Dorchester County
Government Officials
Presentation
Watershed Implementation
Planning Phase II Status
Mike Moulds, Local Team Coordinator
October 4, 2011
Background
• 1972 Federal Clean Water Act Requires:
Water Quality Standards
Assessment (monitoring) of Waters
Identification of Waters that Violate Standards
– 303(d) List of Impaired Waters
– Identify Pollutant(s) Causing Impaired Waters
Set Limits on Pollutants: Total Maximum Daily Load
• Court Settlement: Required Chesapeake Bay TMDLs to be completed
by December 2010.
•
•
•
•
•
Federal “Accountability Framework” Clean Water Act: Bay TMDLs
Watershed Implementation Plans
2-Year Implementation Milestones
Tracking & Evaluating Progress
Federal “Consequences”
Total Maximum Daily Load
• Main Concepts of a TMDL:
• TMDL: Maximum amount of pollutant that can be
•
•
•
received by a water body and still meet standards.
TMDL Allocates loads among sources and geographic
areas.
TMDL = WLA + LA + MOS
– WLA: Sources with Permits (point sources)
– LA: Sources without Permits (nonpoint sources)
– MOS: Margin of Safety, protective of environment.
TMDL is usually determined by a scientific study of the
water body, often using computer models.
Watershed Implementation Plans
• Three-Phased Planning Process:
• Phase I Plans - 2010
– Nutrient and sediment target loads by sector and impaired segment
– Statewide strategies for reducing loads in each source sector
– Starting Point for Phase II Plans
• Phase II Plans – 2011/12
– Refined EPA Watershed Model Results
– Divide loads by smaller geographic areas
– More detailed strategy to meet 2017 Interim Target - 70%
reduction
– 2-Year Milestone actions for 2012-2013
• Phase III Plans – 2017
– Modification of TMDL and allocations, if necessary
• Identify changes needed to meet Final Target loads
County Phase II WIP
Local Team Members
Keith Lackie
Mike Moulds
Mike Bonsteel
Greg LeBlanc
Jim Newcomb
Bill Giese
William Layton/Bill Edwards
Beth Lynch
Bill Forlifer
Jennifer Dindinger
Russ Brinsfield/John Avery
Maryland Department of Planning
Dorchester County DPW
Dorchester County Planning and Zoning
City of Cambridge
Dorchester Soil Conservation District
Blackwater Refuge
Dorchester County Farm Bureau
Dorchester Citizens for Planned Growth
Dorchester County Dept of Health
Choptank Tributary Team
Town of Vienna/Town of Hurlock
Step One: Set a Diet
(Note - pollution
loads not to scale.)
Dorchester County Land Use
Agricultural*
Urban Developed
Forest
Wetland
Acres
Percent
114,886 32.4
23, 154
6.5
126,705 35.7
90,267 25.4
* An estimated 90,000 acres is actively farmed.
Dorchester County TN Targets
Final September 2011
Source Sector
Current
Load
( lbs/yr)
2020 Target
Load
(lbs/yr)
%
Reduction
Agriculture
1,189,678
869,794
27%
Urban
Wastewater
128,226
79,921
94,333
82,322
26%
+3%
Septic
72,457
41,336
43%
Total
1,470,282
1,087,785
26%
Based on 5.3.2 Bay Model 2009 Baseline delivered loads to bay.
Wastewater target does not include growth allocation.
Dorchester County P Targets
Final September 2011
Source Sector
Current
Load
( lbs/yr)
2020 Target
Load
(lbs/yr)
%
Reduction
Agriculture
186,347
162,309
13%
Urban
Wastewater
8,760
11,007
5,807
8,347
34%
24%
Septic
0
0
0%
Total
206,114
176,463
14%
Based on 5.3.2 Bay Model 2009 Baseline delivered loads to bay.
Wastewater target does not include growth allocation.
Dorchester County Phase II WIP
Established Target Sources
State-wide
Target Sources for
Dorchester County
•Major/minor point sources
•Agricultural land
•Urban & Agricultural Land
•Septic Systems
•Forests
•Wastewater Point Sources
•Septic Systems
•Developed Urban Land
•Atmospheric Deposition
Issues
•The County has no direct regulatory authority
over our three major pollutant sectors
(Agriculture, Wastewater, Septic Systems).
• The majority of Urban Developed Land is in the
incorporated City and Towns.
•No county-wide system in place to track, monitor
and report activities across sectors
Agricultural BMP Development
Agricultural Best Management Practices
(BMP) are being developed and managed
by the Department of Agriculture working
with the Agricultural Community and Soil
Conservation Districts to meet goals for
nutrient reduction. A total of 33 BMP’s
have initially been developed.
Examples of
Agricultural BMP”s
No Till Farming
Cover Crops
Stream Protection Buffers
Decision /Precision Agriculture
Water Irrigation Management
Nutrient Management Plans
Vegetated Open Channels
Heavy Use Pads
Livestock/Poultry Waste Structures
Manure Transport
Manure Incorporation
Runoff Control Systems
Animal Mortality Composter
Septic System BMP’s
2,947 Septic Systems in the Critical
Area
1,522 Systems within 1,000 feet of a
perennial stream
2,269 Systems outside of the Critical
Area and not within 1,000 feet of a
perennial stream
A Total of 6,738 Systems
Septic BMP Development
BMP options:
Connect to sewer with ENR
treatment.
Convert septic to provide
denitrification.
 Scheduled septic pump outs.
Issues and Needs:
 Identify future connection
projects.
 Enable planning and
inter-municipal cooperation.
 Develop funding mechanisms.
Wastewater BMP Development
• 2 major plants Cambridge, Hurlock
• 2 minor plants - Vienna, Twin Cities
• 28 Minor Industrial Plants
• Cambridge plant will be credited with load reduction
from upgrade to ENR in 2011-12.
• Hurlock Plant is already a ENR plant
• Cambridge Combined Sewer Elimination Credit.
•Industrial discharger load reductions are being addressed
by MDE
•No ENR funding is available for minor plant upgrades
•ENR – Enhanced Nutrient Removal Advanced Wastewater Treatment
Urban BMP’s
Stormwater facility retrofits
Street Sweeping
Urban Grass Filters and Buffers
Urban Tree Planting
Impervious Surface Reduction
Permeable pavement
Urban Growth Reduction
• Urban Areas are primarily in the
•
•
City of Cambridge and Towns.
Stormwater facilities in
Dorchester County are not
regulated by EPA as a point
source.
Rural areas of the County do not
have piped public stormwater
facilities
Wetland Restoration and Shoreline
Stabilization
•Both Agricultural and Urban Land BMP’s include
the restoration of wetlands as a method of reducing
nutrient loading.
•Wetland Restoration provides for the reduction of
28.72 pounds of Nitrogen and 1.94 pounds of
Phosphorus per acre.
•EPA and MDE are also developing BMP credits
for Structural and Vegetative (Living Shoreline)
shore erosion protection.
Draft 2013 Milestones –
Implementation Actions
• Complete city WWTP upgrade
• Complete city CSO elimination
• Complete conversion of 45 septic systems to sewer in Christ Rock area.
• Complete 300 septic system upgrades in the Critical Area.
• Complete construction of 12.6 acres of wetlands (Elliott Island Road
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
project).
Complete Woolford-Madison project with conversion of 350 septic
systems to sewer
Complete 4.5 acres of riparian shoreline buffers
Complete 4 acres of forest area restoration
Increase cover crop by 30%
Increase HUA pads by 15%
Increase streamside grass buffers by 7%
Increase Industrial pretreatment enforcement at Hurlock WWTP.
Draft 2013 Milestones –
Program Development
• Investigate funding for Oak Hill septic system connection (70 systems)
• Develop methods to track
•
•
•
•
•
– precision/decision agriculture
– poultry manure incorporation
– irrigation management
Investigate development of a septic system management district.
– mandatory pump-outs
– funding and administration
Evaluate future growth and capacity of city WWTP.
Evaluate possible connection of Twin Cities to Hurlock.
Develop agreements to enable additional expansion of septic connection
program.
Update County water/sewer plan to address septic system.
conversions/connections.
Draft 2013 Milestones –
Program Development
• Investigate options and funding for upgrade of Vienna WWTP to ENR.
• Review forest replacement program to accelerate vegetated buffer
creation
• Develop septic system GIS mapping capability
• Evaluate expansion of urban tree canopy program.
– Evaluate existing City and Town of Hurlock street sweeping program
for potential improvements.
• Investigate funding for all of the above.
Schedule
September 15
September 28
October 4
October 14
October 26
November 1
November 9
Final County Targets from MDE
Local Team Meeting to review revised allocations.
Government Officials Update
Submission of Draft 2012-13 Milestones to MDE
Local Team completes draft WIP
WIP Presentation to Government Officials for Comment
Local Team Meeting to address comments and finalize
WIP
November 15 Submission for Approval by County
November 23 Delivery to MDE
Note: MDE has notified Local Team that the deadline is being extended to July 2, 2012 for a
final local WIP and public comment. A more detailed schedule is being developed.
Challenges Ahead
• Funding! Funding! Funding!
• Development of Regulations and
Standards
• Staffing
• Tracking and Accountability
• Sustaining Progress