Watershed Protection Plan FY19-FY23 June 2018 Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation Division of Water Supply Protection Office of Watershed Management Abstract The Department of Conservation and Recreation, Division of Water Supply Protection, Office of Watershed Management manages and protects the drinking water supply watersheds that provide water for approximately 2.5 million Massachusetts residents. This Watershed System is comprised of three active water supply watersheds, the Quabbin Reservoir, Ware River, and Wachusett Reservoir, and an emergency supply comprised of the Sudbury and Foss Reservoirs. Watershed Protection Plans were initially developed for the active supply watersheds in 1991, with updates in 1998 and 2003 for the Wachusett Reservoir and 2000 for Quabbin Reservoir and Ware River. The Sudbury and Foss Reservoirs had a plan prepared in 1997. The 2008 Watershed Protection Plan updated and unified all of these documents. The 2013 Watershed Protection Plan update maintained the comprehensive, unified approach to this critical document. The Watershed Protection Plan FY19-FY23 continues DCR’s successful efforts of managing the source of an unfiltered water supply. This plan update provides a structured methodology to assess changes in watershed threats, develops programs to address the threats, and prioritizes staff assignments so they are congruent with current watershed management issues. The plan concludes with a five year implementation strategy that summarizes objectives for the Division of Water Supply Protection to achieve from Fiscal Years 2019 to 2023. CITATION Watershed Protection Plan Update FY19-FY23. Department of Conservation and Recreation, Division of Water Supply Protection. Boston, MA. 2018. Acknowledgements This plan was prepared by the staff of the Department of Conservation and Recreation, Division of Water Supply Protection, Office of Watershed Management. Principal authors are: Ken Canfield, Kelley Freda, Gabrielle Kurth, Lawrence Pistrang, and Joel Zimmerman. The plan was produced under the supervision of DCR/DWSP senior staff: John Scannell, Division Director; Dan Clark, Regional Director, Quabbin/Ware Region; Patricia Austin, Environmental Quality Chief and Acting Regional Director, Wachusett/Sudbury Region; and Lisa Gustavsen, Assistant Regional Director, Quabbin/Ware Region. ArcGIS Story of DWSP Accomplishments was coordinated by Patricia Austin. MWRA contributions and review by David Coppes, Stephen Estes-Smargiassi, and John Gregoire,. All maps were produced by DCR/DWSP Office of Watershed Management GIS staff Craig Fitzgerald, Phil Lamothe, and Erica Tefft, using DWSP and MassGIS data. Cover Images: “Quabbin Reflections” by Clif Read; “Bald Eagle” by Jamie Carr; “Old Stone Church at Wachusett Reservoir” by Kelley Freda. These three pictures were winners in the 2017 DCR Staff Photo Contest. Commonwealth of Massachusetts Charles D. Baker, Governor Karyn E. Polito, Lt. Governor Matthew A. Beaton, Secretary, Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs Leo P. Roy, Commissioner, Department of Conservation and Recreation Priscilla E. Geigis, Deputy Commissioner, Department of Conservation and Recreation John M. Scannell, Director, Division of Water Supply Protection Department of Conservation and Recreation Watershed Protection Plan FY19-FY23 1. Introduction ......................................................................................................... 1 2. The Watershed System ....................................................................................... 3 2.1 Reservoir System ............................................................................................................. 3 2.2 Land Use, Land Cover, and Land Protection ................................................................... 4 2.3 Water Quality ................................................................................................................. 13 2.3.1 Watershed and Reservoir Monitoring ................................................................ 13 2.3.2 Monitoring for Compliance with Federal and State Drinking Water Standards ............................................................................................................................ 15 2.4 Hydrology ...................................................................................................................... 18 2.5 System Operation and Safe Yield .................................................................................. 24 3. Watershed Protection Program ....................................................................... 27 3.1 History............................................................................................................................ 27 3.1.1 Creation of the MWRA ....................................................................................... 28 3.1.2 SDWAA and SWTR ............................................................................................ 28 3.1.3 MassDEP Guidance for Development of a Watershed Protection Plan ........... 29 3.1.4 The 1991 Watershed Protection Plans .............................................................. 30 3.1.5 Wachusett Reservoir Filtration Waver .............................................................. 30 3.1.6 Watershed Protection Plan Updates 1998-2000 ............................................... 31 3.1.7 SWAP ................................................................................................................. 31 3.1.8 DCR and Subsequent Watershed Protection Plan Updates .............................. 32 3.1.9 Emergency System – Sudbury ............................................................................ 32 3.2 Pollution Sources and Assessment................................................................................. 33 3.2.1 Wildlife ............................................................................................................... 37 3.2.2 Public Access/Recreation................................................................................... 39 3.2.3 Timber Harvesting ............................................................................................. 40 3.2.4 Highways/Railways/ROW .................................................................................. 40 3.2.5 Agriculture ......................................................................................................... 42 3.2.6 Construction ....................................................................................................... 43 3.2.7 Commercial/Industrial/Governmental Sites ...................................................... 44 3.2.8 Residential Sites ................................................................................................. 45 3.2.9 Wastewater ......................................................................................................... 46 3.2.10 Future Growth ................................................................................................... 48 3.2.11 Climate Change ................................................................................................. 49 3.2.12 Security Threats ................................................................................................. 50 3.2.13 System-wide Assessment of Potential Threats ................................................... 50 DCR Watershed Protection Plan i FY19-FY23 3.3 Watershed Protection Control Programs ....................................................................... 51 3.3.1 Land Acquisition ................................................................................................ 55 3.3.2 Watershed Preservation Restriction Monitoring ............................................... 55 3.3.3 Land Management ............................................................................................. 56 3.3.4 Wildlife Management ......................................................................................... 59 3.3.5 Public Access Management ............................................................................... 59 3.3.6 Watershed Security ............................................................................................ 60 3.3.7 Infrastructure Maintenance ............................................................................... 61 3.3.8 Watershed Protection Act .................................................................................. 61 3.3.9 Education and Outreach .................................................................................... 62 3.3.10 Water Quality and Hydrologic Monitoring ....................................................... 62 3.3.11 Watershed Monitoring and Assessment ............................................................. 63 3.3.12 Aquatic Invasive Species Management .............................................................. 64 3.3.13 Wastewater Management ................................................................................... 65 3.3.14 Stormwater Management ................................................................................... 65 3.3.15 Emergency Response ......................................................................................... 65 4. Quabbin Reservoir Watershed Control Programs........................................ 67 4.1 Land Acquisition ............................................................................................................ 67 4.2 Watershed Preservation