Closing Gaps in Quantification of Fresh and Waste Water Inputs to Frenchman Bay, Maine
Lara Luczak, a Senior Undergraduate Research Assistant in the School of Earth and Climate Sciences is researching hydrologic inputs in Frenchman Bay, Maine. Her project is supported by The Water Cycle Center, a research cooperation between the U.S. Geological Survey and academic partners in the Northeast, USA (link for more info: ).
Lara��셲 research project focuses on quantification of freshwater and wastewater inputs into the bay with focused attention towards summer months, when Maine has been experiencing increased periods of drought. These quantitative analyses seek to help guide future coastal management decisions related to water quality and seafood sanitation. The approach provides a demonstration of methods that can be transferred for implementation to other coastal systems in Maine.
Previous research gaps are to be closed by examining contributing watershed areas and wastewater discharges not previously quantified. These include contributions of surface runoff and baseflow from watershed areas where outflows are not measured or modeled. Initial mapping efforts resulted in identification of 225 margin watersheds immediately surrounding tidal estuaries.
A figure shows margin watersheds as 225 yellow polygons with outflow points leading directly into the bay. A black outline defines the Frenchman Bay watershed boundary. Wastewater treatment facilities and outfall locations are mapped.