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PREP warns Great Bay watershed is struggling; officials urged to curb nonpoint pollution
Summary
PREP staff told the Eliot Conservation Commission that Great Bay’s health is declining, with rising nitrogen and suspended sediments, eelgrass declines and shellfish losses; presenters emphasized conserving land, improving stormwater and septic management, and available PREP grants and toolkits.
Piscataqua Region Estuaries Partnership (PREP) staff told the Eliot Conservation Commission on May 6 that monitoring shows the Great Bay watershed is under stress and that controlling nonpoint-source pollution will be essential to reversing declines in eelgrass and shellfish.
"The health of the estuary is struggling," PREP Director Kalle Matso told commissioners, summarizing the group’s 2023 State of Our Estuary findings and municipal guidance. Michelle Shattuck of the UNH Water Resources Research Center presented monitoring trends that show increases in nitrogen and suspended sediments in rivers that drain to Great Bay, and a concomitant decline in oysters, clams and eelgrass.
Shattuck said Great Bay was designated nitrogen-impaired in 2009 and that, based on monitoring and modeling, roughly 22% of the current nitrogen load is from point sources such as wastewater treatment discharges and about 78% is from nonpoint sources (fertilizers, pet waste, septic systems and stormwater). She noted that increased rainfall tends to push more nitrogen from nonpoint sources into tributaries.
PREP program scientist Chris Whitney described monitoring methods and hydrodynamic modeling used to link upstream actions with estuary conditions and highlighted that eight wastewater treatment outfalls sit upstream of Eliot. Whitney said reductions in point-source loads following wastewater upgrades have produced measurable improvements in some places, but that controlling runoff and other nonpoint inputs is still necessary to restore eelgrass and water clarity.
PREP Watershed Resilience Manager Annie Cox outlined resources available to municipalities and residents, including the PREP Stormwater Toolkit and several grant and technical assistance opportunities: PREP grant applications (due June 16), Project Builder technical assistance requests (due July 1), and Climate Impact Grants opening in August. Cox said PREP staff, including Abigail, Amy and Annie, offer office hours to discuss project ideas.
Commissioners and residents pressed PREP staff on local freshwater concerns. A resident asked about Gunderson’s (Legion) Pond algae problems; PREP staff said that freshwater ponds are influenced primarily by nonpoint sources and pointed to vegetated buffers, improved lawn management, and aeration as options. On conductivity, PREP noted increasing trends in tributaries linked in part to road‑salt application, which concentrates in low-flow summer months.
The presentation and Q&A closed with PREP offering follow-up resources and pointing to an online Stormwater Toolkit and the 7 Rivers to the Coast materials as places to start municipal planning.
The commission did not take a formal vote on PREP recommendations; staff advised follow-up coordination with PREP and consideration of grant applications to fund local planning and stormwater improvements.
