CRWA in the News
Learning to live with less water
By Kate Bowditch
Newton Tab, Wednesday, May 3, 2006
With the beauty of spring bursting into
bloom, you may not have noticed, but Massachusetts is in a serious dry
spell. With almost no spring rain, and no winter snowpack to provide
spring melt, we are well out of our normal seasonal water cycle. According
to the National Weather Service, this year we had the driest March on
record in many parts of New England, and river flows in the Charles are as
low as they have ever been at this time of year.
The most visible and immediate impacts of
spring drought are in the river, where the usual spring flush is simply
not happening. Fish and other aquatic species that rely on spring´s high,
fast flows are instead struggling in flow levels that are normal in July.
Wetlands that are normally full of water in March and April are already
drying out. For people who enjoy spring kayaking and fishing on the
Charles, the low flows have had an obvious and dramatic impact, especially
in the free-flowing sections of the river.
Hopefully,
this spring drought will not last through the summer, and the stressed
river, wetlands and urban forest will rebound. But climate change and
development patterns are putting more and more stress on the water-based
environment, and we will have to adapt our habits, practices and
expectations accordingly. We need a built environment that protects
resources, and is flexible enough to withstand change. Over time, that
means reducing our reliance on traditional engineering such as curb and
gutter, pipes and concrete channels, and embracing softer, greener
infrastructure. Nature provides some of the best models for coping with
changing weather and climate conditions, and we need to emulate as many of
those models as possible.
The Charles River Watershed Association
advocates for "keeping water local," and provides suggestions
for managing water on sites of all sizes and uses, whether a parking lot,
an industrial facility, or a single family home. The basic concept is to
design a site so it works as if it were undeveloped. By approximating
nature´s own design and function we will protect not only the natural
environment but our built environment as well.
Homes, and the local environment generally,
can be made more resilient and better able to cope with less water. Think
of each property as one small patch of land that needs to sustain itself
with its own resources, and you will begin to see possibilities. Try to
recharge most rainwater into the ground; direct runoff over vegetated
areas to slow and clean the flows; allow water to pool and collect in low
wet areas that are planted with wetland species; save rooftop runoff in a
cistern or barrel system to use for outdoor watering needs; use native
plants that are suited to a fluctuating climate and do not need to be
watered.
A landscape that keeps rainfall on-site is
good for our rivers, ponds and wetlands. It is beneficial to property
owners and to communities when landscapes are designed to withstand dry
periods as well as heavy rains, and with reduced need for fertilizer,
pesticides and irrigation. There are many good sources of landscaping
information, such as the fact sheets available on the EPA website:
www.epa.gov/owow/nps/facts. Some people might consider improving or
creating wetlands on their property, as suggested in a recent webcast
series sponsored by the Izaak Walton League of America http://itre.ncsu.edu/cte/TechTransfer/Teleconferences/iwla2006.asp
Kate Bowditch, Senior Environmental
Scientist and Project Manager at Charles River Watershed Association, is a
hydrologist. She earned her MA in Geography/Water Resources Management
from BU.