ECCD awarded a grant to install demonstration rain gardens and riparian buffers
Rain gardens are a type of stormwater treatment system that captures runoff and encourage it to soak into the ground. Often these areas are planted with native plants that are well adapted to the local environment. Rain gardens use nature as a stormwater filter, provide wildlife habitat to native insects and birds, and are aesthetically pleasing. Not only do they help remove contaminants from stormwater runoff, but they also help to recharge groundwater and reduce flash flooding. This helps to maintain base flow in rivers during dry periods.
Riparian buffers are streamside plantings that benefit water quality by stabalizing the banks of the stream. They can also serve to filter contaminants in stormwater runoff draining into the stream.
Working with the Town of Woodstock and other partners, ECCD will be installing three demonstration projects in the Little River watershed. One will be at the Woodstock Town Hall. Another will be behind the Woodstock Historical Society/Palmer Hall building at the Woodstock Arboretum and the third project will be to plant a riparian buffer where none currently exists at the Woodstock Golf Course. If you want more information about any of these projects, or wish to help, please contact Jean Pillo at 860-928-4948.
In 2009, ECCD completed a watershed assessment of the Little River/Muddy Brook watersheds in Woodstock and Putnam, CT. The plan outlines multiple recommendations that will reduce non-point source water pollution. Rain gardens are a Low Impact Development strategy promoted in this plan. Click here to view the completed watershed based plan.
ECCD awarded a grant to install tree filters in Niantic River watershed
In the battle against nonpoint source pollution, new methods are being developed and tested every year. One such method employs an ancient strategy – the ability of nature to remediate contaminants. This new twist on an old process is called a “tree filter.” Street trees in urban settings are not a new idea. What is new is the idea of setting a tree in a specially processed growth medium in an enclosed or semi-enclosed structure, and connecting it to the storm drain system.
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Expected Average Pollutant Removal Rates*
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Total Suspended Solids Removal
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>83%
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Nitrogen Removal
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>43%
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Phosphorus Removal
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>60%
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Heavy Metal Removal
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33% - 95%
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Bacteria Removal
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57% - 85%
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Oil & Grease Removal
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>85%
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* Based upon published 3rd party testing by University of New Hampshire Stormwater Center; University of Massachusetts Stormwater Technologies Clearinghouse; University of Virginia Stormwater Center
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Storm runoff picks up contaminants on the ground – chemicals, heavy metals, trash, salts, fertilizers, pesticides and sediments – and transports them into the storm drain system. Traditional storm drain systems were designed to channel and remove storm runoff from paved surfaces as expeditiously as possible to avoid road flooding. Little or no thought was given to the contaminants that stormwater picked up along the way. Tree filters are designed to treat these contaminants. Microbes in the growth medium and the tree itself do the work of removing the contaminants through biological processes. The microbes and tree absorbs nutrients such as nitrogen and phosphorus, removing them from the storm water. The tree may also remove salts, metals and harmful chemicals and either absorb and alter them, store them or transpire them through the leaves. Oil and grease digesting bacteria in the soil can break down petroleum products transported in the storm water. Heavy metals may adsorb onto sediment in the unit and stay put. Stormwater that has been treated through this natural water pollution treatment system can exit the tree filter up to 95% cleaner than it was when it entered!
Tree filter units are very adaptable and can be retrofitted into previously developed cityscapes. They require very little space. Most small trees are suitable for use in filter units. Tree filters can be set up in series along streets, so that as polluted storm water enters the storm drain system, it passes through a series of tree filters before being discharged into the receiving water body.
ECCD has several projects coming up involving the installation of tree filter units, and one currently underway in East Lyme. Stay tuned or visit the ECCD website for updates.
For more information on tree filters, you can visit:
These projects are being funded in part by a US EPA Clean Water Act section 319 grant through the CT Department of Energy and Enviromental Protection.
ECCD works with farmers to reduce non-point pollution runoff
The Eastern Connecticut Conservation District is assisting the Elm Farm, a family run dairy farm in Woodstock, Connecticut, with a project that will redirect rain runoff away from the barnyard. By redirecting the runoff, we will greatly reduce the possibility of the runoff carrying manure from the barnyard to a local brook.
One method of stock piling feed for dairy cows is chopping the entire corn plant into “silage”. However, a byproduct of silage storage is a liquid that leaches out, which is toxic to aquatic creatures. So it is important that a farm’s silage storage area be constructed in a way that prevents the leachate from being carried by stormwater to a wetland, brook, or pond. A recent ECCD project addressed this issue through the reconstruction of the silage bunkers at Valleyside Farm, whose silage storage area is located a short distance uphill from North Running Brook in the Little River watershed. ECCD was one of several partners who helped Valleyside Farm reconstruct their silage bunkers. The construction project has been successfully completed, and the new bunkers, complete with a new leachate capturing system, are now providing protection for North Running Brook. These projects were supported in part by a US EPA Clean Water Act grant funded through the CT DEEP.
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Current Projects
Amos Lake
Amos Lake is located in Preston, CT. Excess algae growth has reduced the recreational quality of this lake favored by boaters and sportfishermen. ECCD will be reviewing historical water quality data, designing a water quality study and gathering other data during 2012 to develop a watershed based plan for this resource.
Flat Brook
Flat Brook is located in Ledyard in the Gales Ferry area. This brook is not meeting water quality standards for recreation because of E. coli bacteria in the brook. In 2012, ECCD staff will be organizing a track down survey of this brook in order to determine the sources of this contamination and develop a watershed base plan to address these issues.
Completed Projects
Mashamoquet Brook
Mashamoquet Brook is located in Pomfret, CT. Water from this brook is diverted to a swimming area in Mashamoquet Brook State Park. Water samples from the pond occasionally exceed the safe bacteria threshold limit. In 2010, the ECCD investigated this situation and developed recommendations to remedy this problem.
Volunteer water quality monitoring – in cooperation with The Last Green Valley Volunteer Water Quality Monitoring Program, the Town of Pomfret and the Northeast District Department of Health, ECCD is recruited volunteers to participate in a pilot bacteria monitoring project. Volunteers helped to collect water samples weekly during the summer season. Water samples were transported to the CT State Department of Health to measure the amount of E. coli in the samples. This information was helpful to locate the potential sources of contamination into the brook.
Reports on findings and recommendations to improve water quality can be downloaded below.
Assess the Watershed of Mashamoquet Brook Utilizing Physical Surveys and Rapid Bioassessments
Determine Pollutant and Evaluate Possible Sources
Click here to view the completed Mashamoquet Brook Watershed Based Plan.
Baker Cove, Groton, CT
 Baker Cove is located in the eastern portion of the Long Island Sound inner estuary. It is bounded by Avery Point and the tip of Pine Island, to the mouth of the Poquonuck River south of the Groton-New London Airport. Occasionally the shellfish beds in the area need to be closed due to bacteria exceeding the safe threshold for direct consumption. This is especially true after it rains. ECCD investigated this urban watershed and developed recommendations to remedy this problem.Many volunteers assisted with the collection of visual assessment data along the cove shore, Birch Plain Creek and its tributaries and the information collected was drafted into an abbreviated watershed based plan for the watershed. Information contributed from local stakeholders was also incorporated into the final plan. Click here to view the final Watershed Based Plan for Baker Cove. This cove is located at the City of Groton/Town of Groton border. Contact ECCD at 860-877-4163 x 400 if you would like additional information about this project.
Spaulding Pond
Spaulding Pond is located in Mohegan Park in Norwich, CT. Water samples from the pond occasionally exceed the safe bacteria threshold limit for swimming. ECCD staff, with the assistance of students from Kelly Middle School and the Uncas Health District collected data to determine the most probable sources of contamination impacting this pond.
An abbreviated watershed based plan has been prepared and submitted to the CT DEEP. Click here to view the final Watershed Based Plan for Spaulding Pond.
Little River/Muddy Brook/Roseland Lake
The Little River watershed extends from the Quinebaug River in Putnam through Woodstock, CT and into Massachusetts. In 2009, ECCD completed a watershed investigation of five different impaired segments and drafted a watershed based plan for this rural watershed. Click here to view the final Watershed Based Plan for Little River/Muddy Brook/Roseland Lake.
These projects were supported in part by US EPA Clean Water Act grants funded through the CT DEEP.
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ECCD awarded a grant to facilitate the development of a Conservation Action Plan for Poquetanuck Cove
Poquetanuck Cove is a two mile long brackish water cove of the Thames River. It is located between the towns of Ledyard and Preston, CT. It is the best preserved tidal cove ecosystem remaining along the Thames River. Although much of the cove shoreline is protected open space owned by the CT DEEP, The Nature Conservancy or Avalonia Land Conservancy, there still remain significant threats to this fragile environment.
During the Conservation Action Planning Process, key stakeholders from both towns and conservation professionals will be brought together to identify the highest value conservation features of the cove, indentify the threats to those features and finally, recommend actions necessary to address those threats. In addition to these three working group sessions, ECCD will also be organizing helpful workshops:
- Low Impact Development - a workshop for municipal officials
- Home and Garden Best Management Practices
- Climate Change Adaptation Tools
Watch the calendar page for workshop dates and other details.
This project is supported in part by a National Fish and Wildlife Foundation grant as part of the Long Island Sound Study.
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 The Last Green Valley Volunteer Water Quality Monitoring Program
Through a cooperative agreement with The Last Green Valley, Inc, ECCD Watershed Conservation Coordinator, Jean Pillo coordinates a water quality monitoring program for volunteers in the 35 towns of the Quinebaug-Shetucket Rivers National Heritage Corridor. Volunteers are provided with free training and equipment.
The Troll Users Group
Volunteers are trained and organized into teams that collect data monthly using an In-situ Troll 9500 multi-parameter probe with a hand held microprocessor. This instrument provides information on the water temperature, pH, dissolved oxygen content, turbidity and conductivity. The data is used to establish a baseline of water quality or to identify areas of concern.
Monitoring efforts are underway in the French River, the Five Mile River and the upper Quinebaug River as well as South Charlton Reservoir and Webster Lake. We hope to expand this project into more main stem regional rivers as the program grows.
Stream Walk Teams
 Volunteers are trained and organized to collect visual assessment data on current in-stream conditions, which recorded onto a data sheet designed by the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service. The data provides important information related to potential water quality issues or aquatic habitat concerns.Volunteers note plant and algae growth, storm water outfalls, fish passage barriers and the condition of the bottom sediments and streamside vegetative cover.
Rapid Bioassessment
 Volunteers are trained to collect and identify stream invertebrates which can be excellent indicators of water quality. Voucher samples are provided to the CT DEP and used as part of their biannual water quality assessment report.An average wadable stream can be assessed in about 2 hours. Consider "adopting" your local stream and check its ability to support fish and other aquatic life annually.
Bacteria Monitoring
Volunteers are trained to collect water samples that will be analyzed for concentrations of E. coli bacteria. The samples are analyzed by the CT Department of Public Health. Not all E. coli is harmful, but its presence in the water indicates the water has been contaminated with fecal material and therefore, there may be may be harmful pathogens in the water. This type of monitoring takes place in the summer during the beach bathing season. Samples are collected once a week for 8 weeks.
Nutrient Monitoring
Using a LaMotte Smart2 Colorimeter, volunteers are trained to analyze water samples for certain types of plant nutrients including Nitrate-Nitrogen and ortho-Phosphorus. These nutrients, when in excess in aquatic environments, support excessive weed and algal growth.
Water Temperature Profiling
With HOBO brand temperature monitoring devices, volunteers will gather important water temperature data to share with fisheries mananagement folks. These devices will be deployed in spring and collected in autumn.
Would you like to become a water quality monitoring volunteer? Contact Jean Pillo for more information.
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Niantic River Watershed Coordinator
The Niantic River Watershed is located within four towns: Salem, Montville, Waterford, and East Lyme. The Niantic River is an estuary. Fresh water drains from a small coastal watershed to a tidal embayment where fresh water mixes with the salt water of Long Island Sound. Many people relate to the Niantic River as a body of saltwater that provides access to the Sound and to a rich variety of marine resources. Others make connections to local freshwater streams and ponds through recreational activities such as fishing and swimming. For citizens of Waterford, including Quaker Hill, and New London, the freshwater resources in the watershed provide drinking water to 13,000 homes andbusinesses.
The Niantic River is currently not meeting the Department of Environmental Protection’s water quality standards. It is not supporting aquatic life known to inhabit the estuary in the past. Symptoms of this condition include, algal blooms, seasonal variations in eelgrass populations, loss of scallop populations and changes to the fish communities. The leading suspected cause of the impairment is non-point source pollution.
The CT DEP has given ECCD a grant to coordinate the Niantic River Watershed Working Groups and the four towns involved with the Niantic River to implement the Niantic River Watershed Protection Plan done in 2006. Public support is always necessary to ensure that the recommendations of the protection plan are implemented. To find out more information about the plan, its watershed, the Niantic River Watershed Working Groups, and what you can do in your own backyard, check out the Niantic River Watershed Website.
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The Hallville Dam is located upstream of Poquetanuck Cove in Preston. After many years of fund raising, planning, easement and permit gathering, ECCD is preparing for a ground breaking on this exciting project in 2012. Stay tuned for updates.
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