Editor’s note: This is the first of a two-part series on a water quality project under way for Pearce Brook.
By Sue Young
Special to the Pioneer Times
There is a lot going on in and around Pearce Brook these days! Last year the town of Houlton and the Maliseet Tribe organized a successful trash clean-up day along the banks of Pearce Brook. Also in 2007, the Maine Department of Environmental Protection began removing contaminated soil in the area surrounding the junction of North and Military streets adjacent to the brook. This year, MDOT road repairs include replacing and upgrading the Bangor Street/Pearce Brook stream crossing with a large culvert that will improve fish passage and address other road drainage issues.
The latest effort involves the Houlton Band of Maliseet Indians, the town of Houlton, University of Maine Cooperative Extension, Southern Aroostook Soil and Water Conservation Service, USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, S.W. Collins, Pine Tree Ltd., and Maine DEP. These groups are working together on a water quality project in the Pearce Brook Watershed which will result in a watershed-based plan to restore habitat and improve water quality and stormwater management structures at several commercial locations along the brook. This watershed project is funded through a grant from the Environmental Protection Agency.
So, what is a watershed? Everyone lives in a watershed. Rivers, brooks, lakes and other waterbodies are defined by their watersheds. Watersheds are land areas connected to a waterbody by their topography. A watershed is a bowl-shaped land area that literally "sheds" or drains stormwater into the underlying water table and its low-lying places such as wetlands, ponds, streams and rivers.
NONPOINT SOURCE — Urbanized stormwater runoff "washes" over the land picking up any pollutants it encounters on the way to Pearce Brook and eventually the Meduxnekeag River.
Watersheds can be very large, such as the Wolastoq (Maliseet for beautiful, shining river) aka St. John watershed at 21,230 square miles or as small as Pearce Brook watershed at 6,200 acres and even smaller. Every waterbody has a watershed from which it receives replenishing rainwater.
Fun Fact: at 418 miles, the St. John/Wolastoq is the second longest river between the St. Lawrence Seaway and the Mississippi River! (Source Wikipedia)
What is nonpoint source pollution? After rain falls to the ground, we call it stormwater. Stormwater filters into groundwater and refills our wells. Stormwater runoff "washes" over the land picking up any pollutants it encounters on the way. These pollutants are then carried along by the stormwater runoff to ditches, swales, and storm drains that eventually lead to a brook, pond or other waterbody. Because these pollutants don't come from one "point" like the waste water discharge pipe of a treatment plant it's called "nonpoint" source pollution.
Much of Houlton proper is in Pearce Brook Watershed. This makes Pearce the most urbanized tributary of the larger Meduxnekeag Watershed. Why is this a concern? Urban areas have more "impervious surface" than other types of land use such as forest or farmland. Impervious surfaces like roads, roofs, driveways and sidewalks don't filter stormwater. Instead stormwater accumulates as runoff. The more impervious surface in a watershed the larger the volume of runoff and the greater the speed with which it flows. This increased quantity and speed of runoff causes erosion, carries pollutants, and damages the physical structure of brooks and streams. This damages habitat for fish and other species that rely on these water bodies.
Some effects of urbanization on habitat include: stream widening and erosion; reduced fish passage; degraded habitat structure; loss of pools and riffles; fragmented tree canopy along stream banks; and/or streambed covered with silt or mud destroying gravel/cobble spawning areas.
Typical pollutants found in urban stormwater include: suspended solids/sediments; nutrients (nitrogen/phosphorus); metals (copper, zinc, lead, cadmium); oils and greases; bacteria; and/or pesticides and herbicides.
The towns of Houlton and Hodgdon are hosting three public meetings to discuss your issues, concerns and values regarding Pearce Brook and its future. Two are scheduled for Wednesday, Oct. 21 at the Houlton Town Office at 3 and 5 p.m. The Hodgdon Town Office will host a 10 a.m. meeting on Saturday, Oct. 25.
For more information call Wade Hanson, Houlton community development director at 532-7111.
