NORWAY POND COMMSSION March 2, 2019 MINUTES CALL TO ORDER: The 2nd Annual Norway Pond Symposium was called to order at 9:16 am at the Harris Center for Conservation Education. Commissioners Present: Commissioner: Laurie Bryan, Woody Huntington, Jack McWhorter, Tom Shevenell, and Dick Warner Others Present: Public attendance totaled 62, including 44 who live in Hancock. Overview: The symposium was organized with 4 technical presentation in the morning session and a work session after lunch. Presentations: TALK #1: Paleo-Perspectives on Norway Pond V2.0: The Role of Nature and Man in the Making of Norway Pond. Researchers: Dr. Lisa Doner, Associate Professor with a focus in paleolimnology in Environmental Science and Policy and the Center for the Environment at Plymouth State University; and William Tifft, graduate student. The following key points can be interpreted from the information presented: 1. The short core data is currently being analyzed to understand storm event influences on Norway Pond during historic time. 2. % Loss on ignition (%LOI) which identifies the amount of organic material in the pond sediments, and the ratio of carbon to nitrogen were compared to identify time periods when organic matter from the watershed (generated outside of the pond environment) dominated over organic matter generated by primary productivity within the pond. 3. %LOI decreased from about 1880 to1908 at a time when the carbon:nitrogen (C:N) ratio also decreased suggesting a period of increased inorganic input from the watershed. %LOI has increased to the present and the C:N ratio has decreased more rapidly from about 1941, suggesting a change in the pond environment which has enhanced the primary productivity of organic matter within the pond. 4. Particle size was analyzed and presented as mean particle size. Larger particles are expected during storm events, or during spring thaw periods. The data are currently being analyzed for the distribution of particle sizes at each sample depth to obtain a better understanding for impacts by storm events. 5. Plots of selected element concentrations and ratios versus the Pb-210 dates and recorded storm events were presented. Aluminum and titanium are indicative of terrigenous material and are expected to be seen with storm events. Manganese and iron are not as mobile. A change in concentration of most of the elements occurred about the turn of the century and the reason(s) for this change is still being evaluated. 1 6. During the storm of 1959 there was a big drop in elemental concentrations that may have been caused by influx of silica from Moose Brook into the pond. Other storms don’t show similar patterns and may have caused local runoff versus Moose Brook runoff into the pond. 7. Ratios of elements can be used to identify paleo conditions. For example the higher the Al/Ti ratio there is more mobility of terrigenous sediment entering the pond. Whereas lower Mn/Fe ratios suggest more reduction/oxidation events within the pond. For example Mn is reactive in anoxic conditions and will be released from the sediment; therefore, a decrease in Mn concentration suggests a paleo anoxic environment. The Mg/Ca ratio is a proxy for paleo conductivity in sediments and water. TALK #2: Stories from the Bank: Tree Establishment and Growth Surrounding Norway Pond. Researchers: Dr. Jeremy Wilson, Executive Director of the Harris Center for Conservation Education; and Taylor White, Keene State University student and Harris Center Intern. The following key points were presented: 1. The purpose of this study was to provide a sense for forest dynamics in three locations surrounding the pond. The name of Norway Pond is likely related to the surrounding trees. Red Pine which is still quite numerous in the forest areas surrounding the pond, particularly at the town beach was often called Norway Pine by early European settlers. Red pine is a native that has nothing to do with Norway but it seems likely that the pond name originated with the species of trees around it. 2. How were trees chosen? Each plot was walked to identify the species present, and two individuals per species per plot were flagged. Trees selected were the most dominant of those species that would provide more accurate age data. Once flagged, we inserted an increment borer into the tree at breast height (4.5 feet) until we were sufficiently deep that the ideal center of the tree was reached. We were then able to insert a ring spoon to extract the core from the increment borer. 3. Once a core was removed, the sample was immediately glued to a wooden board, and the species, location and date were recorded. The cores were sanded with progressively finer grit sand paper. For some hardwoods mineral oil was used to make the rings more pronounced. The rings on each radial sample were counted, and the distance between each decade counted was measured. Using the decadel growth measurements, we were able to construct general trajectories of growth for the different trees to provide a visual sense of tree cohorts in the stand as well as any major release events. 4. A total of 19 trees cores were taken from trees in the three forested areas around the pond; (1) the Town Beach area is on the southern edge of the pond; (2) the forest preserve area near the Depot is located on steep slopes emerging from the pond’s western side; and (3) a forested area to the northeast of the pond adjacent to some current recreational fields. 5. The cores from the beach area (trees were on very steep slopes adjacent to the town beach) suggest there are three cohorts of trees in this area. The topography would have made these areas unsuitable for pasture and probably explains the large trees. The oldest trees (white 2 pines and red pines) date back to the early 19th century. A second cohort dating to 1870-1882 suggests a partial clearing event allowing for tree regeneration. A third cohort dates to the 1935-1941. This is coincident with the 1938 hurricane which did tremendous damage to the forests in this region and is likely a signal of tree regeneration associated with openings in the forest related to this wind damage. 6. The core analysis from the preserve area suggests two and hints at a third cohort of trees. The oldest cohort dates to 1868-1870s, corresponding to one of the cohorts found at the beach area. The Keene-Manchester railroad line (just to the west and north of the pond) was constructed during the 1870s. The track and railroad embankments would have cut off this area from connected pastures and this cohort may reflect forest regrowth from pasture. The second cohort dates to the late 1970s-1980s. A partial clearing of overstory trees in the preserve areas at some point in the mid-eighties likely resulted in this tree establishment and growth. There is some suggestion for a small cohort establishing around the 1938 hurricane. The slopes in this area may have provided some protection from the hurricane winds that were from the south and southwest. 7. Cores from a forested area to the northeast of the pond suggest two major cohorts of trees. The first dates back to an establishment in the very late 19th century. An eastern hemlock where the core reached the pitch was 118 years old at breast height suggesting this tree originated from agricultural abandonment in the late 1890s. A second cohort suggests that the 1938 hurricane had an important influence in this stand. Three trees date to an establishment around this event and it seems likely with two more. The flat topography and southern exposure would make this area particularly susceptible to hurricane damage. This set of cores also suggests a clear and sustained release of an eastern hemlock growth immediately after 1938. Imagine a mid-story tree that survives the event while its neighbors were toppled. It would then have considerable growing space to take advantage of. 8. The 1938 hurricane which tracked through CT, MA and VT caused extraordinary damage to forests. This damage was most heavily concentrated on the eastern side of the storm tract because the winds on that side are accentuated by the movement of the storm center itself. The forests in New Hampshire were badly damaged. 9. The Northeast Timber Salvage Administration was developed to address the incredible amount of down wood and fuel loads. The NETSA established over 250 wet storage locations in ponds throughout the impacted region and loaded them up with wood, lots of wood. Over the next decade these logs were removed as mill capacity became available. 10. Norway Pond was storage pond Number 80 and according to NETSA records held over 2 million board feet of logs (42,648 logs by one estimate) for a decade or more after the hurricane. If this number of logs was laid side by side in a corrugated road it would stretch for over 9 miles. This is quite a dramatic import of materials and may be one influence on the ecology of the pond. 3 TALK #3: An Ecologic Assessment of Norway Pond with a Focus on Cyanobacteria. Researchers: Dr. James Haney, professor of biological sciences in the UNH College of Life Sciences and Agriculture and member of the Center for Freshwater Biology, and Abigail Leclerc undergraduate student. The following key points were presented: 1. An ecological assessment was conducted on September 20th, 2018 by Jim Haney and the UNH Field Limnology class. 2. The assessment had the following goals: (1) develop a basic understanding of lake aquatic composition; (2) determine community composition of phytoplankton and zooplankton; and (3) document the presence and toxicity of cyanobacteria.