Water Resources Volume II Water Use and Availability 2008 Prepared by State of New Jersey Highlands Water Protection and Technical Planning Council in Support of the Highlands Regional Master Plan Report HIGHLANDS REGIONAL MASTER PLAN HIGHLANDS WATER PROTECTION AND PLANNING COUNCIL John R. Weingart | Chairman Kurt Alstede Deborah Pasquarelli Jack Schrier | Vice Chairman Elizabeth Calabrese Erik Peterson William Cogger | Treasurer Tracy C. Carluccio Glen Vetrano Timothy Dillingham Tahesha Way Janice Kovach Scott Whitenack Mimi Letts HIGHLANDS COUNCIL STAFF Eileen Swan | Executive Director Thomas A. Borden | Deputy Executive Director and Chief Counsel Daniel J. Van Abs | Senior Director of Planning and Science Roger Keren | Director of Geographic Information Systems SCIENCE STAFF PLANNING STAFF Christine M. Ross | Sr. Resource Management Specialist Christine M. Danis | Principal Planner James Hutzelmann | Water Resource Engineer Judith A. Thornton | Principal Planner Erin C. Lynam | Resource Management Specialist Maryjude Haddock-Weiler | Regional Planner ASSISTING SCIENCE UNIT Megan I. Lang | Regional Planner Casey Ezyske Erika Webb | Regional Planner Charles Perry ASSISTING PLANNING UNIT Megan Saunders GEOGRAPHIC INFORMATION SYSTEMS STAFF LEGAL STAFF Carl B. Figueiredo | GIS Specialist Jeffrey P. LeJava | TDR Program Administrator Nathan McLean | GIS Specialist and Staff Attorney Matthew Vitullo | GIS Specialist Kim Ball Kaiser | Staff Attorney ASSISTING GIS UNIT Jennifer Reed OPERATIONS STAFF Paula M. Dees | Executive Assistant Ranji H. Persaud | Manager of Human Resources/Office Sabina Martine | Administrative Assistant Elizabeth Carlson | Information Systems Coordinator Craig Garretson | Manager of Communications Laura Forrest | Administrative Assistant Matthew J. Curtis | Manager of Information Systems Jane Rivers | Administrative Assistant Lindsey Interlante | Manager of Grants Administration Cindy Tonczos | Receptionist PLAN CONSULTANT Charles L. Siemon, Esq. | Siemon and Larsen, P.A. Highlands Water Resources Volume II - Water Use And Availability Technical Report CONTENTS EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ......................................................................................................................... 1 HYDROLOGIC UNITS OF THE HIGHLANDS ................................................................................... 5 GROUND WATERS OF THE HIGHLANDS .......................................................................................10 MAJOR AQUIFER TYPES OF THE HIGHLANDS ............................................................................................... 10 KARST TOPOGRAPHY ....................................................................................................................................... 13 PRIME GROUND WATER RECHARGE AREAS ................................................................................................ 15 METHODOLOGY ............................................................................................................................... 16 DEFINING PRIME GROUND WATER RECHARGE AREA .............................................................. 20 MANAGEMENT OF PRIME GROUND WATER RECHARGE AREAS .............................................. 25 HIGHLANDS REGION SOLE SOURCE AQUIFERS ........................................................................................... 28 BURIED VALLEY AQUIFER SYSTEM ............................................................................................... 28 HIGHLANDS BASIN AQUIFER SYSTEM ........................................................................................... 30 NORTHWEST NEW JERSEY 15 BASIN AQUIFER SYSTEM ............................................................. 31 UPPER ROCKAWAY RIVER BASIN AREA AQUIFER SYSTEM ........................................................ 32 RAMAPO RIVER BASIN AQUIFER SYSTEM ..................................................................................... 33 WATER AVAILABILITY FROM GROUND WATER AND UNREGULATED STREAM FLOWS 36 ESTIMATING GROUND WATER CAPACITY AND AVAILABILITY ................................................................. 36 LEVEL OF ANALYSIS ......................................................................................................................... 38 RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN STREAM FLOWS AND RECHARGE ..................................................... 38 IMPACTS OF LAND COVER ON STREAM BASE FLOWS ................................................................. 40 SELECTION OF WATER AVAILABILITY METHOD ........................................................................................ 42 CONSIDERATIONS FOR METHOD SELECTION .............................................................................. 55 SELECTION OF METHOD FOR ASSESSING WATER CAPACITY .................................................... 56 GROUND WATER CAPACITY TECHNICAL ANALYSES .................................................................................. 60 LOW FLOW STATISTICS FOR GAGED BASINS ................................................................................ 61 LOW FLOW STATISTICS FOR UNGAGED BASINS........................................................................... 67 ECOLOGICAL FLOW GOALS PILOT STUDY ................................................................................... 78 PRELIMINARY COMPARISON OF RESULTS ..................................................................................................... 88 ECOLOGICAL FLOW GOALS METHOD .......................................................................................... 92 RECOMMENDED TECHNICAL METHOD FOR ESTIMATING GROUND WATER CAPACITY ...... 92 CONSUMPTIVE AND DEPLETIVE WATER USES IN THE HIGHLANDS ................................. 95 INSERT BUREAU OF WATER ALLOCATIONTOTAL WATER USE WITHIN THE HIGHLANDS REGION ... 97 TOTAL WATER USE WITHIN THE HIGHLANDS REGION ............................................................................ 98 GROUND WATER USE BY HUC14 ............................................................................................................... 103 SURFACE WATER USE BY HUC14 ................................................................................................................ 103 SUMMARY OF FULL ALLOCATION GROUND AND SURFACE WATER DATA ............................................. 104 DEPLETIVE WATER USES AND WASTEWATER RETURNS .......................................................................... 105 RESERVOIRS AND SURFACE WATER INTAKES ............................................................................................ 105 DATA LIMITATIONS ........................................................................................................................................ 110 WATER CAPACITY WITH APPLICATION OF WATER USE STATISTICS ....................................................... 111 SELECTION OF WATER USE ESTIMATES FOR CALCULATING WATER AVAILABILITY ........................... 111 CALCULATION OF CONSUMPTIVE AND DEPLETIVE WATER USES .......................................................... 116 METHOD FOR ESTIMATING GROUND WATER AVAILABILITY ............................................. 120 CALCULATION OF GROUND WATER AVAILABILITY .................................................................................. 120 WATER AVAILABILITY THRESHOLDS ............................................................................................................. 121 OTHER FACTORS AFFECTING WATER AVAILABILITY ESTIMATES ............................................................. 123 CALCULATION OF NET WATER AVAILABILITY ......................................................................................... 124 RESULTS BY SUBWATERSHED ........................................................................................................................ 126 DEFICIT MITIGATION .................................................................................................................................... 126 FEASIBILITY OF MITIGATION ....................................................................................................... 128 MITIGATION STRATEGIES ............................................................................................................. 130 i Highlands Water Resources Volume II - Water Use And Availability Technical Report RECOMMENDED APPROACH FOR IMPROVING ESTIMATES ...................................................................... 131 COMPARISON OF WATER AVAILABILITY TO WATER SUPPLY UTILITY CAPACITY ................................ 133 SURFACE WATER AVAILABILITY .................................................................................................... 134 SURFACE WATER SUPPLY SYSTEMS .............................................................................................................. 135 SAFE YIELDS OF HIGHLANDS SURFACE WATER SUPPLIES ....................................................................... 137 PASSING FLOWS .............................................................................................................................................. 138 ANALYSIS OF GROWTH IN AREAS THAT RELY ON HIGHLANDS WATER SUPPLIES .............................. 142 FUTURE WATER DEMAND ............................................................................................................ 142 SUMMARY OF RESULTS ................................................................................................................... 142