Watershed Action Plan

The Northeast Avalon is presently witnessing unprecedented growth, and while accommodating the development needs of the region, it is vital to advocate for the sustainability of the natural landscape in which we all reside. At present, almost half the population of this province reside within the Northeast Avalon region. The last regional plan for this area was completed in 1976, and adequate planning has not kept abreast of development. While the provincial government is in the very preliminary stages of developing a new land use plan, NAACAP intends to facilitate a coordinated approach with public involvement to ensure that watershed concerns are given ample consideration in this new plan, including anticipation of future changes within these watersheds from the effects of climate change.

NAACAP's Watershed Action Plan encompasses a number of quite separate initiatives that collectively work towards an increased understanding of our aquatic environment. Scientific monitoring combined with staff and volunteer visual inspections within a network of river rangers will provide a coordinated stewardship effort to protect our aquatic systems and to report any infractions to the appropriate regulatory authorities. With increasing population throughout the Northeast Avalon region, infrastructure for wastewater treatment has not always kept pace with the increasing demand. This year we will investigate whether there are detrimental impacts from the release of raw sewage near the shoreline of a community park in Conception Bay.

Another component of this project includes the facilitation and information sharing amongst a network of organizations and individuals, and with government agencies who focus on watershed issues. A final component includes efforts made within the watersheds that provide direct improvements to water quality and habitats through clean up campaigns. Collectively, these initiatives work to ensure progress will be made on revitalizing our urban watersheds and coastal areas.

The primary problem NAACAP will address through this project is a lack of knowledge from the absence of adequate monitoring on our river systems and along our coastal waters, particularly in view of the rapid development growth presently being experienced on our landscape. With a rapidly increasing population, services such as sewage treatment are inadequate to meet the sanitary needs of our communities. Likewise, with a new, integrated solid waste management plan just recently launched, it is important to ensure that aspects such as leachate treatment, hazardous waste disposal, and the decommissioning of old dumpsites are implemented effectively. There is a continuing need to gather such knowledge and make it readily accessible so that it can be better utilized and analyzed to satisfy knowledge gaps and identify trends, etc. NAACAP's sharing of all information it accumulates will make a valuable contribution towards enabling informed decision making in matters pertaining to the sustainable health of our watersheds.

One problem area in particular that we plan to address this year is the marine waters adjacent to Topsail Beach in Conception Bay. Topsail Beach has long been an area that is frequented by families and friends for recreational pursuits; primarily picnicking, hiking, and swimming. In recent years the local Rotary Club has developed the area into a public park. Adjacent to the beach area there is also a stream, the Topsail River, where recreational anglers pursue sea run trout and smelt fishing. Approximately two kilometres west of this park there is an old, defunct sewage treatment plant. This plant was built approximately thirty years ago, and unfortunately, the sanitary waste being piped to the plant is now on permanent by-pass as the population being served by the plant has more than doubled the design capacity for treatment. Evidence of sewage contamination is obvious from regular sightings of tampon applicators and toilet paper strewn along the beach. Anecdotal information indicates that when the wind direction comes from the northeast, the raw effluent gets packed in and around the Topsail Beach area. Exposure to pathogens and disease is becoming an increasing concern to area residents and visitors to the park.

In past years, NAACAP had undertaken a number of research projects to identify pollution impacts on water quality and fish health from the Robin Hood Bay Sanitary Landfill (RHBSL). In 2007 our provincial government launched a new solid waste management strategy that includes a plan to retrofit the RHBSL into a modernized facility with leachate treatment and hazardous waste disposal, among other features. With our past research in this area, NAACAP will participate in the public process to ensure that all environmental factors are given due consideration.

Nut Brook is a tributary watershed of the Kelligrews River, a system that in the lower reaches flows through a residential community prior to discharging into Conception Bay. Over the last three years, NAACAP has also initiated water, sediment and fish health investigations of the Nut Brook-Kelligrews River watershed to identify pollution impacts from another municipal landfill site that also operated a tepee incinerator prior to its closure in 1998. The Nut Brook watershed also suffers from pollution releases from a septic waste and oily waste handling facility, a meat rendering plant, numerous quarry sites, and a road salt storage facility. In 2007, after numerous concerns were raised by NAACAP and a partner organization known as KEEP (Kelligrews Ecological Enhancement Project) our provincial Minister of Environment and Conservation created a multi-stakeholder committee to address the environmental degradation problems known as the Incinerator Road Environment Committee (IREC). NAACAP staff are members on this committee and have shared the results of our research with other committee members. NAACAP plans to continue working with this committee to assist in fully defining the extent of the infractions and to help to identify and enact solutions. One area of concern that the committee has identified is that because the dumpsite in this region was closed down in 1998, it had not been considered for remediation in the 2007 waste management strategy.

We will also be implementing a project to reduce the volumes of fuel being consumed by residents of the Northeast Avalon and the amount of greenhouse gases we generate. An ancillary goal is an increased awareness by drivers of ways in which their habits ie. low tire pressure, poor vehicle maintenance, idling, and excessive speeds etc., impact upon the volume of greenhouse gas emissions their vehicles generate. According to some estimates, the average person who drives 12,000 miles yearly on under-inflated tires uses about 545 extra litres of gas. At the current average price of $1.20 a litre that driver would incur a cost of $654. a year. And each time one of those litres of gas is burned, 5.29 pounds of carbon dioxide is added to the atmosphere as the carbons in the gas are released and combine with the oxygen in the air. As such, any vehicle running on soft tires is contributing as much as 1.5 extra tons (2,880 pounds) of greenhouse gases to the environment annually.

Throughout the eighties, nineties, and the first part of this decade, there were a number of vibrant watershed organizations working hard to protect and sustain most of our urban watersheds. Largely from volunteer burnout and low recruitment of new volunteers as the environmental agenda has expanded into numerous other domains, most of these organizations no longer exist. In order to ensure our urban watersheds are protected for future generations, it is important to maintain our community's focus on watershed issues while fostering additional stewards. As an organization whose primary focus has consistently worked on watershed issues, this is one of the most important tasks identified for NAACAP to pursue.

Staff will research both archival and emerging material, compile data, and identify knowledge gaps. NAACAP will work with government, other ENGO's, academics, and the general public to coordinate public input on the development of a new water/land use plan for the Northeast Avalon region to ensure an appropriate value is placed on the preservation and protection of our watersheds. Likewise, we will ensure that the results of a workshop that gives focus to the potential impacts on our watersheds from climate change will be considered in the development of the new regional plan.

During the summer field season, and in partnership with the Water Resources Division of the provincial Department of Environment and Conservation as well as the newly formed group, Friends of Topsail Beach, we will address the lack of knowledge about the potential impacts from the raw discharge of municipal sewage into Conception Bay at the old Topsail Sewage Treatment Plant. With the use of a boat provided by Friends of Topsail Beach, we will collect water samples for faecal coliforms and Total Coliform analysis. A minimum of eight samples will be collected on each sample sweep, with a total of four sample sweeps being conducted over the course of the summer under varying weather conditions, including tidal variances and different wind directions and strengths. The Water Resources Division will handle all analysis costs.

NAACAP is also joining forces with the Conservation Corps NL and ACAP Humber Arm to deliver a Well Aware "Friendly Home Visit" to homeowners with well and septic systems in the Northeast Avalon and Humber Arm regions of the province. Residents will learn all about keeping their well and septic systems in peak condition, ensuring the quality of the water they drink and protecting groundwater resources. They will also receive a free water conservation kit valued at $65.

With regard to leachate treatment for the RHBSL, the establishment of a hazardous waste disposal facility, the remediation of the dump site in the Nut Brook watershed, along with the other pollution problems associated with that and all other watersheds within the Northeast Avalon, NAACAP will continue its focus to have these problems addressed through a number of initiatives. We will continue our role on the Incinerator Road Environment Committee to work on overcoming the industrial discharges into the Nut Brook watershed. We will raise public awareness of these topics, and promote more sustainable practices, through the use of our web site, a NAACAP newsletter, through media interviews, and in meetings and workshops throughout the year. We will work with other ENGO's, all levels of government, and local businesses to seek solutions and promote alternatives to present practices. NAACAP will also support students in their research of watershed issues.

Promoting a sustaining interest in the health and protection of our watersheds and coastal areas is an ongoing challenge. Throughout the year, NAACAP will address this challenge by continuing to strengthen and expand its core of volunteer River Rangers who, in partnership with DFO, have been trained to effectively report on any pollution or habitat infractions they may observe. The NAACAP office will coordinate these initiatives whilst maintaining a network for enhanced information sharing. With the use of our Quanta Multi-probe, GPS and digital camera, we will monitor and report on changing conditions in our aquatic environment. In conjunction with the Natural History Society the Quidi Vidi Rennies River Development Foundation (QVRRDF), and the MUN Biology Department, we will undertake electrofishing sweeps in our most urban rivers to monitor freshwater fish stocks. We will partner with a minimum of fifteen ENGO's as well the Newfoundland and Labrador Environmental Industries Association and the Multi-Materials Stewardship Board, Memorial University, all levels of government, and several local businesses to work more effectively on the protection of our watersheds. The NAACAP office will also coordinate a minimum of two watershed clean-up campaigns to remove accumulated refuse and debris.

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