00.
	Applications Received for CCMP Update 10-15-08: Seven applications were received from consultants and firms interested in managing the process to update of the NHEP Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan. Interviews have been scheduled in November.
	NHCPP Event 10-17-08: NHEP staff attended the first public meeting of the New Hampshire Coastal Protection Partnership (NHCPP) at the Seacoast Science Center.
	Newspaper Story: New Hampshire Estuaries Project Receives Contribution from Seabrook Station 10-21-08: York Weekly and Seacoast Online.
	So. Maine Land Conservation Planning Meeting 10-27-08: NHEP staff met with southern Maine land conservation organizations to discuss the development of a conservation plan analogous to the The Land Conservation Plan for New Hampshire's Coastal Watersheds.
Upcoming Events 11-13-08: NHEP Presentation for Contemporary Coastal Issues Series 6:00 p.m., at the Remick Barn, Museums of Old York, York, ME. Presentation title New Hampshire Estuaries Project: Management Plans and Environmental Indicators for the Coastal Watershed by Philip Trowbridge, P.E., NHEP Coastal Scientist, Sponsored by Friends of the Gundalow. For information send email to info@gundalow.org 11-17-08: NHEP Technical Advisory Committee Meeting on Nutrient Criteria Development 1:00 p.m., at the DES offices at the Pease International Tradeport in Portsmouth, NH 11-17 through 11-19-08: ANEP Fall Meeting New York, New York 12-3 through 12-4-08: Weathering the Storm: Low Impact Development (LID) Conference and Vendor Fair for the Construction and Development Industry in Northern New England Grappone Conference Center, Concord, NH. More information and registration forms available at www.fbenvironmental.com 12-15-08: NHEP Management Committee Meeting New member orientation at 9:00 a.m., main meeting begins at 10 a.m., location Three Chimneys Inn, Durham, NH. Announcements Accepting 2008 Land Transaction Grant Applications The NHEP has funding available in 2008 to assist with transaction costs associated with high priority permanent land protection projects within the New Hampshire coastal watershed. Applications from nonprofit 501(c)(3) conservation organizations or government entities are currently being accepted for up to $3000 per project. Download Application Accepting Applications for Community Technical Assistance Program The NHEP is accepting applications from municipal planning boards and conservation commissions through Round 3 of its Community Technical Assistance Program (CTAP), which provides consulting assistance to communities on a wide range of regulatory and non-regulatory approaches to natural resources protection. Read Application (.pdf or MS Word)

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