Applied Environmental Forensics For Defining A Nutrient-Based TMDL Target And Reduction Goal

Joy C. Chen, Parsons, 925 Fourth Avenue, Suite 1690, Seattle, WA, 98104, Tel: 206-494-3121, Fax: 206-434-3101, Email: joy.chen@parsons.com
Allan B. Chartrand, Parsons, 925 Fourth Avenue, Suite 1690, Seattle, WA, 98104, Tel: 206-494-3107, Fax: 206-434-3101, Email: allan.chartrand@parsons.com
John G. Stockner, EcoLogic Ltd., 2614 Mathers Avenue, West Vancouver, BC, V7V 2J4, Canada, Tel: 604-926-5383, Fax: 604-926-3663, Email: jestock@shaw.ca.
Harry X. Zhang, Parsons, 10521 Rosehaven Street, Fairfax, VA, 22030, Tel: 703-218-1090, Fax: 703-591-1305, Email: harry.zhang@parsons.com

This paper describes a unique approach for incorporating environmental forensics as tools for developing a TMDL for nutrients for a small northern Idaho lake (Black Lake), listed on USEPA’s §303(d) impaired water body list for total phosphorus (TP).  Recent data have shown that Black Lake, which is partially located on the Coeur d’Alene Tribal reservation, is currently eutrophic due to elevated levels of TP.  A dispute has continued between the State and the Tribe regarding whether the lake is naturally eutrophic, thus warranting delisting, or whether anthropogenic TP discharges have caused the nutrient impairment, thus requiring TMDL development.  Part of the purpose of the study is to determine whether Black Lake is naturally a mesotrophic or eutrophic water body, and whether observed eutrophication represents an historical condition or whether logging, mining, ranching, or other activities could have contributed to its current eutrophic status.  To assist in making this determination, paleolimnologic techniques, which integrate data from remains of phytoplankton and zooplankton to infer past lake conditions, have been integrated into the study as an environmental forensics tool.  Paleolimnology is known to be a useful tool for helping to set realistic load reduction goals based on lake conditions prior to “impact”.  These techniques were instrumental in establishing the TMDL target to be used as a basis in calculating the TMDL as well as any necessary load and waste load allocations, and specific load reductions required.  This paper will summarize the forensics-based approach used to calculate the TMDL target, explain how the data has been used to infer limnologic characteristics and yield quantitative estimates of key limiting nutrients, and show how numerical modeling techniques (specifically, the Generalized Watershed Loading Function and the BATHTUB models) were also incorporated to generate a practical nutrient reduction goal for this watershed.

Communications with the Community:  Picking the Right Strategy

Shannon B. Gleason, PE, ENSR, 2 Technology Park Drive, Westford, MA 01886, Tel:  802-989-1164, Fax: 978-589-3100, Email: sgleason@ensr.aecom.com

Perceived health or environmental risks can generate fear, particularly if people feel they are not being heard or that risks are beyond their control.  Ineffective response or miscommunication can lead to misperceptions of environmental information about your site or the potential risks imposed.  Thus, selecting the appropriate public communications strategy for a site, including the right level of communication, can be an important factor to consider in the overall project management of a site.  This paper will discuss the steps involved in evaluating the necessity of a public communications program for a site, developing a communication strategy, and implementing a communication program in the context of several case studies.  Example strategy plans and implementation materials for sites will be shared – ranging from low/high concern sites to low/high trust communities.   

Qualitative and Quantitative Analysis of Water Quality Trends in a Sub-Watershed of the Wachusett Reservoir

Elsbeth Hearn, Undergraduate in Civil and Environmental Engineering, 22 Hallock Street, Amherst, MA 01002, Tel: 781-454-6952, Email: ehearn@student.umass.edu
Dr. Sharon C. Long, Associate Professor in Soil Science at The University of Wisconsin, Madison, 2601 Agriculture Drive, Room 312C, Madison, WI  53707, Tel: 608-224-3803, Email: longsc@mail.slh.wisc.edu
Dr. Sarah Dorner, Director of the Water Research Center, UMass, Tel: 413-545-2842, Email: sdorner@tei.umass.edu

To help control impacts from development, a sewer system was constructed for the town of West Boylston and the surrounding areas between Worcester, Massachusetts and the Wachusett Reservoir.  Assessing whether the sewer has positively impacted the water quality in this area is necessary for future sewer projects as well as the continuation of research in this area.  In the West Boylston Brook sub-watershed, there continues to be periodic high concentrations of fecal coliforms, indicating possible source contamination.  Connecting to the sewer system is optional, and consequently some residents have chosen to continue using their septic systems often because of financial constraints.  This study analyzes data from both before and after the sewer was constructed and begins to confirm trends in the water quality data.  The study concentrates on fecal coliform concentrations in the areas of interest, but also explores how other microorganisms and water quality parameters vary.  These include such indicators as sorbitol-fermenting Bifidobacteria E. coli, and R. coprophilus, and water quality parameters such as flow, temperature, pH, turbidity, and total phosphorus. The analysis completed in this study includes statistical analysis, graphical analysis, and qualitative analysis of topographical maps of the area, as well as age and types of the septic systems.  For the results, fecal coliform counts of over 200 CU/100mL were found in the system within a day of a major rain event.  Summer was found to have the most cases of fecal coliform concentrations above the yearly median, total phosphorus correlated positively with fecal coliform concentrations (Spearman's Rank of 0.592), Fecal Coliform had the highest mean concentration and 75th percentile at Site C, and R. coprophilus had the largest 75th Percentile and 90th percentile concentrations at Site A and largest mean value at Site B.

Soy-derived Biofuels as Replacements for Petroleum- derived Fuels

George W. Mushrush, PhD, Department of Chemistry, George Mason University, Fairfax, VA 22030, Tel: 703-993-1080, Email: gmushrus@gmu.edu
Douglas G. Mose, PhD, Department of Chemistry, George Mason University, Fairfax, VA 22030, Tel: 703-993-1068, email: dmose@gmu.edu

It is environmentally enticing to consider replacing or blending petroleum derived middle distillate fuels with biofuels for many reasons.  Major considerations include the soaring world-wide price of petroleum products, especially diesel fuel and home heating oil, the toxicity of the petroleum-derived fuels and the environmental damage that leaking petroleum tanks can cause. For these reasons, it has been suggested that domestic agricultural renewable energy sources be considered as replacements, or at the least, as blending stocks for middle distillate fuels. If recycled soy restaurant cooking oils could be employed for this purpose, this would represent a further environmental advantage. Renewable plant sources of energy tend to be less toxic than their petroleum counterparts. This is an important consideration when tank leakage occurs. In proposing such a replacement, considerations must be given to the many problems that could arise. Problems to be studied include fuel storage stability, fuel solubility, oxidative stability, and seawater stability.  Unlike air environments, water environments can also have a pH factor that has to be considered. Biodiesel have been shown to be an excellent replacement choice for ground transportation fuels. However, shipboard fuel tanks that compensate for diminishing fuel by the addition of seawater to the fuel tank for buoyancy considerations cannot use biodiesel fuels. It was found that this would lead to fuel instability problems such as filter plugging and other serious engine damage. The question was what in the soybean derived biodiesel led to the observed fuel degradation.

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