surface water supply protection plan for lily pond and aaron river reservoir

188 Pages·2006·13.97 MB·English

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I SURFACE WATER SUPPLY
I PROTECTION PLAN
| FOR
I LILY POND &
I AARON RIVER RESERVOIR
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- Project No. 99-04 SWT
• (NRG Project No. 462.1)
• June 2002
" Prepared for: Prepared by:
I Massachusetts Department of Norfolk Ram Group, LLC
* Environmental Protection One Roberts Drive
Bureau of Resource Protection Plymouth, MA 02360
• One Winter Street and
m Boston, MA 02164 100 Kuniholm Drive
and Holliston, MA 01746
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I U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency - Region 1
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
LIST OF TABLES
LIST OF FIGURES
LIST OF APPENDICES
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
PLAN
APPENDICES
H$8AVERY" HIDDEN TAB"-1 DIVIDERS
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
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LIST OF TABLES, FIGURES, APPENDICES
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
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1.0 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY... 1-1
I 2.0 INTRODUCTION 2-1
2.1 Background and Benefits 2-1
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2.2 Purpose 2-2
2.3 Watershed Description. 2-3
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2.4 Organization of SWSPP Report '. .....2-6
3.0 LAND USE IMPACTS 3-1
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3.1 Water Supply Impacts from Existing Land Uses 3-1
3.1.1 Spills And State 21E Sites 3-2
I Hingham Training Annex Disposal Site-State 21E Site 3-2
Former Beechwood Dump-State 21E Site 3-3
Former Norfolk Conveyor Site - State 21E Site 3-4
I Former Burning Ground - State 21E Site 3-6
35 Arrowwood Street, Cohasset - Spills Site 3-7
Beechwood Street, Cohasset-Spills Site 3-7
I Schofield Road, Cohasset-Spills Site 3-7
422 King Street, Cohasset - Spills Site 3-7
King Street, Cohasset - Spills Site 3-7
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Flint Rock Road, Cohasset - Spills Site......... 3-8
3.1.2 Waste Disposal Facilities 3-8
Cohasset Heights Landfill 3-8
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Former Clapp Landfill 3-11
3.1.3 Use and Storage of Hazardous Materials 3-11
3.1.4 Untreated Stormwater Runoff 3-12
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3.1.5 Septic Systems 3-14
3.1.6 State and Municipal Land and Facilities 3-17
I Massachusetts Highway Department ..3-17
Cohasset Water Treatment Plant 3-18
Cemeteries 3-18
I Town Parks 3-19
3.1.7 Industrial Wastewater Discharge 3-19
3.1.8 Public and Private Recreation 3-19
I 3.1.9 Electric Transmission Line Right-of-Way 3-20
3.1.10 Forestry Practices 3-21
DEM Land Management 3-21
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Woody Adelgid Infestation 3-21
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3.1.11 Storage of Fertilizer, Manure, Road Salt 3-22
3.1.12 New Construction .....3-22
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3.1.13 Sand and Gravel Mining/Washing Operations 3-23
3.2 Water Supply Impacts from Future Land Use 3-23
I 3.2.1 Protected Areas, Open Space and Municipal Zoning
within the Watershed 3-23
3.2.2 Future Land Use Impacts 3-24
I 3.3 Public Access/Recreation Impacts 3-24
3.3.1 Public Access to Lily Pond and Aaron Reservoir 3-24
3.4 Wildlife Impacts 3-25
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3.4.1 Existing or Potential Water Supply Impacts from Wildlife....3-25
3.4.2 Existing or Potential Water Supply Impacts from Domestic
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Animals 3-25
3.5 In-Lake Problems 3-26
I 3.5.1 Existing or Potential In-Lake Problems 3-26
3.6 Other Areas of Concerns 3-26
4.0 SAMPLING PLAN 4-1
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4.1 Previous Surface Water Sampling. 4-1
4.2 Short-Term Sampling 4-3
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4.3 Proposed Long-Term Sampling Plan 4-4
4.3.1 Surface Water 4-4
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4.3.2 Groundwater - Bedrock Pathways 4-5
5.0 LAND USE CONTROLS .5-1
I 5.1 Land Purchase or Deed Restriction 5-1
5.2 ACECs and Protected Open Spaces 5-2
I 5.3 Land Use and Activity Controls .5-3
5.3.1 Septic Systems -. 5-3
5.3.2 Stormwater Runoff 5-4
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No-Salt Zones 5-4
5.4 Municipal Land Use Improvements 5-5
I 5.4.1 Water Treatment Plant Improvements 5-6
Off-site Disposal of Wastewater and Sludge 5-6
5.5 Lawn Management 5-6
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5.6 Management Plan 5-7
6.0 PUBLIC ACCESS/ RECREATION CONTROL 6-1
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6.1 Public Access to Water Supply Areas 6-1
6.2 Recreation Control 6-1
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6.3 Wildlife Management 6-1
6.3.1 Canadian Geese 6-1
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6.4 In-Lake Management 6-2
6.4.1 Limnology Study of the Pond and Reservoir 6-2
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6.4.2 Annual Eutrophication Assessment 6-2
7.0 REGULATORY CONTROLS 7-1
I 7.1 Current Local Water Resources Protection Regulations 7-1
7.1.1 Zoning By-laws 7-1
Open Space 7-1
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Residential 7-1
Commercial/Technology Business 7-1
7.1.2 Water Resources Protection Districts 7-2
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Regulatory Protection 7-2
7.1.3 Conservation Commission Bylaws 7-3
I Cohasset's Wetlands Bylaw 7-3
Norwell's Wetlands Bylaw 7-3
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Buffer Zone 7-4
I Fifty Foot (50') Buffer Strip Regulation 7-4
Scituate's Wetlands Byiaw 7-4
7.1.4 Activities Requiring Special Permits 7-5
I 7.1.5 Hazardous Materials Restrictions 7-5
7.1.6 Title 5 Septic System Regulations .7-5
7.2 State Regulations 7-6
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8.0 EMERGENCY PLANNING 8-1
8.1 Emergency Response Plans 8-1
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8.2 Emergency Response Training 8-1
9.0 EDUCATION PROGRAM 9-1
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9.1 Objective of the Education Program 9-1
9.2 Implementation 9-1
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9.3 Pubiic Outreach and Education 9-2
9.4 Intercommunity Partnership 9-2
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9.5 SWSPP Information 9-2
10.0 SUMMARY OF RECOMMENDATIONS 10-1
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10.1 General 10-1
10.2 Watershed Monitoring and Assessment (Group A) 10-2
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10.3 Stormwater and Non-Point Source Pollution Controls
(Group B) 10-4
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I 10.4 Septic System and Other Point Source Pollution Controls
(Group C) 10-6
I 10.5 Land Use Bylaws, Management and Enforcement Funding
(Group D).. 10-7
• 10.6 Open Space Acquisition and Conservation Restrictions
(Group E) 10-8
I ' 10.7 Watershed Management (Group F) 10-9
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List of Tables
I Table 2-1 Breakdown of Surface Water Supply Watershed Areas
Table 3-1 DEP Land Use Matrix Ranking
Table 3-2 Number and Type of Septic Systems by Zone
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Table 4-1 Short-Term Sampling Plan Locations and Parameters
Table 4-2a-e Quarterly Water Sampling results
Table 4-3 Long-Term Sampling Plan Locations and Parameters
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Table 7-1 Prohibited Uses in Water Resources Protection Districts
Table 9-1 Proposed Education Program Activities for the Surface
Water Supply Protection Plan 9-2a
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Table 10-1 Summary of Recommendations 10-1a
Table 10-2 Implementation Schedule for Recommendations 10-1b
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List of Figures Page
Figure 1 Site Locus Map 2-1 a
Figure 2 Water Resources Protection Districts 3-12a
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Figure 3 Surface Water Dissolved Oxygen 4-3f
Figure 4 Surface Water pH (1999) 4-3g
Figure 4a Surface Water pH (2000-2002) 4-3h
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Figure 5 Surface Water Conductivity 4-3i
Figure 6 Surface Water Temperature 4-3j
I Figure 7 Surface Water Turbidity 4-3k
Figure 8 Surface Water Alkalinity 4-3I
Figure 9 Surface Water COD 4-3m
I Figure 10 Surface Water Chloride 4-3n
Figure 11 Surface Water Fecal Coliform Counts 4-3o
Figure 12 Surface Water Orthophosphate 4-3p
I Figure 13 Surface Water Total Phosphorus 4-3q
Figure 14 Surface Water Total Keldahl Nitrogen 4-3r
Figure 15 Developable Parcels Located in (or abutting) Zone A 5-1 a
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List of Appendices
Appendix A
I Thematic Data Layers Portrayed on the GIS Maps
List of Assessor Parcels Categorized as Undeveloped Land by the Town
of Cohasset Assessor's Office
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Map 1a Land Use
Map 1b Potential Threats to the Watershed
Map 2 Protected Areas. Open Space, and Municipal Zoning
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Map 3 Undevelopable Land Practices
Map 4 Parcels of Unknown Ownership
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Appendix B
Land Use Pollution Potential Matrix
DRAFT Land Use/Associated Contaminants Matrix
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Quality Assurance Project Plan
Model Zone A Bylaw Revisions Proposed for Cohasset
Inventory of Stormwater Drainage Systems Tributary to Lily Pond (Norfolk
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Ram Group Memo dated 04/02/02)
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
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This project has been financed partially with Federal funds from the United States
Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) to the Massachusetts Department of
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Environmental Protection (DEP) under the Source Water Protection Technical
Assistance/Land Management Grant Program. The contents do not necessarily reflect
the views and policies of USEPA or DEP, nor does the mention of any trade names or
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commercial products constitute endorsement or a recommendation for use.
We would like to acknowledge the following for their ready assistance in providing
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information used in this report.
I Town of Cohasset; Board of Water Commissioners; John McNabb, Jr.,
Chairman, Rob Kasameyer and Glenn Pratt
Board of Health; Dr. Joseph Godzik and Tara Mullen
I Conservation Commission; Paul Shea and Deborah Cook
Planning Department; Elizabeth Harrington
Watershed Committee; James Kinch
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Town of Hingham: Conservation Commission; Cliff Prentice
Hingham Fire Department; Mark Duff
I Wompatuck State Park; Steve Gammon
Town of Norwell: Board of Health; Brian Flynn
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Town of Scituate: Water Division; Gene Babin
Conservation Commission; Vincent Kalishes and Allan
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Mayberry Greenberg
First Herring Brook Watershed Initiative; Lance Van Lenten,
Director
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Town Planner; Laura Harbottle
Department of Public Works; Anthony Antoniello, Director
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State of Massachusetts: South Coastal Watershed Coordinator; Dr. George Zoto
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1.0 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
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Protecting the drinking water supplies of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts is of
major interest to federal, state and local groups. These resources are recognized as
"one-of-a-kind", and once lost to pollution, irreplaceable in the short term. The Town of
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Cohasset supplies drinking water for 90% of its residents from Lily Pond, which
sometimes draws water from the Aaron River Reservoir, and Cohasset has been very
proactive in the effort to protect these resources. The Massachusetts Department of
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Environmental Protection, in cooperation with the United States Environmental
Protection Agency, has provided funding to Norfolk Ram Group, LLC for the
development of this Surface Water Supply Protection Plan (SWSPP). The organization
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of this report is consistent with the Department of Environmental Protection's May 2000
guidance document titled Developing a Local Surface Water Supply Protection Plan.
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The purpose of this SWSPP is to compile, organize and present information that
describes the watershed, and present a plan to identify, prevent, eliminate and control
I actual or potential sources of contamination that could negatively impact the quality of
the drinking water supply that is available from Lily Pond and the Aaron River Reservoir.
The plan is intended to form a base of understanding and a starting point for watershed
I protection, education, and management as a dynamic process going forward. It is
expected that this SWSPP will be used as a management and planning tool primarily by
the Cohasset Board of Water Commissioners, which is the leading local authority with
I responsibility for protecting the water supply and associated watershed.
Lily Pond and the Aaron River Reservoir are hydrologically linked by the Bound Brook
I Control Structure, which is used to raise the surface water elevation on the upstream
side of the structure to equal that of the surface elevation of Lily Pond. This creates
storage in the wetlands located south of Lily Pond that can be called upon when the
I demand for water from the pond is greatest, typically in the summer months. It also
links the subbasins associated with the two surface water bodies forming a much larger
contributory Watershed located across four communities: Cohasset (38%), Norwell
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(33%), Hingham (18%), and Scituate (11%). In Massachusetts, the area of a watershed
is divided into three zones: Zone A which is a narrow strip of land along the shoreline of
the surface water supply and tributaries (200 and 400 feet, respectively); Zone B which
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is the area within !4 miles of the shoreline of the surface water bodies; and Zone C
which is the remainder of the Watershed. The regional nature of the Watershed
necessitates an inter-community approach to protecting Cohasset's surface water
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supply since activities anywhere in the Watershed can potentially negatively impact Lily
Pond.
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As part of this SWSPP, five large-scale maps were produced depicting certain aspects
of the Watershed. These maps were developed using information from geographical
information systems, topographical maps and existing watershed maps. The maps
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show the land use, potential threats to the Watershed, protected areas, Open Space,
and municipal zoning, undevelopable land parcels, and parcels of unknown ownership.
I These maps represent the base conditions of the Watershed at the creation of this
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SWSPP, and they can be used in the future as a benchmark from which to compare the
protection and development of the Watershed.
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There are many existing and potential future threats to Cohasset's surface water supply
mainly associated with certain land uses such as locations where a release to the
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environment of oil or hazardous materials has occurred, landfills and dumps, military
facilities, commercial and industrial facilities, municipal facilities, etc. These land uses
typically involve activities that require the use, production, or storage of potential
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contaminants, which, if managed improperly, could adversely impact the environment
including soil, groundwater, surface water and air. The DEP has cataloged most types
of land use in their 1999 Land Use Pollution Potential Matrix (the DEP Matrix)
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developed for the Source Water Assessment Program. The DEP Matrix categorizes
land uses and ranks them High, Moderate or Low relative to the threat they pose to the
water quality of a water supply. Information in the DEP Matrix and DEP's 1999 DRAFT
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Land Use/Associated Contaminants Matrix, which lists the types of contaminants
typically associated with land uses, provides the basis for much of the discussion of
land uses in this SWSPP.
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Impacts to Lily Pond and the Aaron River Reservoir associated with non-point source
I pollution are probably the single greatest immediate threat to the water quality of the
surface water supply. Non-point source pollution is associated with untreated
stormwater runoff, on-site septic systems, fertilizer, pesticide and herbicide use, and
I destruction of natural buffer zones around surface water bodies and tributaries. For
instance, over the past few years, sodium concentrations in the pond have exceeded
the state recommended guideline concentration partially due to the use of salt-based
I deicing chemicals on roads where drainage systems are tributary to the surface water
supply. Non-point source pollution is also manifest in the concentration of nutrients that
enter the pond. An evaluation of existing surface water data conducted as part of this
I SWSPP suggests both Lily Pond and the Aaron River Reservoir are eutrophic to hyper-
eutrophic in terms of nutrient loading and the potential for uncontrolled plant growth.
These nutrients have several non-point sources including untreated stormwater runoff,
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and antiquated on-site septic systems. The causes of eutrophication, mainly excess
nitrates and phosphates are also known to be detrimental to human health, and
eutrophication can lead to the eventual loss of a water body through siltation.
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Many of the threats to the surface water supply can be minimized by zoning and non-
zoning controls that prohibit certain land uses within the Watershed. First, the threats
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need to be identified and then prioritized in order of their immediacy to the protection of
the Watershed. This SWSPP forms the base for this type of evaluation. The degree of
protection of the Watershed should be greatest closest to the surface water supply and
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tributaries (Zone A) and less stringent farther away (Zones B and C). Fortunately, all of
the communities within the Watershed have some type of land use control in the form of
Water Resources Protection Districts. In addition, much of the Watershed is protected
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as Open or Recreational Space such as Wompatuck State Park and land owned by the
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