Buzzards Bay Stormwater Collaborative: Goals
Fig. 1. Waters of Buzzards bay impaired by bacteria pollution.
Fig. 2. Since 2003, we have mapped more than 3000 discharges near the coast of Buzzards Bay.
Scope of the Problem
In Buzzards Bay, there are roughly 6,000 acres of shellfish growing areas indefinitely closed to shellfishing, another 6,000 acres closed after 0.2 inches or more of rain, and roughly 3,000 acres seasonally closed (Fig. 1). Some of these closures are mandatory prohibitions around sewage facility outfalls, and some are precautionary closures around marinas or dense mooring areas. However, a large portion of these closures are the result of bacterial contamination from stormwater discharges (Fig. 2). Some of these stormwater discharges also contribute nutrients to these embayments, many of which are nitrogen impaired and require that a nitrogen TMDL be met. The elimination of illicit discharges to stormwater networks and the treatment of stormwater discharges conveying non-point sources of pollution will help reduce these impairments. While many of these discharges are now regulated under a federal MS4 stormwater issued to municipalities, some are not regulated. The identification of problem discharges and the development of solutions requires mapping stormwater networks and monitoring their discharges for nutrients, bacteria, and other pollutants causing impairments.
Goals of the Program
Since 2017 the Buzzards Bay Stormwater Collaborative has assisted municipalities to map municipal stormwater networks and monitor their discharges. The program also supports illicit discharge investigations (IDDE) and helps participating municipalities comply with their MS4 stormwater permits. The long-term goal of the program is to help participating towns identify and prioritize for remediation those stormwater discharges that are the most significant contributors to water quality impairments like shellfish bed and swimming beach closures.
The Stormwater Collaborative now includes eight participating municipalities (the Towns of Acushnet, Bourne, Dartmouth, Fairhaven, Marion, Mattapoisett, Wareham, and Westport). Funding for the effort has received from the NEP, and from the U.S. EPA, principally through SNEP, and by Buzzards Bay municipalities. Massachusetts Maritime Academy helps managing the program and provides coop students that are funded by the participating municipalities. The Buzzards Bay NEP is providing technical assistance to Massachusetts Maritime Academy and the Stormwater Collaborative in implementing the effort. The NEP also manages the stormwater database and GIS for the effort.