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Watershed Assessment Basics Emily Vail Estuary Program, NYS Department of Environmental Conservation NYS Water Resources Institute at Cornell University

August 1, 2016 2

Presentation Outline

. Hudson River Estuary Program . Why watershed planning? . What does a watershed assessment include? . What are the key steps? . Case Study: Quassaick Creek . What can you do next?

Photo by

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Hudson River Estuary Program Six Benefits: . Clean water . Resilient communities . Vital estuary ecosystem . Estuary fish, wildlife, and their habitats . Scenic river landscape . Education, river access, recreation, and inspiration 4 Albany Hudson River Estuary Watershed . Hudson River Estuary watershed = 5,300 mi2

. Saw Kill Creek watershed = 22 mi2

New York City 5

Watershed issues – Water Quality

. Sediment . Nutrients . Heavy metals . Road salt . Sewage . Pesticides . Oil and grease

. Trash Photo by Liz LoGiudice 6

Watershed issues – Water Quantity

. Flooding . Erosion . Droughts . Low base flow in streams

Photos by Liz LoGiudice 7

Watershed issues – Habitat

. Aquatic connectivity . Terrestrial connectivity . Invasive species

Photo by Saw Kill Watershed Community 8

Watershed issues – Trends Map from Dutchess County NRI . Development . Climate change . Watershed resiliency 9

Why watershed planning?

. Brings together stakeholders . Consolidates information . Creates a shared vision, builds consensus . Unified approach across the watershed . Identifies strategies & projects . Helps justify grants and other funding Photo by Saw Kill Watershed Community 10 Watershed Plans and Assessments Hudson River Watershed Alliance - Examples of watershed plans Creek

Quassaick Creek Map courtesy of Cornell Cooperative Extension Dutchess County 11

Types of watershed plans

. Comprehensive watershed plan . Example: Quassaick Creek

. Focus on particular subwatershed or issue . Example: Lower River Reconnaissance Report . Geomorphology, flooding 12

What are the key steps?

. Delineate a watershed (appropriate scale) . Bring together stakeholders . Collect & compile data . Prioritize issues . Create goals . Specify actions . Implement the plan! . Measure progress and adapt if necessary 13

Delineate a watershed

. Saw Kill watershed . 22 mi2 . 4 municipalities (1 county) . USGS watershed delineations (1 HUC 12) . DEC waterbody segments (1 segment in the Priority Waterbodies List) 14

Bring together stakeholders . Municipalities . Government agencies . Academic institutions . Non-profits . City and regional planners . Community groups . Property-owners . Businesses

. Residents Photo from Hudson River Watershed Alliance

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Collect & compile data . Physical characteristics . Topography, geology, soils, subwatersheds . Land use/land cover . Forests, wetlands, farmlands, development

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Collect & compile data . Water resources/stream condition . Streams, lakes, wetlands, aquifers . Water quality, water quantity, floodplains, riparian buffers . Water infrastructure . Wastewater, drinking water, stormwater, dams, culverts . Habitat and biodiversity . Aquatic, terrestrial

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Collect & compile data . Demographics & other social data . Historic or cultural sites, access . Local laws and municipal programs . Code and ordinance review . Existing plans . Pg. 22 – Useful mapping data

People are important resources, too! 18

Where does the data go? . Maps . Charts Watershed characterization . Graphs report . Narrative

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Where does the data go? 20

Prioritize issues & identify gaps

. Are there priority locations or issues to focus on? . What additional information is needed?

Photo by Saw Kill Watershed Community 21

Moving from assessing to planning

. What actions will improve conditions? . Watershed vision -> more specific goals -> objectives . Each project should have specific location, partners and (ideally) funding source identified . Implement the plan!

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Measure progress and adapt

. What are you measuring? (indicators) . How do you know if conditions are improving? . Adaptive management . Assessment can provide baseline

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Warning!

. Don’t discount stakeholders . Don’t be overly general . Don’t take on too much, too quickly . Don’t keep the document on the shelf . Don’t spend all your energy on planning

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Quassaick Creek Case Study . 56 mi2 . 2 counties and 5 munis . Funding - DOS, Orange County Water Authority . Watershed Management Plan . 54 recommendations . 10 priority actions . 2 year process (2012-2014)

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Quassaick Creek Case Study

Quassaick Creek Watershed Management Recommendations 26

What can we learn from the Quassaick?

. High-capacity advisory committee . Municipalities participated, planning depts from both counties . Leveraged funds to fill gaps . Plan is specific . Plan is being implemented . Quassaick Creek Watershed Alliance continued their work

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Resources

. Hudson River Estuary Program – Grants and technical assistance . NYS Dept of State – guidebook . EPA – Occasional grants, resources . Hudson River Watershed Alliance - Examples of watershed plans . Center for Watershed Protection - Resources on planning 28

What you can do

. What is your goal? . Review existing watershed assessments . Model to replicate? Lessons learned? . Who should be at the table? . What issues are most important in your watershed? . What data are available? . Where are there existing plans? . Where are there gaps?

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In summary…

. Watershed planning helps come to consensus on strategic next steps to improve watershed health . 1st step - watershed assessment and characterization . Depends on local priorities . Grants & other resources available 30

Thank You!

. Emily Vail Connect with us: . Watershed Outreach Specialist Facebook: www.facebook.com/NYSDEC Twitter: twitter.com/NYSDEC . Hudson River Estuary Program Flickr: www.flickr.com/photos/nysdec . [email protected] . (845) 256-3145