CONWAY – As it continues work on the South River watershed, the Franklin Regional Council of Government (FRCOG) is developing a conservation plan for climate and nonpoint source pollution resiliency.
Through funding from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), FRCOG is planning to work with different landowners and stakeholders to assess the health of the watershed and come up with ideas to keep the river clean and usable for the foreseeable future, according to Land Use/Natural Resources Program Manager & Climate Resiliency Specialist Kimberly Noake MacPhee.
“NRCS and DEP (Department of Environmental Protection) have identified the South River watershed as a priority watershed where both agencies want to direct attention and funding toward addressing water quality concerns.” Noake MacPhee said. “This particular project is focusing on better understanding the different uses of the watershed.”
While the water is typically clean, the state has flagged E.coli and fecal coliform as nonpoint source pollutants, according to DEP’s Water Quality Assessment map. Nonpoint source pollution typically comes from “many diffuse sources,” like rainfall or land runoff, and could have potentially harmful effects on drinking water, recreation, fisheries and wildlife, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. Noake MacPhee emphasized the designation by the state is not an indictment on the river’s health, but just a note that, with some work, it can be addressed.
“We’ve got this impairment, but with targeted work in the watershed, the health could be restored fairly easily,” she said. “This is a positive thing, we just want say, ‘Here are the resources and technical assistance that NRCS has available.’”
Describing FRCOG’s role in this process as a “liaison” between landowners and the state and federal agencies, Noake McPhee said their staff will be creating a health assessment for the watershed, modeling GIS maps and writing narrative descriptions for projects, while communicating with landowners that resources, such as grants, are available if they wish to pursue those. Primary land-use industries on the South River include forestry and agriculture.
The NRCS, according to the USDA website, is in its 11th year of partnering with state and local environmental agencies. In the past, it has used water conservation systems to “promote soil health, reduce erosion and lessen nutrient runoff, such as filter strips, cover crops, reduced tillage and manure management,” which improve soil health and agricultural productivity, in what Noake MacPhee called a “win-win.”
“(NRCS) want to work with landowners to implement what they call conservation practices on their lands, that not only help improve forest health and agricultural production, but also provide water quality benefits,” Noake MacPhee said. “We saw a nice synergy between this project and our previous work.”
Currently in the outreach phase, direct mail from FRCOG will be delivered to landowners on the South River — those who didn’t receive mail but are interested are encouraged to contact Noake MacPhee — and the agency will be conducting site visits until snow falls.
The finish date for the project is slated for the end of March with a full report expected then.
Chris Larabee can be reached at clarabee@recorder.com or 413-930-4081.