S.319 Grant

S.319 Grant (2005-2008)

In 2004, the DPA submitted a grant request for funding through the S.319 Nonpoint Source Pollution Grant Program. We received a grant in March 2005, for $70,000, of which 40% consists of matching contributions (in-kind and monetary) from the Town of Wayland and the Dudley Pond Association.

Read the Final Report of the project, from June 2008

Background Information

Section 319 of the Clean Water Act of 1987 was established as a national program to control nonpoint sources (NPS) of water pollution. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) defines nonpoint source pollution as that which is "caused by diffuse sources that are not regulated as point sources and are normally associated with precipitation and runoff from the land or percolation." Basically this means any pollution source not from a pipe or other single defined source. In Massachusetts, the S.319 program is administered by the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP). The funds are used to make on-the-ground improvements to water quality and reduce NPS pollution.

Project Goals

Each element of the project has been designed to mitigate the impairments to Dudley Pond identified in the Massachusetts Integrated List of Waters (turbidity and exotic plants). The project will provide a well-balanced and long-term approach to both of these sources of impairment by:

	Reducing sediment and nutrient loading to Dudley Pond from its primary surface water tributary by using Low Impact Development techniques and restoring an eroding section of streambank.
	Providing important elements of an integrated, long-term strategy for Eurasian milfoil control, including milfoil weevil introductions, diver hand-pulling in targeted re-growth areas, and monitoring. The goal of these project elements is to reduce the need for costly and repeated herbicide applications.
	Providing public education and outreach to watershed residents, including a storm drain stenciling program and development of educational brochures, fliers and web-based materials.

Project Activities

The work funded by the Grant consists of 6 major tasks, each of which is briefly described below. For detailed information on any of these tasks, or about the S.319 Grant in general, please email info@dudleypond.org.

1: Design and Construct a Bioretention Cell for Stormwater Treatment
A bioretention cell will be designed and constructed to treat stormwater runoff from the paved areas associated with the Wayland Middle School and Wayland Highway Department properties located on the east side of Main Street. The bioretention cell will mitigate sediment and nutrient loading to the primary surface water tributary to Dudley Pond. Bioretention cells are shallow landscaped depressions that incorporate plantings and an engineered soil mixture with a high infiltration rate. Bioretention cells are used to control runoff volume and timing, and can remove pollutants through the physical, chemical and biological processes that occur in plants, soil and mulch.

2: Design and Construct Outlet Protection and Streambank Restoration
On the Pond side of Main Street opposite the Highway Department is the primary water tributary to Dudley Pond, which receives runoff from both the Middle School/Highway Department across the street, and from Main Street itself. To provide outlet protection, a stilling basin will be constructed which will be designed primarily to dissipate stormwater flow velocity and provide a controlled outlet to the stream channel.

Past runoff has caused the streambank leading to the Pond to erode, degrading the downstream wetland area and increasing the flow of sediment towards Dudley Pond. The degraded section of the stream channel will be restored by designing and constructing an "enhanced" vegetated wetland channel using techniques that will minimize erosion.

3: Milfoil Weevils
As part of a long-term approach to managing invasive Eurasian milfoil, a population of the native weevil (Euhrychiopsis lecontei) will be stocked in Dudley Pond. Adult weevils and larvae feed on milfoil leaves, while the larvae cause even more significant plant damage and slow its growth by burrowing through milfoil stems. Weevils will not eradicate milfoil, but can reduce and slow its growth to non-nuisance levels.

4: Milfoil Hand-pulling by Professional Divers
As part of an integrated and long-term approach to managing invasive Eurasian milfoil in Dudley Pond, targeted areas will be controlled with hand-pulling conducted by experienced professional divers. This technique will focus on limiting the re-establishment of milfoil following the SONAR treatment in 2003, while avoiding the weevil stocking areas.

5: Catch Basin Stenciling
To promote public awareness and to reduce the amount of pollutants entering the storm drains in the Dudley Pond watershed, a storm drain stenciling project will be conducted. Stencils reading "Dump No Waste – Drains To Pond" shall be applied to 106 storm drains in the Dudley Pond watershed.

6: Education, Outreach and Reporting
The DPA will develop public education and outreach materials targeted to watershed residents and businesses, concerning the S.319 project and how they can contribute to the continuing health of the Pond. The Town of Wayland will prepare quarterly progress reports for the duration of the project, summarizing all work completed and activities planned for the next quarter.