NEW ENGLAND

FBE has developed over 60 nine-element watershed management plans (WMPs) for lakes, rivers, and estuaries across New England. The purpose of these WMPs is to provide a roadmap for communities to protect and restore of the health of their surface waters, support recreational activities, and meet state water quality standards. FBE has worked closely with communities across New England to develop WMPs that target local concerns and challenges. For instance, we developed WMPs that have identified and provided recommendations for addressing sources of 1) fecal bacteria contamination to the leading soft shell clam producing area along the Medomak River in Waldoboro, ME; 2) stormwater pollutant runoff to waterbodies in the Ossipee Lake watershed in NH to protect the region’s drinking water aquifer; and 3) internal phosphorus loading to Lake Kanasatka in Moultonborough, NH in support of the next phase of in-lake treatment planning.

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​These projects often start with a historical gap analysis to identify missing data essential to thoroughly assessing the waterbody's health. This may prompt additional monitoring and sampling, which FBE has conducted for many projects. We use a variety of modeling, mapping, and fieldwork methods to identify locations in the watershed and shoreline contributing high levels of nutrients and pollutants. This informs the development of targeted mitigation efforts for load reduction, including the identification of Best Management Practices (BMPs) for high-risk locations and the associated pollutant load reduction potential with BMP implementation.   

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Collaboration and stakeholder engagement are at the heart of our watershed planning work. We team up with local stakeholders to complete each WMP project. Stakeholders range from municipalities, conservation commissions, federal and state agencies, land trusts, residents, water quality volunteers, and more.

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Read any of our recently completed WMPs below.