Transcript Warner Dam 1670-2011 - Friends Of Lake Warner

Lake Warner (1677-2011)
Where do we go from here ?
Develop and Implement a Management Plan
that benefits the lake, surrounding wetlands
and aquatic and wetland dependant species.
Seek Grant Money and cooperation from
citizens, local, state, federal government, local
and regional watershed and conservation and
planning groups.
Move forward according to the
recommendations of a steering committee.
Historical Significance
• Just upstream of the first dam in the valley
1653,current location first built in 1677, site of the first
corn mill.
• Broom factory site, during 1800’s when Hadley was the
#1 broom manufacturer in the U.S.
• Portion of the valley where bottom of Lake Hitchcock
post glacial outwash features that shaped the valleys
sedimentary, and glacial deposits present today.
• One of the oldest human altered lake ecosystems in
the country, dammed in 1677 and rebuilt periodically
until 1947 where it exists at its current height.
Warner Dam
• Alters natural flow regime of the Mill River
• Alters bed load and suspended sediment load to
the Connecticut River
• Prevents aquatic species from migrating to and
from the Connecticut River
• Increases Temperature
• Reduces Dissolved Oxygen
• Creates Habitat for Aquatic Invasive and Nusance
Species
Lake Warner/Warner Dam
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Provides recreational opportunities
Fishing productivity is above state average
Boating
Provide access to public/conservation land
otherwise inaccessible to the public at this
time. Massachusetts Division of Fish and
Wildlife, Trustees of the Reservation, Kestrel
Trust/Valley Land Fund
History of Partnerships
• Historical stocking records (1912-1962)
• Private Pond Agreement between Division of Fish and Game and
Arthur C. Howe, 1929.
• Division of Fish and Game and Town of Hadley confirm that the
boat ramp is a public right of way.
• Between 1913-1951 over 200,000 fish were stocked into Lake
Warner
• In 1962 The Division of Fish and Game reclaims Lake Warner over
3.5 TONS of fish from Lake Warner and Factory Hollow Pond
(Puffers Pond). The total estimated kill was over 6 TONS. Restocking of warm water fish in Lake Warner and cold water fish in
Factory Hollow Brook commences until, 1981 when determined
that fisheries were in balance and further stocking of Lake Warner
was unwarranted.
Storm Water Management
• Responsibility of municipalities where area is within
source water protection area for a municipal water
supplier.
• Applies especially to water bodies on the 303d list of
impared water bodies in the Commonwealth. Lake
Warner has been on this list since 1985
• TMDL’s determined by DEP and NPDES Phase 1 and 2
programs
• Funding assistance provided through 319 grants and
604b grants, a updating of the unfunded grants
previously written by PVPA should be supported by the
communities and watershed groups.
Cooperators
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Towns of Hadley and Amherst
DEP
DCR
USFWS
Massachusetts Division of Fish and WIldlife
Kestrel Trust/Valley Land Fund
UMASS and Five Colleges
Pioneer Valley Planning Association
Non-Point Source Pollution
• Essential for landowners to be aware of
programs and benefits available through NRCS
• Historic sediment basins should be maintained
and if necessary redesigned using current
methods.
• Additional sediment basins, storm water
detention basins, filter socks on catch basins
Agricultural BMP’s
Best Management Practices
• Buffer strips between fields and streams and
wetlands, and streamside buffer zones,
• Cover crops, and ground cover should be
encouraged to prevent storm runoff from bare
fields.
• Wind breaks to reduce wind erosion.
• Fencing streams and wetlands to control
animal access, prevent streamside erosion.
Aquatic Plant Management
• The town of Natick last year paid $37,500 for
clearing 5+ acres of aquatic milfoil with a diver
assisted suction dredge on Lake Cochituate.
• Financial assistance from DCR, town, and local
watershed groups.
• Specifically focused on recreational areas of
use.
• Avoids the use of herbicides.
Invasive/Nuscience Species Present in
Lake Warner and littoral zone
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Eurasian watermilfoil (Myriophyllum spicatum)
Water chestnut (Trapa natans)
Parrot Feather(Myriophyllum aquaticum)
Curley pondweed(Potamogeton spp.)
Duckweed(Lemnna spp.)
Phragmities (Phagmities australis)
Japanese Knotweed (Polygonum cuspidatum)
Multiflora Rose (Rosa multiflora)
Asian Bittersweet (Celastrus orbiculatus)
Species Negatively Affected by
Drawdown
Management of upland invasive plants
• Physical removal
• Mowing prior to seeding, covering with plastic
• Cutting and swabbing with herbicide, ex. Asian
bittersweet
• Burning roots with fire (torch) i.e. Japanese
barberry.
• All methods are labor intensive, with mixed
results and usually repetition for several
growing seasons.
Dredging
• Must have a 401 Water Quality Certification
determined by DEP to be under federal
jurisdiction
• Cost to sample sediment cores, bathymetric
mapping, and contour map of sedimentation and
volume. Range of bids ($19,000-$27,000)
• Depending on volume of material, (less or more
than 5,000cy), and under (314CMR 4.00) public
notice in Environmental Monitor, Conservation
Commission, and DEP notification. 21 day review
Ecological Restoration Techniques
To replicate for the benefit of ecological function
the management of a human altered system
(Dam and Lake) to simulate a natural system
(River and Wetlands)
Drawdown-In early fall, the gates would be opened
to reduce the volume of the lake to expose plant
beds to air and temperatures to reduce survival.
The lake would be allowed to refill in order to
provide as much aquatic habitat as possible for
the species dependent on the aquatic ecosystem.
Provide educational opportunities to
local schools, colleges, and Universities
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Limnology
Fisheries Biology
Life Science
Ecology
Botany
Invertebrate Zoology
Wetlands Chemistry
Soil Studies
Agricultural BMP’s
Geology
Geomorphology
Hydrology
Natural Resources
Planning / Education
Cost Estimations
• Engineering work to assess existing conditions at
Warner Dam, repair of slide gate etc. ($8,500)
• Aquatic Plant Management (depends on acreage
if 20 acres then aprox. $100,000)
• Sediment sampling ($19,000-$27,000)
• Dredging (would depend on quanity, the 31 acre
Nashawannuck Pond in Easthampton was
completed last year with 45,000cy removed at a
cost of $2.3 million. $650,000 came from CPA
funds.
Grants and funding amounts for
similar projects
• US Army Corps Aquatic Ecosystem Restoration
Program, John Oliver earmarked $999,999
• State Funding Appropriation John Scibeck got
appropriated $200,000
• Local Fundraising
• CPA Funds
• 319 Grants
• 604b Grants
• NAWCA Grants, $75,000
Other measures
• Benthic barriers
• Alum treatment