Newsletter of the N.H. Department of Environmental Services ENVIRONMENTAL NEWS NEWS NEWS NEWS NEWS January/February 2007 Governor’s Message Governor, continued on page 12 Governor Lynch Let’s make New Hampshire a center of energy innovation A s I travel across New Hampshire meeting with business leaders and families, one of the most common concerns I hear about is the instability of energy costs and their impact on our economic future. New Hampshire has long been at the forefront of economic change – from manufacturing in the 19 th century to the high-tech economy of the 20 th . Now we must act to make New Hamp- shire a center of en- ergy innovation. That is why we should set a goal of ensuring 25 percent of our energy comes from renewable sources by 2025. As part of a national energy policy, more renewable energy will help sta- bilize energy costs for all our busi- nesses and help make our nation more secure. As part of New Hampshire’s energy strategy, it will give us more choices; it will make our air and water cleaner; and it can help create jobs right here in our state – by expanding uses for our wood products, in build- ing and operating clean power plants, and in research and development. Governors of both parties and busi- T his month, communities across the nation will lead activities and host special events to increase aware- ness of the health effects of radon ex- posure and to promote radon testing, mitigation, and radon-resistant new construction. DES invites you to join our efforts to increase radon aware- ness in New Hampshire and help pre- vent thousands of lung cancer deaths. Radon is a naturally occurring ra- dioactive gas that emanates from rocks and soils. It becomes a human health hazard when it accumulates in high concentrations in indoor air. Ra- don is the second leading cause of lung cancer in the United States. New Hampshire has some of the highest levels of radon in the country. It is es- timated that radon causes more than 14 percent of all lung cancer deaths in the January is National Radon Awareness month Radon, continued on page 11 Commissioner’s Column Commissioner’s Column, continued on page 2 Relative Radon Emanation Potential High Medium Low A new chapter begins at DES S ociety seldom achieves significant change in a short period of time. How- ever, change implemented over a long period of time yields measurable re- sults. This is true of New Hampshire’s environment. Imagine for instance what the land that we now know as the White Mountain National Forest looked like a century ago after years of abuse and over-logging. Or consider the improve- ments in air and water quality that have been achieved in the last 30 or 40 years since the birth of the environmental movement, including the creation of the New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services just some 20 years ago. The steps that DES has taken over its history show the signs of measurable results. Of course, to achieve sustained improvements, more steps are needed,
Transcript
Newsletter of the N.H. Department of Environmental Services
E N V I R O N M E N T A L
N E W SN E W SN E W SN E W SN E W SJanuary/February 2007
Governor’s Message
Governor, continued on page 12
Governor Lynch
Let’s make NewHampshire a centerof energy innovation
As I travel across New Hampshiremeeting with business leaders
and families, one of the most commonconcerns I hear about is the instabilityof energy costs and their impact onour economic future.
New Hampshire has long been at theforefront of economic change – frommanufacturing in the 19th century to
the high-techeconomy of the 20th.Now we must act tomake New Hamp-shire a center of en-ergy innovation.
That is why weshould set a goal ofensuring 25 percent
of our energy comes from renewablesources by 2025.
As part of a national energy policy,more renewable energy will help sta-bilize energy costs for all our busi-nesses and help make our nation moresecure. As part of New Hampshire’senergy strategy, it will give us morechoices; it will make our air and watercleaner; and it can help create jobsright here in our state – by expandinguses for our wood products, in build-ing and operating clean power plants,and in research and development.
Governors of both parties and busi-
This month, communities acrossthe nation will lead activities and
host special events to increase aware-ness of the health effects of radon ex-posure and to promote radon testing,mitigation, and radon-resistant newconstruction. DES invites you to joinour efforts to increase radon aware-ness in New Hampshire and help pre-vent thousands of lung cancer deaths.
Radon is a naturally occurring ra-dioactive gas that emanates fromrocks and soils. It becomes a humanhealth hazard when it accumulates inhigh concentrations in indoor air. Ra-don is the second leading cause oflung cancer in the United States. NewHampshire has some of the highestlevels of radon in the country. It is es-timated that radon causes more than 14 percent of all lung cancer deaths in the
January is National RadonAwareness month
Radon, continued on page 11
Commissioner’s Column
Commissioner’s Column, continued on page 2
Relative RadonEmanationPotentialHighMediumLow
A new chapter begins at DES
Society seldom achieves significant change in a short period of time. How-ever, change implemented over a long period of time yields measurable re-
sults. This is true of New Hampshire’s environment. Imagine for instance whatthe land that we now know as the White Mountain National Forest looked likea century ago after years of abuse and over-logging. Or consider the improve-ments in air and water quality that have been achieved in the last 30 or 40years since the birth of the environmental movement, including the creation ofthe New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services just some 20 yearsago.
The steps that DES has taken over its history show the signs of measurableresults. Of course, to achieve sustained improvements, more steps are needed,
2 ENVIRONMENTAL NEWS • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2007
ENVIRONMENTALN E W SEnvironmental News is published six times a
year by the N.H. Department ofEnvironmental Services.
Thomas S. Burack CommissionerMichael J. Walls Asst. Commissioner
Division DirectorsAnthony Giunta Waste Management
Robert R. Scott Air ResourcesHarry T. Stewart Water
At its annual Holiday celebration,Commissioner Thomas Burack
announced the selection of PatriciaBickford as the 2006 DES Employee ofthe Year. Pat is the administrator ofthe DES Laboratory and has served inthat post for more than 15 years. Herstaff nominated her for the honorbased in part on her success in imple-menting aninnovativeLabora-tory Infor-mationManage-ment Sys-tem, whichwill en-hance cus-tomer ser-vice,record-keeping, and analytical results. Pathas led by example and represents thebest that DES has to offer. Pat waschosen from the ten staff membersnominated this year for the presti-gious honor. Congratulations, Pat!
Commissioner Burack pre-sents Pat Bickford with theDES Employee of the Yeartrophy.
knowing that our actions today willhave a positive impact on the NewHampshire of tomorrow.
During my term as Commissioner,DES will be committed to bringing astrategic, long-term approach to themanagement of our water, air re-sources, and waste management pro-grams – an approach which is firmlygrounded in both science and the law,and which is in the best interest of ourstate.
The way that we choose to addressthe challenges of today will surelyhave a lasting impact. Dramaticgrowth is anticipated to continue inour state, and DES will be a leader inpromoting sustained economic growth without compromising environmentalprotection by providing assistance and information to decision makers, so theycan better integrate environmental and public health considerations into fu-ture land use plans. Among other things, this will mean developing a more com-prehensive understanding of the state’s groundwater and surface water re-sources, and their potential to support our quality of life for the indefinite future.
Our state’s forest resources also have the potential, if managed for the long-term, to not only protect our water quality but to also provide an indigenous,renewable source of energy. DES supports the implementation of a renewableportfolio standard that helps address the challenge Governor Lynch has issued,committing New Hampshire to a national effort to produce 25 percent of theenergy consumed in New Hampshire and the United States from renewablesources by 2025.
We will all need to work together if we are to sustain the strong economyand high quality of life to which New Hampshire’s citizens have become accus-tomed. One of my goals as Commissioner is to build and improve upon thepartnerships that DES has with municipalities, business, industry, trade orga-nizations and environmental organizations. DES will be dedicated to greatereducation and outreach efforts, so that the public and the regulated communitywill better understand how our individual and collective decisions affect ourhealth and our natural environment. DES will work closely and cooperativelywith our legislators, executive councilors, governor and sister state agencies, tohelp craft approaches that will promote both a vibrant economy and a healthyenvironment.
I look forward to meeting these challenges together. When society looks backon our efforts, it will see that the work we committed ourselves to profoundlyimproved New Hampshire’s economic and environmental health for the long-term.Thomas BurackCommissioner
Commissioner’s Columncontinued from page 1
JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2007 • ENVIRONMENTAL NEWS 3
Shoreland Act studiedShoreland Act studiedShoreland Act studiedShoreland Act studiedShoreland Act studiedChanges to be debated in 2007 legislative session
In 1991, the New Hampshire Legislature enacted RSA 483-B, the Comprehen-sive Shoreland Protection Act (CSPA), in an attempt to prevent significant
negative impacts to public waters caused by uncoordinated, unplanned andpiecemeal development along the shorelines of the state’s seacoast, estuaries,lakes, ponds, rivers and streams. Since that time, efforts have been made toimplement the act in a clear and consistent manner, while supporting the goalsof local communities and protecting the rights of shorefront owners. As withany such complex initiative, difficulties have arisen over the years in achievingthose goals. As a result, the Legislature authorized a commission comprised of24 members representing various stakeholders from the public, commercial,regulatory and scientific communities to examine those difficulties and recom-mend changes to improve the effectiveness of the act under the auspices of Sen-ate Bill 83 (Chapter 209, Laws of 2005).
Among the problems identified were inadequate staff and resources to en-sure compliance with development standards, and to provide education andoutreach services to communities and the general public to explain the require-ments of the act. Difficulties also arose related to the existence of inconsistentprimary building line setbacks among communities, the practical applicationof the basal area standard for measuring the natural woodland buffer zone, in-creased storm water run-off, erosion, and sedimentation to surface waters causedby rising development pressures, and the continued expansion of non-conformingstructures.
After more than a year of information-gathering, testimony and discussion,the commission members reached consensus on 17 recommendations, includ-ing the establishment of permitting fees to support added staff positions, edu-
cation and out-reach efforts, lim-its on the extentand location ofimpervious sur-faces constructedwithin theshoreland zonewith incentivesadded to protector enhance anewly-defined“waterfront
buffer” area, and the adherence to the 50-foot primary structure setback by allcommunities. The group also suggested DES adopt rules outlining standard in-formation to be required with all applications, both state and local, for permits,variances, and waivers related to work within the protected shoreland.
Recommendations that emerged from this study will be carefully examinedduring the 2007 legislative session. The outgrowth of these deliberations shouldresult in an act that is easier to interpret and apply, more understandable bythose who are affected by it, and more protective of the state’s precious surfacewater bodies. The report will be available on the Shoreland website atwww.des.nh.gov/cspa/ and through the PIC office, (603) 271-2975.
SaSaSaSaSaving enerving enerving enerving enerving energggggyyyyy,,,,,one light at a timeone light at a timeone light at a timeone light at a timeone light at a time
The Change a Light, Change theWorld campaign in New
Hampshire is reaping some im-pressive benefits. By taking apledge to change one light to anenergy efficient compact fluores-cent bulb, New Hampshirites aresaving energy and money, and re-ducing greenhouse gases. Consid-ering its size and population, NewHampshire’s results are extremelyhigh compared to other states na-tionwide. Here are the results ofthis year’s campaign as of Decem-ber 8, 2006.Total pledges for NH: 3,648Number of bulbs replaced: 9,389Energy costs savings: $264,770Reductions of greenhouse gases:Over 4 million pounds
If all the households in NewHampshire took the Change aLight Pledge and changed just oneincandescent light bulb to anEnergyStar qualified light bulb,the combined individual effortswould:
• Save up to 25 million kilowatt-hours of electricity per year —enough energy to light all thehouseholds in Concord for 270days!
• Reduce household electricalbills by a combined total of$3.3 million a year, based onthe average electrical rates inthe state.
Revisions to the CSPA would help to establish consistency amongcommunities on shoreland setbacks and buffer zones.
4 ENVIRONMENTAL NEWS • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2007
A field technician collects bear hair from a trap, which consists of asingle barbed wire strand 40 centimeters above ground, approxi-mately 20 meters long, strung around four corner trees. Photo cour-tesy of UNH.
By Stephanie Coster, UNH
Black bear populations in NewHampshire have recovered from
record low populations in the mid-1800s and are now at a record highstatewide. Historical land clearingpractices, coupled with liberal har-vest policies and a bear bounty sys-tem, threatened the black bear popu-lation. The elimination of the bountysystem in 1955, along with land usechanges such as farm abandonment and the implementa-tion of science-based regulations regarding bear harvest,have facilitated population recovery.
Prime black bear habitat is characterized by largeblocks of unfragmented forested land. Based on habitat as-sessments, an estimated 77 percent (6,854 square miles) ofNew Hampshire’s total land is potential black bear habi-tat. But how many bears are actually out there?
A black bear study initiated in the summer of 2006 isattempting to answer that very question using innovativetechniques for estimating population size. Recently, blackbear populations in New Hampshire were estimated usinga complex analysis of bear hunting data in conjunctionwith bear observations made by deer hunters. NewHampshire’s method for estimating regional bear densitieshad not been verified through field studies until now.
Researchers at UNH, working in conjunction with the
Fish and Game Department, are usinggenetic-tagging to estimate black bearpopulations in two study sites in CoosCounty (Pittsburg and the greaterMilan area). Genetic tagging is a sam-pling technique that allows for identi-fication of individuals by collectinghair samples and performing DNAanalyses on the hair to determineunique genetic fingerprints. Tradition-ally, bears had to be captured in trapsand anesthetized in order to take
blood samples for DNA work. This technique was laborintensive and costly. The genetic tagging technique is lessinvasive, requires no bear-handling, and is more cost effi-cient.
A hair trap consists of a single barbed wire strand 40centimeters above ground, approximately 20 meters long,strung around four corner trees. The study entails twosampling areas, each approximately 100 square miles insize, with 50 traps placed per sample area. One trap issituated on DES land in the greater Milan area. Traps arebaited with a scent lure and attracted bears crawl under-neath the barbed wire, which snags their hair in the barbs.The hair is later collected and sent to a lab for geneticanalysis. Traps are checked for eight weeks, and the geneticinformation identifies individuals. Once individuals areidentified, researchers can tell if they are old or new cap-tures, and that ratio can be used to estimate the largerpopulation.
By estimating black bear populations using this newtechnique, the Fish and Game Department will be able toassess the accuracy of their current bear population esti-mation methods. If results confirm the accuracy of existingmethods, then Fish and Game can proceed with thosemethods. If results indicate current methods lack accuracy,then adjustments will be made accordingly. In any case,this exciting project will help ensure that our invaluablebear resources continue to be responsibly managed, forour good and the good of future generations. Also, the ge-netic information is valuable because it can be used to lookat bear movement, identify related bears, and study themating behavior and social organization of blackbears.
Better black bear managementPart of study takes place on DES-owned land
Black bear. Photo from US National Parkswebsite.
JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2007 • ENVIRONMENTAL NEWS 5
Underwater green thumb: aquatic gardeningin Lake Massasecum
Harvesting device with bags of collected milfoil.
By Amy P. Smagula, Limnologist/Exotic Species Program Coordinator
In 1996, variable milfoil (Myriophyllum heterophyllum) —New Hampshire’s #1 exotic aquatic plant — was identi-
fied in Lake Massasecum, a 400-acre lake located inBradford. Even following DES’s coordinated diver surveysand hand-removal projects, an herbicide treatment in1997, successive years of lake resident-coordinated me-chanical harvesting and benthic barrier placement on thelake bottom, variable milfoil persisted.
Luckily, some quick actions on the part of both lake resi-dents and DES biologists led to the containment of the mil-foil infestation to the northern end of the lake. With the useof fragment barrier nets strung along the mouth of thenorthern cove, the milfoil was successfully contained toone area of the lake, until a management practice wasfound to control milfoil in the long term.
When federal money became available for milfoil re-search, New Hampshire took the opportunity to lead anumber of experimental management approaches for vari-able milfoil control. Lake Massasecum was one of thewaterbodies chosen for study. The approach selected re-quired milfoil to be physically removed from the lake sys-tem and native plants transplanted into the harvested ar-eas to inhibit re-growth of milfoil. The premise was thatthe right combinations of native plants may inhibit milfoilre-growth through a combination of allelopathic means(basically, chemical warfare among plants) and physicalcompetition for space.
In 2005, DES divers and hired consultants establishedfour experimental sampling plots in the northern end ofLake Massasecum. A diver-assisted suction harvesting de-vice was brought in to remove milfoil from the treatmentplots and a control plot. As these milfoil plots were cleared,teams of divers harvested patches of native plants fromelsewhere in the lake (complete with roots and sediments),and transplanted them to the milfoil-free suctioned areas.
In the summer of 2006, DES biologists and consultantsvisited the treatment and control plot sites. Data revealedthat the native plants were establishing themselves quitesuccessfully, and milfoil re-growth, while present, was notabundant. Additional suction harvesting was performedto remove plants that were missed in the 2005 manage-ment practice. Divers also removed individual stems thateither re-grew from missed roots, or that were newly es-tablished from fragments derived from milfoil that re-mained in the control plots.
The project will evolve over the next few years, withcontinued monitoring and follow-up maintenance asneeded. It is expected that the final results from this studywill show that suction harvesting to remove exotic plants,followed by transplanting or other introduction of nativeplants, will be a successful management tool for small lim-ited infestations of exotic plants.
Texas, Florida, Wisconsin and other states are also ex-perimenting with this approach, but for other invasivespecies like Eurasian milfoil and hydrilla. This technique isalso recognized by the national Aquatic Plant ManagementSociety as a viable option for exotic aquatic plant control.For more detailed information about this project, or theother five projects that are being funded under the federalmilfoil appropriations, please contact Amy Smagula [email protected], or (603) 271-2248.
Diver-assisted harvesting device in action.
6 ENVIRONMENTAL NEWS • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2007
Over the past two years, DESWaste Management Division
staff have embarked on an outreachand education campaign to provideawareness and technical guidance toproperty owners, contractors and en-vironmental consultants regardingthe dangers of asbestos waste. DESregulates asbestos under two pro-grams: the DES Air Resources Divisionregulates building abatement, licens-ing/certification and enforcement ac-tivities, while the DES Waste Manage-ment Division regulates the manage-ment, transportation, disposal andinvestigation/remediation of buriedasbestos waste.
Products containing asbestos weremanufactured in Nashua, Meredithand Tilton until circa 1985. Thesemanufacturing processes generatedasbestos waste materials, which wereunregulated at the time, and theformer Johns-Mansville Company inNashua gave away its asbestos wasteas free fill to the local community. As aresult, the free fill was used for level-ing residential and commercial prop-erties, as roadway base and as riverbank stabilization. The full impactand distribution of the asbestos wastecan be encountered nearly anywherein Hudson and Nashua.
Why should you be concerned? As-bestos presents a health risk wheninhaled or ingested and can becomean environmental contaminant whenit is allowed to wash into surface wa-ter. Exposure to asbestos can causevarious diseases, such as asbestosis,lung cancer and mesothelioma. Thesediseases can take as long as 15 to 30years to manifest themselves.
Homeowners and professionals canexpose themselves and others to as-bestos with such ground-disturbingactivities as gardening or landscap-
Buried asbestos waste in SouthernNew Hampshire
ing, lawn-mowing, drilling and exca-vation, and underground storage tankinstallations. You may be at risk evenby walking across a site where asbes-tos waste is exposed on the ground sur-face, or carry it on your boots or cloth-ing into your motor vehicle or home.
What do the rules require? Only acertified asbestos disposal site con-
Typical buried asbestos waste in New Hamp-shire.
tractor or licensed asbestos disposalsite worker can enter a known asbes-tos disposal site to excavate or disturbthe ground where asbestos is present.If you are not certified or licensed andencounter asbestos waste during anysite work, you must cease all opera-tions, secure the site, and obtain theservices of a qualified contractor orworker.
If you are interested in awarenesstraining or would like to obtain theappropriate license/certification,please contact DES staff. For certifica-tion and licensing, contact Joy Perkins,Air Resources Division, at (603) 271-4609. For information regarding theDES Asbestos Disposal Site Program,listing of known sites, applicable rules,and guidance documents, please con-tact Mark Ledgard, Asbestos DisposalSite Program manager, at (603) 271-7376 or at [email protected] information is available atdes.nh.gov/sw/asbestos_1.htm orwww.des.nh.gov/ard/asbestos.htm.
The DES Labor/Management Committee (LMC) has been re-established. Thepurpose of the committee is to foster open communications between manage-ment and employees about policies and other departmental issues that affectemployees. The goal of the committee is to maintain a cooperative atmospherewithin the agency and to reduce the number of grievances and appeals. TheLMC meets on the fourth Tuesday of every other month. The committee consid-ers issues that affect more than one individual.
The committee consists of five management representatives from the majordivisions within DES and four of the DES stewards and the SEA field represen-tative assigned to the agency. The current committee members are: PamSopczyk, Human Resources; Harry Stewart, Water Division; Steve Dolloff,FWWTP; Kent Finemore, Air Division; Fred McGarry, Waste Division; SheilaHeath, Laboratory; Vicki Whittemore, Water Division; Doug Laughton, Air Di-vision; Bill Evans, Waste Division; Steve McCormack, SEA Senior Field Repre-sentative; and ex-officio member Mike Walls, Assistant Commissioner. Thecommittee is co-chaired by Pam Sopczyk and Sheila Heath.
Employees are invited to present issues through their supervisory chain ofcommand, except in unusual circumstances, before bringing the issues to theLMC. Employees may bring their concerns to any committee member who willthen request the item be placed on the agenda, which will be available on theDES Intranet prior to the meeting. The committee looks forward to addressingitems of concern to employees with the hope of creating and maintaining a su-perior work environment at DES.
LMC re-established
JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2007 • ENVIRONMENTAL NEWS 7
People applying for a Wetlands permit have a new op-tion available to them when addressing necessary
mitigation requirements of their application. The recentadoption of interim rules for the Aquatic Resource MitigationFund (ARM) authorizes the collection of mitigation funds inlieu of other forms of wetland mitigation for certain smallprojects. The ARM program was authorized by legislationthat was signed into law by Gov. Lynch in June 2006.
Traditionally, compensation for wetland impacts isachieved through creating a new wetland, restoring aformer wetland site, or protecting a high-quality aquaticresource by preserving adjacent upland habitat. Most wet-land mitigation is still done by the person getting the per-mit, and the mitigation effort usually takes place on ornear the site of the proposed development. Some studieshave shown that many of the mitigation efforts fail to off-set lost wetland functions.
The ARM fund can be spent on projects that addressspecific needs of a watershed where the permitted wetlandimpacts are occurring. This type of process, more com-monly referred to as an in-lieu fee program, is ideal forprojects that have difficulty in locating an appropriatemitigation site. In such cases, the applicant would pay intothe ARM fund where such fees are pooled and contributeto ongoing restoration or creation efforts, or improve uponknown preservation projects that would have immediateenvironmental results.
With the payment of the agreed-upon fee, some or all ofthe permittee’s responsibilities for wetlands mitigationshift to the ARM fund. The permittee is not responsible forwetland construction, wetland acquisition, stewardshipand monitoring, and can concentrate on the developmentproject at hand.
By pooling funds from many projects, the ARM fund hasthe potential for long-term environmental results fromwetland mitigation that considers watershed goals, assistsconservation efforts in recognizing green infrastructureplans of a town or region, and has the ability to target im-portant and vulnerable wetlands in a region.
The interim rule may be viewed online atwww.des.nh.gov/rulemaking/#awetlands.
It is anticipated that the final version of the rule will notvary much from the interim version. The final rule is ex-pected to be in place by May 17, 2007. For more informa-tion on the ARM fund, please contact Lori Sommer, DESWetland Bureau, at (603) 271-4059.
This past fall, the Winnipesaukee River Basin Programwas notified that it won the National First Place
Award in the Large Secondary Plant Operations and Main-tenance (O&M) Excellence category, as part of the annual2006 U.S. EPA Clean Water Act Recognition Awards selec-tion process. The WRBP qualified to compete with the nineother EPA regional winners for the national title after re-ceiving top honors in EPA’s Region I competition last year.
Areas in which the WRBP excelled include: (1) an out-standing compliance record - no discharge (NPDES) viola-tions in nearly three years; (2) outstanding utilization andreliance of automation to save time, energy and money; (3)implementation of a comprehensive and high qualityequipment maintenance program; (4) development of aneffective and proactive process control and field monitor-ing program; and (5) outstanding residuals managementprogram.
The awards were established to recognize the staff ofpublicly owned wastewater treatment plants for theircommitment to improve water quality not only with out-standing operation and maintenance, but also through acombination of continued permit compliance, effective fi-nancial management, and on-going operator training.
WRBP presented with2006 EPA National Awardof Excellence
WRBP Director Dick Flanders (in red) and staff pose with their 2006EPA regional award prior to winning the EPA national first placeaward.
Interim rules adopted forAquatic ResourceMitigation fund
w w w . d e s . n h . g o v
8 ENVIRONMENTAL NEWS • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2007
DES is launching a mercury andfish consumption awareness
outreach effort, thanks to a $14,400Healthy Communities Grant from EPARegion 1. Our goal is to provide im-proved communication to women ofchildbearing age to clarify the riskperception regarding mercury andfish consumption. The DES Environ-mental Health Program will collabo-rate with the Dartmouth Toxic MetalsProgram and the New England Inter-state Water Pollution Control Com-mission to develop a new brochure forwomen’s medical care providers.
State and federal fish consumptionguidance advises pregnant women tolimit their intake of tuna, swordfishand certain other salt and freshwaterfish that may contain mercury. Thegoal of the guidance is to ensure thatwomen continue to eat fish and shell-fish because of the nutritional ben-efits, while encouraging them to takesteps to reduce their exposure to mer-cury. Unfortunately, some pregnantwomen have decided that it is safestto avoid eating fish altogether duringpregnancy.
The current fish consumption advi-sory message omits emphasis on theknown health benefits of fish con-sumption for pregnant women. The diet of the majority ofUS women is deficient in omega-3 fatty acids, which areobtained mainly through eating fish. Omega-3 fatty acidsare known to be necessary for the proper development ofthe visual and nervous systems. Additionally, adequatematernal omega-3 fatty acid nutrition is associated withdecreased incidence of preterm delivery and low birth-weight.
The DES outreach effort will clarify the benefits of eatingfish for women of childbearing age by providing clear,simple guidelines for women to follow. The communicationmaterials produced as a result of the EPA grant will focus oneating more fish but selecting fish that are low in mercury.
Guidelines for Fish and ShellfishConsumption
Fish and shellfish are an importantpart of a healthy diet. Nearly all fishand shellfish contain traces of mer-cury. Women and young childrenshould follow these three recommen-dations for selecting and eating fish orshellfish.• Do not eat shark, swordfish, kingmackerel, or tilefish because they con-tain high levels of mercury.• Eat up to 12 ounces (two averagemeals) a week of a variety of fish andshellfish that are lower in mercury.• Check advisories about the safetyof fish caught locally. If no advice isavailable, eat up to six ounces (one av-erage meal) per month and do notconsume any other fish during thatmonth.
Five of the most commonly eatenfish that are low in mercury areshrimp, canned light tuna, salmon,pollock, and catfish. Albacore (white)tuna has more mercury than cannedlight tuna. Eat up to six ounces (oneaverage meal) of albacore tuna perweek.
If you’re not a child or a child bear-ing female, select a variety of seafood if you plan to con-sume more than two seafood meals per week. Remember,eating seafood that is low in mercury is a healthy dietarychoice with both cardiovascular and neurological benefits.Make your choices wisely!
For more information, contact Sherry Godlewski [email protected] or (603) 271-6801, or PamSchnepper at [email protected] or (603) 271-3994.
DES receives grant to clarify mercury and fishconsumption message
For the NH Fish Advisory, seewww.des.nh.gov/pdf/
Mercury_Fish.pdf.
JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2007 • ENVIRONMENTAL NEWS 9
by Mike Fitzgerald, ARD Technical ServicesBureau Administrator
In continuing efforts to reduce mer-cury emissions in the state, the
New Hampshire Legislature passedHouse Bill 1673 (Chapter 105, Laws of2006) to address mercury emissionsfrom coal-fired utilities. The new leg-islation requires a minimum of 80 per-cent reduction in mercury emissionsby July 2013 from the state’s coal-firedelectric generating facilities. Specifickey features of Chapt. 105 are: 1) in-stallation of scrubber technology toachieve mercury reductions at thelargest generating facility; 2) economicincentives for early and surplus(greater than 80 percent) emissionsreductions; and 3) prohibition on thepurchase, transfer, or sale of federalmercury credits to achieve requiredreductions. There are five units withinNew Hampshire that are subject toChapt. 105, all currently owned andoperated by the Public Service of NewHampshire. This legislation is designed
State submits plan to EPA to meet federal Clean AirMercury Rule requirements
to achieve the greatest, most cost-effec-tive and timely local mercury emissionreductions from these facilities.
Concurrent with the deliberationson HB 1673, the federal EPA promul-gated the Clean Air Mercury Rule(CAMR), which also applies to coal-fired electric generating units and in-cludes a federal cap-and-trade pro-gram. New Hampshire, as well as anumber of other states and organiza-tions, has challenged CAMR in federalcourt, including CAMR’s legality rela-tive to using cap-and-trade programsfor the control of mercury emissionsfrom power plants. The legal chal-lenge claims that CAMR does notguarantee emissions reductions in theimmediate vicinity of the powerplants where mercury deposition im-pacts are more significant.
As required by CAMR, New Hamp-shire submitted a plan to EPA in No-vember demonstrating how the statewill meet statewide mercury emission
limitations set forth in CAMR. CAMRsets emissions limitations as follows:126 pounds in 2010 and 50 pounds in2018. The cap-and-trade program in-cluded in CAMR and the first emis-sions deadline of 2010 are clearly in-consistent with the state’s legislationof 80 percent reduction by 2013.
Regardless of the resolution of thelegal issues, New Hampshire has sub-mitted a state plan to EPA that is in-tended to satisfy the requirements ofCAMR while retaining state authorityover local mercury emissions. Thestate plan calls for the adoption ofrules that provide flexibility in meet-ing CAMR for the interim period2010-2013, while still ensuring fargreater localized reductions (well be-low the 2018 CAMR limit of 50pounds) for 2013 and beyond (afterscrubber installation).
An important point of the state’splan is that New Hampshire wouldnot be participating in any trading ofmercury allowances, and would notbe seeking approval to participate inthe CAMR cap-and-trade program.Furthermore, New Hampshire’s pro-posal recognizes and ensures the pre-cedence of the long-term approach tomost cost effectively reduce mercuryemissions that is the will of the Gen-eral Court and Governor as expressedin Chapt. 105. This approach wouldallow New Hampshire to complywith federally imposed obligationspending the court challenge, withoutimpeding the progress of implement-ing mercury reduction technology re-quired under Chapt. 105.
DES is committed to enforcing therequirements of state mercury legisla-tion to ensure that maximum mer-cury reductions are achieved withouta negative impact on electricity oper-ating capacity or rates.
The Acton Wakefield Watersheds Alliance (AWWA), a group of communityresidents and lake association members, successfully completed the first sea-
son of its Youth Conservation Corps (YCC) this summer. The successes of this pro-gram proved to be above and beyond expectations with a group of local volunteerhigh school students empowered to change water quality and their lives.
As the first YCC to work in New Hampshire watersheds, this success didn’tcome easily. A group of hardworking, passionate, and dedicated volunteers andtheir partners made it possible.
Over the course of their eight-week season, the crew leader and crew memberscompleted 10 projects in their service area. Projects included several rain gardens,vegetated buffers, rubber razors and infiltration trenches to control runoff andprevent soil from reaching the lakes and tributaries. It is estimated that theseprojects will keep 15+ tons of sediment out of the lakes each year. In addition to theconstruction projects, project staff also provided technical assistance to 37 land-owners on eight different lakes.
The YCC students also generated significant public interest and support forAWWA and the YCC. After seeing the results of the first season on a public tour
Local group improves water qualitywhile changing lives
YCC, continued on page 12
10 ENVIRONMENTAL NEWS • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2007
By Mark Stevens, DES Dam Bureau Land Agent
It started as a normal enough day. Jim Gallagher,Bethann McCarthy and I were on our way to Silver
Lake to do some investigation work for the Dam Bureau.We departed from the public boat launch downstream ofthe lake and putted up river. A short distance upstream,we saw something shiny reflecting up through the water.
We floated over and peering down, saw a roof rack. Andbeneath the roof rack, a station wagon. The water wasmurky, but clear enough so that I could see a current in-spection sticker on the windshield, so we knew it hadn’tbeen in the river for long. But for how long? And, was any-one in the car?
We called 9-1-1 and reported what we had found. Aftersome initial confusion as to what town we were in, whohad jurisdiction and should respond, as well as some con-fusion with cell phone call-back numbers and directions to
the site of theabandoned car,the fire depart-ment eventuallyarrived.
Back to thesubmerged car.We were able tomake out the VINnumber on thedashboard. Thepolice ran theVIN throughtheir database,which showed
that the car had not been reported stolen, but attempts toreach the owner were unsuccessful. Not a good sign.
A scuba diver and a tow truck arrived, and the car waseventually dragged out. Nothing but one crayfish insidethe car. As it turned out, the car had been stolen a day ear-lier, but the owner hadn’t noticed it was missing, and sohadn’t reported it. A somewhat happy ending.
As we left the crime scene and resumed our originaltask, Jim and Bethann asked me about some of the otherthings I’ve stumbled upon as a state land agent. Well, I’vefound several stolen or abandoned cars dumped deep inthe woods on state property. Once, up in the Baker RiverValley, I hiked into a remote piece of DES-owned land anddiscovered a cache of stolen TVs, VCRs, chainsaws, DVDs
and other goodies. Turns out that local thieves had bur-glarized several homes and were using the state land as arepository for their stash while they were waiting to un-load it.
There is always the problem of car tires, refrigerators,washing machines, building shingles, stumps, exerciseequipment, computer monitors, etc. that local landfills nolonger accept free-of-charge. “No-man’s land,” which usu-ally belongs to the state, becomes a popular dumping spot.It’s also a popular spot for planting marijuana gardens. I’vediscovered a few of them.
On two occasions I’ve come across dead bodies, and onceI had an old guy clutch his chest, keel over, and die right infront of me while I was talking to him. Twice, I’ve foundloaded guns on state property. One had been chucked intothe water at one of our dam sites and was revealed duringthe fall drawdown of the lake. The other was a rifle left be-hind in a tree stand, when the hunter felt the “call of thewild.” He was surprised to find me with his rifle when hereturned. Although, on more than one occasion, I’ve beenthreatened by irate individuals who’ve been the ones hold-ing the guns.
Speaking of animals, one time, acting on an anonymoustip, I found a black bear carcass dumped by poachers at aDES dam site. I rescued a skunk that had somehow falleninto a manhole on a cross-country sewer line that was un-der construction. And once I caught a horse that was run-ning rider-less down the trail with her stirrups flappingand the reins dragging on the ground; a few minutes later Imet the somewhat dazed and thrown rider. I also rescueda snowmobiler, who also lost her mount after crashing hermachine off the trail. She was fine, but her snowmobilewas crunched and she was walking out of the woods in thewrong direction.
Up at Lochmere, I came across a barbecue fire-box pitmade out of headstones on DES property, which seemedrather gruesome to me, but when I tracked down thebuilder/owner, he thought it was pretty cool. And speak-ing of cool, there have been those hot summer days whenI’ve hiked into a remote and lonely dam site to find skinny-dippers enjoying the cool water.
The true adventures of a state land agent,Or, secrets of field and stream revealed
w w w . d e s . n h . g o v
JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2007 • ENVIRONMENTAL NEWS 11
US, and about 26 percent of lung cancer deaths among non-smokers. If a person smokes and his home has high radonlevels, his risk of lung cancer is especially high.
Testing is the only way to find out if your home has ra-don and if you are at risk for exposure. Radon testing iseven more important in New Hampshire due to the highincidence of radon in our bedrock. Even “low” radon areasin the state havea 10-20 percentchance of el-evated radon.DES recommendsthat everyonetest. People livingin high radon ar-eas might havesome extra incen-tive for testingtheir homes.
DES recommends that both indoor air and drinking wa-ter wells be tested for radon. Testing is simple and inex-pensive. Indoor air testing kits are available at hardwarestores or by mail. Testing water for radon can be donewith a special sample collection bottle, which is sent to acertified laboratory. Testing for radon in both air and wa-ter is an important part of protecting public health.
Despite its threat, radon awareness and related radonreduction behaviors among New Hampshire residents arelacking. In a 2000 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance Sur-vey, it was found that only about one-third of New Hamp-shire adults know that radon causes lung cancer and lessthan 30 percent of New Hampshire residents have hadtheir homes tested for radon. This means that about300,000 New Hampshire homes remain untested, 100,000of which likely have elevated radon levels.
If you do find that radon is a concern in your home, re-member radon problems can be fixed. Reducing radon con-centrations in homes (radon mitigation) involves ventingradon from beneath the basement floor. Radon gas can beremoved from drinking water by using an aeration process.
DES is working to increase participation in NewHampshire’s radon home-testing program, especially inareas with highest risk of radon exposure. This in turn willhelp reduce the risk burden of lung cancer in the state.More information about radon can be found atwww.des.nh.gov/ARD/EHP/Radon or by calling the RadonProgram at (603) 271-1370.
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ness leaders across the nation are joining together to sup-port “25 x 25,” a national effort aimed at producing 25 per-cent of the energy consumed in the United States from re-newable sources by 2025.
I believe this is an achievable goal. Already 8 percent ofthe energy that is available to the grid that serves NewEngland is from renewable sources. And 14 percent of thepower that is available here in New Hampshire is fromrenewable energy.
Separate analyses by the Energy Information Adminis-tration and the Union of Concerned Scientists found thatthe country could generate 20 percent of its electricity fromrenewable sources by 2020 and reduce prices for electricityand natural gas customers. And based on modeling con-ducted by Lawrence Livermore Labs, even a 20 percentgoal, combined with similar efforts in our neighboringstates, could save New England residents between $82 and$204 million on their energy bills between now and 2020.
In addition, an Energy Administration Study found thatincreasing the use of clean, renewable energy could reduceby billions of dollars nationally the cost to consumers ofmeeting requirements to reduce pollution emissions frompower plants.
Spurring the development of more renewable energycan help create jobs right here in New Hampshire, becausewe can find a big part of the solution to our nation’s energycrisis right here in New Hampshire. Increasing renewableenergy would take advantage of New Hampshire’s amplewood supply, and encourage the responsible harvesting oflesser-grade woods – which will help preserve our forestsfrom development.
And we already know that these types of investmentscan make financial sense. That is why PSNH has convertedone of the Schiller Station units from coal to wood.
Wood-fired plants are a natural choice for New Hamp-shire, but we also need to look at other forms of renewableenergy – solar, wind and hydro. All of these sources havegreat advantages for our state – providing competition toexpensive oil and natural gas and adding much-neededdiversity to our fuel supplies.
To help meet this goal, I will work with the legislaturethis year to help create a Renewable Portfolio Standardthat will spur interest in the development of alternativefuels. I look forward to working with people across thestate to ensure that New Hampshire is a leader in the en-ergy industries of the future.John LynchGovernor
Governor’s Messagecontinued from page 1
The ActonWakefield Water-shed Alliance Crewfrom left to right:Chris Stanton,Nigel St. Pierre,Craig Hill, SamWilson, and An-thony Stantonworks to improveshoreland protection.
and hearing heartfelt testimonials directly from the highschool crew members during a presentation to the town,Wakefield increased funding for the program in 2007 – from$2,000 to $10,000. AWWA President Linda Schier acknowl-edged the high quality of the students’ presentations, “Eachone of them explained to the selectmen in his own wordshow he worked on a community level to reduce pollution.”
One student, Craig Hill, had lost interest in school andwas abusing alcohol and drugs before he became involved inthe YCC. He noted that while residents may be used to seeingthe kids hanging around downtown, the YCC work is a posi-tive change. “I liked the aspect of us kids giving back to thecommunity,” said Hill. “It’s good to see us doing somethingconstructive.”
AWWA will start up the second year of the YCC programthis spring with most of the crew members returning foranother year of hard work hauling rocks and dirt around toimprove water quality in Acton and Wakefield’s lakes. Formore information about the AWWA YCC program, contactBarbara McMillan at (603) 271-7889 or Natalie Landry at(603) 559-1507.
