OVERVIEW OF EPA SEDIMENT MONITORING ACTIVITIES
DARVENE ADAMS
USEPA-REGION 2
EDISON, NJ
Dredging program content supplied by Mark Reiss, USEPA-Region 2 Clean Water Division
NJ Water Monitoring Council Meeting
September 21, 2016
NATIONAL AQUATIC RESOURCE SURVEYS (NARS)
COLLABORATIVE PROGRAMS BETWEEN EPA, STATES, AND TRIBES DESIGNED TO ASSESS THE
QUALITY OF THE NATION'S COASTAL WATERS, LAKES AND RESERVOIRS, RIVERS AND
STREAMS, AND WETLANDS USING A STATISTICAL SURVEY DESIGN.
NATIONAL AQUATIC RESOURCE SURVEYS (NARS)
• SNAPSHOT OF THE OVERALL CONDITION OF THE NATION’S WATER
• SAMPLE SITES SELECTED AT RANDOM
• USE STANDARDIZED FIELD AND LAB METHODS
• 5-YEAR CYCLE
NARS QUESTIONS
• WHAT PERCENT OF WATERS SUPPORT HEALTHY ECOSYSTEMS AND RECREATION?
• WHAT ARE THE MOST COMMON WATER QUALITY PROBLEMS?
• IS WATER QUALITY IMPROVING OR GETTING WORSE?
• ARE INVESTMENTS IN IMPROVING WATER QUALITY FOCUSED APPROPRIATELY?
NARS SCHEDULE
Field Year Survey
2007 National Lakes Assessment
2008 - 2009 National Rivers & Streams Assessment
2010 National Coastal Condition Assessment
2011 National Wetland Condition Assessment
2012 National Lakes Assessment
2013 - 2014 National Rivers & Streams Assessment
2015 National Coastal Condition Assessment
2016 National Wetland Condition Assessment
2017 National Lakes Assessment
2018-2019 National Rivers & Streams Assessment
2020 National Coastal Condition Assessment
2021 National Wetland Condition Assessment
NARS SEDIMENT
Chemistry Biological Other
Lakes Mercury Benthic Macroinvertebrates Sediment diatoms
Rivers Benthic Macroinvertebrates Stream bed sediments
Streams Benthic Macroinvertebrates Stream bed sediments
Wetlands Soil Chemistry (metals) Sediment Enzymes
Coastal Chemistry (metals/PCBs/PAHs/Pest.) Benthic Macroinvertebrates Toxicity
REGIONAL SEDIMENT MONITORING
• REGIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL MONITORING AND ASSESSMENT PROGRAM (REMAP)
• NY/NJ HARBOR 1993/4, 1998, 2003, 2008, 2013
• COHANSEY/MAURICE/SALEM 1999
• BARNEGAT BAY 2001
• POST-SSS
• REMAP 2013, WWTP SEDIMENT SAMPLING
• DREDGING AND HARS MONITORING
• SUPERFUND
REMAP AND POST SSS
• STRATIFIED STATISTICAL DESIGN
• ESTIMATES FOR ENTIRE HARBOR
AND INDIVIDUAL SUB-BASINS
• 30 STATIONS PER SUB-BASIN; 5
SUB-BASINS
• Van VEEN SAMPLER; TOP 2cm for
chemistry and toxicity, entire grab
for benthos
USES OF REMAP DATA
• STATUS ESTIMATES WITH
CONFIDENCE
• TRENDS ANALYSIS
• PRIORITIZATION OF PROBLEMS
• ASSOCIATION OF BIOLOGICAL
PROBLEMS WITH SPECIFIC
CONTAMINANTS
REGION 2 DREDGING AND MONITORING PROGRAM
MONITORING AT THE HISTORIC AREA REMEDIATION SITE (HARS)
THE PORT OF NEW YORK AND NEW JERSEY
400 km of channels
3-5 Million yd3/year
NEW YORK/NEW JERSEY HARBOR
• PAHS, DIOXIN, DDT, PCBS, METALS CO-VARY
• PORT FACILITIES ARE LOCATED IN SHALLOWEST, MOST CONTAMINATED PART
OF THE ESTUARY
HISTORIC AREA REMEDIATION SITE
(16 NM2 AREA AROUND MUD DUMP SITE)
• SIGNIFICANT FRACTION OF NY/NJ HARBOR DREDGED
MATERIAL IS MANAGED AT THE HARS.
• MOSTLY DEEPENING AND SANDY MATERIAL FROM APPROACH
CHANNELS (E.G., AMBROSE AND SANDY HOOK CHANNELS)
• GOAL OF HARS IS REMEDIATION OF TOXICITY AND ELEVATED
TISSUE RESIDUES FROM HISTORIC OCEAN DISPOSAL VIA 1-M
CAP USING CLEANER DREDGED MATERIAL.
• REQUIRES PRECISE PLACEMENT OF MATERIAL, INTENSIVE
SURVEILLANCE OF DISPOSAL CONTRACTORS AND
RIGOROUS POST CAP MONITORING.
COMMON MONITORING TECHNIQUES
• MULTIBEAM BATHYMETRY/ SIDE SCAN SONAR/SUB BOTTOM PROFILING
• SEDIMENT PROFILE IMAGING
• SAMPLING
• PHYSICAL PROPERTIES
• SEDIMENT CHEMISTRY
• BENTHIC COMMUNITY ANALYSIS
• TOXICITY BIOASSAYS
• TISSUE RESIDUES
• VIDEO VIA SLED OR ROV
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RS-98
PST-98
135 trips
485 ,00 0 cy
117 trips354,000 cy
KVK II, II197 trips
594,000 cy
RS-99
BMT-99
33 trips
129,000 cy
BMC-00
PST-99
CDF - "Red Clay"378 trips
1,284,800 cy
PST - 00
KVK II, I
r
r
RR
KVK area 3
r
RRAK
PAB - 00
~327 tr ips
~850,000 cy
RS - 00
~21 trips
~55,000 cy
KVK II, Area 6 03
PA PE/PN
PA BERTHS 02
KVK II, Area 5 03
ERBI 02
BMT 02
RS 02
PST 02
RS 02
RH 01
PA 01PST 01
IMTT 01
KVK II, Area 7 02
KVK Area 8 2003
#
#
4000 0 4000 8000 Feet
N
MULTIBEAM BATHYMETRYFootprints linked to individual projects – assists in directed monitoring
SEDIMENT PROFILE IMAGERY (SPI)
• OBTAINS DIGITAL PHOTO OF SEDIMENT-WATER INTERFACE
• EFFICIENCY AND ECONOMY ALLOWS INTENSIVE SAMPLING
• CONFIRM EXTENT OF SPREAD OF MATERIAL
• SEMI QUANTITATIVE
• USEFUL FOR DIRECTING ADDITIONAL SAMPLING EFFORT
SEDIMENT PROFILE IMAGERY EXAMPLES
• GRAIN SIZE/NEAR SURFACE
STRATIGRAPHY
• REDOX DISCONTINUITIES
• BENTHIC STATUS
• ORGANISM-SEDIMENT INDICES
• RECRUITMENT AND
SUCCESSION
RESOURCES
• AMBIENT
• NARS: HTTPS://WWW.EPA.GOV/NATIONAL-AQUATIC-RESOURCE-SURVEYS
• REMAP: HTTPS://ARCHIVE.EPA.GOV/EMAP/ARCHIVE-EMAP/WEB/HTML/INDEX-171.HTML
• DREDGING: HTTPS://WWW.EPA.GOV/OCEAN-DUMPING/MANAGING-OCEAN-DUMPING-EPA-REGION-2
• SUPERFUND: HTTPS://WWW.EPA.GOV/SUPERFUND/SUPERFUND-CONTAMINATED-SEDIMENTS
