Watershed plans are useful tools to help communities and groups prioritize activities to improve water quality and resources in targeted areas.

A few years ago, NRCS & NRICD identified the Scituate Reservoir watershed, Barden Reservoir-Ponaganset River watershed, and Moswansicut Pond-Huntinghouse Brook watershed as not having watershed assessments in place that address agriculture impacts on water quality. So, Rhode Island NRCS partnered with NRICD to fund watershed assessments for the three watersheds in Providence County, northwest Rhode Island. The watershed assessments aim to fulfill requirements needed to enter the implementation phase of the National Water Quality Initiative (NWQI).

“Watershed assessments can help communities target voluntary, on-farm conservation investments to deliver the greatest benefits for clean water,” said Brunilda Velez, Rhode Island Acting State Conservationist for NRCS. “This project is designed to help individual farmers take actions to reduce the runoff of soil, nutrients, and pathogens into waterways where water quality is a critical concern.”

The new watershed plans assess water quality conditions related to agriculture in the area surrounding the Scituate Reservoir to determine voluntary conservation efforts to protect this vital drinking water supply. The Scituate Reservoir is the largest freshwater body in Rhode Island and is the public drinking water source for the Providence metropolitan area. The Scituate Reservoir drainage area is located primarily within the rural towns of Scituate, Foster, and Glocester, as well as parts of western Cranston and Johnston. The total drainage area covers 93 square miles.

The reservoir is owned and managed by the Providence Water Supply Board (PWSB) and serves the city of Providence, the surrounding metropolitan area, and eight public water suppliers (about 60% of the state). The average demand for treated water is approximately 61 million gallons per day. 

Occasional high levels of nutrients (nitrogen and phosphorus) and bacteria are the main water quality concerns for the watersheds draining to the Scituate Reservoir. Parts of Westconnaug Brook, Wilbur Hollow Brook, Shippee Brook, Winsor Brook, Rush Brook, and Huntinghouse Brook exceed recreational water quality standards for Enterococcus bacteria (indicating the potential presence of pathogenic organisms). Huntinghouse Brook and Winsor Brook also have approved Total Maximum Daily Loads (TMDLs). Recent U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and PWSB water quality monitoring data also indicates elevated levels of nutrients occurring episodically at stream sites throughout the watersheds.

“RIACD looks forward to helping Scituate Reservoir watershed residents implement water quality protection practices to ensure the safety of our drinking water,” said Richard Went, NRICD President.

NRCS & NRICD will be holding a public meeting at the Scituate Community House on Wednesday, June 18^th, from 6:00-7:00 p.m. to discuss the watershed assessment findings and planning efforts with area farmers and community members. Staff will also be available to provide information on assistance available to area farmers to apply practices and activities to address their water quality concerns. Please RSVP at jlebeau.nricd@gmail.com.

NRCS is a federal agency that works hand-in-hand with conservation districts and the people of Rhode Island to improve and protect soil, water and other natural resources.

To learn more about NRCS watershed planning, please contact Rhode Island NRCS State Resource Conservationist, Cassius Spears, Jr., at 401-822-8833 or Cassius.Spears@usda.gov, or visit www.RI.nrcs.usda.gov.

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