water quality and the midshore: current state and what is being done
TRANSCRIPT
Water Quality and the MidshoreCURRENT STATE AND WHAT IS BEING DONE
Overview Nutrient Pollution
Surface and groundwater contamination Phosphorus
Nitrogen
Human health Environmental health
Misinformation What is being done
Standards
Nitrogen
Natural levels: < 0.5 mg/l
Drinking water: < 10 mg/l
Chesapeake Bay: < 0.6 mg/l
Phosphorus
Natural Levels: < 0.02 mg/l
Drinking water: None
Chesapeake Bay: < 0.03 mg/l
Nutrient Story
Choptank River WatershedMiles-Wye
River Watershed
Choptank Land Use
56% Agriculture
28% Forest
13% Developed
2% Wetland
http://faculty.salisbury.edu/~kssilaphone/Swipe_ChoptankLU/index.html#
Delmarva Landscape
Delmarva Landscape
Well Water
Ditch
Drainage Tile
Local Waterway
Nutrient Pollution- Nitrogen
Ridgely
Nutrient Pollution- Nitrogen
Ridgely
Centreville
Nutrient Pollution- Nitrogen
Ridgely
Centreville
Easton
Pathways
Pathways
Pathways
Discharge from tile drains and ditches
5 to 20 mg/l
Pathways
Concerns
High Nitrate Concentrations (>10mg/l)
Concerns
Contaminates Drinking Water
Necessitates Treatment
Iowa 2015 lawsuit Delaware 40% of total cost
Suit makes legal waves- Iowa Farmer Today, 3/26/15
Impacts
Pollutes Local Waterways
Impacts
Pollutes Local Waterways
Bacteria born infections“Bad Water relates a nearly fatal Vibrio infection for a Maryland man who swam in the brackish Severn River.”
Loss of property value
Loss of ecosystem services
Fish killsEconomic impact on fisheries
Sites
117 sites
Mouth of Choptank
Tuckahoe dam
Above Denton
Sites
UMCES
USGS
Major subwatersheds
In Talbot County
Nitrogen- 7.85 mg/l (15X) Phosphorus- 0.077 mg/l (4x)
Upper
Upper
Outer
Moving Out
Moving Out
Same Story for Phosphorus
Conowingo…
Conowingo…
?
Conowingo…
x
Conowingo…
Monitoring StationTotal Nitrogen Total Phosphorus Suspended Sediment
Long Term Short Term Long Term Short Term Long Term Short TermSusquehanna River - Conowingo, MD ê ê - é - -Potomac River - Washington, DC ê ê ê - ê -Patuxent River - Bowie, MD ê ê ê - ê éChoptank River - Greensboro, MD é é é é ê é
Conowingo…
Monitoring StationTotal Nitrogen Total Phosphorus Suspended Sediment
Long Term Short Term Long Term Short Term Long Term Short TermSusquehanna River - Conowingo, MD ê ê - é - -Potomac River - Washington, DC ê ê ê - ê -Patuxent River - Bowie, MD ê ê ê - ê éChoptank River - Greensboro, MD é é é é ê é
Necessary Steps
Regulation PMT
Necessary Steps
Regulation PMT
On the Eastern Shore the phosphorus levels have worsened over the past 10 years…
Necessary Steps
Regulation PMT
On the Eastern Shore the phosphorus levels have worsened over the past 10 years…
In the Choptank River watershed, increased 48% over the last 10 years, and by 65% since 1985.
Necessary Steps
Regulation PMT
On the Eastern Shore the phosphorus levels have worsened over the past 10 years…
Necessary Steps
Regulation PMT Nitrogen?
Necessary Steps
Regulation PMT Nitrogen?
InnovationBioreactorsPhosphorus Removal
PartnershipNon-profit, Federal, State, Local Community
Nutrient Reduction Projects
Nutrient Reduction Projects
Necessity is the mother of invention….
First woodchip bioreactor in the state of Maryland
Nutrient Reduction Projects
Nutrient Reduction Projects
Nutrient Reduction Projects
