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Current Issue
Winning Combination
NEIWPCC Collaborating with UNH Stormwater Center
by Laura Chan, NEIWPCC
It sounds like an ideal partnership: A university center specializing in stormwater treatment technologies teams up with an interstate agency with expertise in water quality outreach and education. And so far, so good.
“For stormwater research, the combination of NEIWPCC and the University of New Hampshire Stormwater Center is a slam-dunk,” said Dr. Robert Roseen.
Dr. Roseen is the director of the UNH Stormwater Center, which is located on the UNH campus in Durham, N.H., and is the only facility of its kind in the nation. Its mission: to further the research and development of stormwater treatment systems and to provide resources to communities that are designing and implementing measures to meet federal stormwater regulations. Currently, the center is conducting side-by-side comparison tests of 15 stormwater management systems, under strictly controlled conditions.
Since its founding in 2004, the center has proven itself to be an effective and valuable resource for the investigation and promotion of innovative stormwater management strategies. But it’s a small operation, and can’t do everything. The center’s directors are now seeking to increase its effectiveness at communicating its research to government agencies, non-profit organizations, and other stakeholders working to protect the health of watersheds. That’s where NEIWPCC comes in.
For years, our Stormwater and Nonpoint Source Pollution Workgroups have brought together state and federal regulators from the New England states and New York State for discussions of key issues. Through this workgroup framework and our related outreach activities, NEIWPCC is well positioned to facilitate a dialogue between the UNH Stormwater Center and watershed stakeholders. This communication is not simply a one-way dialogue. We present our Stormwater and Nonpoint Source Workgroup members with important findings and results from the center, while collecting and compiling feedback from workgroup members on the needs and goals of state programs regarding stormwater research, education, training, and outreach.
“Input on the current and pressing research needs from state and federal regulators in this region is imperative to helping the center remain focused on the most critical research areas,” Dr. Roseen said.
But this relationship is not just about communication. Under the Assessment and Watershed Protection Program Grant, U.S. EPA has awarded funds to NEIWPCC for a project with the center to investigate the nutrient removal mechanisms of constructed gravel wetlands used for stormwater control in a northern climate. NEIWPCC is managing the project and providing input from state and federal regulators for overall project direction. The center is providing technical expertise and oversight of the project, with its researchers utilizing the constructed gravel wetlands at the center’s field site and directing the laboratory analysis of samples. Both organizations will disseminate the results of the project in the technology transfer phase.
As with all NEIWPCC projects, the needs expressed by our member states were the driving force. A survey of state and federal stormwater and nonpoint source coordinators conducted by NEIWPCC’s Regional Research Initiative Steering Committee showed that among the states’ highest priorities was research to demonstrate the effectiveness of best management practices (BMPs) in reducing stormwater and nonpoint source pollution. That finding sparked our initial conversations with Dr. Roseen, which already have borne fruit as we work together to increase knowledge of stormwater management, particularly Low Impact Development (LID) technologies.
NEIWPCC and the UNH Stormwater Center will continue to work towards the common goal of providing watershed stakeholders with the information required to make important environmental decisions related to stormwater management. We are working together to conceptualize projects and actively seek funding opportunities to pursue necessary research. The partnership has shown that by working collaboratively on stormwater research, we can accomplish more than if each organization acted alone.
The UNH Stormwater Center is funded by the Cooperative Institute for Coastal and Estuarine Environmental Technology (CICEET) and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). For more information, visit www.unh.edu/erg/cstev/.
Laura Chan (lchan@neiwpcc.org) is a NEIWPCC Environmental Analyst and the coordinator of all of our NPDES and stormwater-related activities, including our Stormwater and NPS Workgroups and our work with the UNH Stormwater Center.