Watershed Planning: Current Status and Next Steps

1. Watershed Planning: Current Status and Next Steps Black Creek & Oatka Creek Watershed Symposium October 28, 2010

2. A brief word from our sponsors… “This project is being developed for the New York State Department of State Division of Coastal Resources with funds provided under Title 11 of the Environmental Protection Act Local Waterfront Revitalization Program.”

3. A brief word from our sponsors… Town of Wheatland, NY – EPF Project Sponsor

4. 31 Municipalities Drawing from a Broad Coalition http://www.blackcreekwatershed.org/ Soil and Water Conservation Districts in Five Counties LOCAL CITIZENS & stakeholders Various other federal, state and local agencies…

5. Watershed All the land that drains into a common point (water body)

6. Watershed Management Planning • Four Legs of the Stool • Stages • Balancing Act - Quality of conflicting uses • Restoration and Protection • Land use and land value • Tools in the toolbox • Prioritize issues and target funding • Coordination and cooperation

7. Four Legs of the Stool • Oversight and Involvement • Education and Outreach • Public Participation • Fact Finding

8. Stages • Existing State • Desired State • Strategies and Actions

9. Selection of Planning Activities to Date • Black Creek Watershed Coalition • Oatka Creek Watershed Committee • State of the Basin Reports • Controlling Sediment in the Black & Oatka Creek Watershed Project • G/FLRPC project funding by the Great Lakes Commission • Watershed Guides/Pamphlets • Various flood/hazard mitigation planning activities • Wide variety of additional local planning, DEC natural resource inventorying, water quality sampling & monitoring, and mitigation activities by local governments, SWCDs and academia

10. Watershed Management Planning Process • Continue planning and management efforts by integrating these various activities into one cohesive framework for future action (for both watersheds) • Watershed inventory and assessment • Establish and prioritize specific watershed goals based on needs • Identify major knowledge gaps

11. Watershed Management PlanComponents • Major components: • Characterization • Sub-watershed Prioritization • Regulatory/Programmatic Evaluation • Identification of Management Strategies • “Phasing Plan” (i.e. Issue Prioritization and Implementation) • Intermunicipal Coordinating Organizations

12. Public Input • Characterization – target for first draft - end of 2010 • Public Meeting to be scheduled shortly thereafter • Focused outreach as necessary • Targeting stakeholder groups for specific information • Additional public meetings to review subsequent draft materials

13. Other Ongoing Initiatives • Phase II Stormwater/Regulated MS4s • Individual SWCD projects (such as AEM) and other active grants • SUNY Brockport • …. • TMDL…

14. Center for Environmental InformationTMDL - Project Overview • Investigating Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) of phosphorus in Black Creek • Under contract with NYSDEC • Using sophisticated watershed modeling • Will lead to better understanding of Black Creek impairment and: • Potential actions to reduce phosphorus loads, or • Removal of stream from listing of impaired waters • Draft TMDL report available Spring 2011

15. Center for Environmental InformationTMDL - Project Overview • Seeking best available information on: • Point source discharges, • Farming practices, • Septic systems • Completing initial computer modeling runs • Working closely with BCWC and local SWCDs • For more information contact either: • Steve Lewandowski (585) 394-5030 • Jim Gerek (585) 262-2870

17. Contact Information Project website http://gflrpc.org/blackoatka.htm Brian Slack, AICP Senior Planner/Project Manager 585-454-0190 x21 bslack@gflrpc.org