Sixth annual Watershed Counts report released

PROVIDENCE- The sixth annual Watershed Counts report, to be released at a press conference at the Save the Bay Center at Field’s Point Tuesday morning, focuses on protecting the headwaters of Narragansett Bay.

It details land and water resources of the Narragansett Bay region, as well as highlights what is being done to protect, and restore, the bi-state Narragansett Bay watershed.

The 2016 Watershed Counts report focuses on benefits from:

  • Individuals making small differences;
  • Communities collaborating across municipal boundaries to improve drinking water and send clean water down to the bay;
  • Organizations at a watershed level keeping the headwaters and the bay connected;
  • State and federal agencies protecting and preserving the Narragansett Bay area through commitments and programs.

“Protection of our waters does not occur spontaneously, it takes clear vision, hard work and long-term dedication by individuals, communities, organizations and agencies to initiate change to improve environmental health,” said Nicole Rohr, assistant director of the Coastal Institute at the University of Rhode Island in prepared remarks. “But when these changes are effective, as shown in our case study on Providence’s Olneyville neighborhood, the results improve the environment and strengthen communities.”

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Due to two-thirds of the Narragansett Bay watershed originating in Massachusetts, the report includes efforts of five Canoe River municipalities in Massachusetts attempting to keep shared drinking water supplies clean.

“In the Taunton River and upper Blackstone River watersheds in Massachusetts, our environmental agencies and partners are protecting headwater streams through dam removals and stream flow protection to provide for healthier aquatic habitats,” Doug Fine, assistant commissioner for the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection’s Bureau of Water Resources, said in a statement.

The report details how 80 percent of the Narragansett Bay watershed stream length is comprised of individual headwater streams. These streams are liabilities due to the likelihood that they will encounter developmental and agricultural issues. However, they do provide benefits when rainwater and runoff soak into natural areas, such as filtering out contaminants and the slowing down of water flow.

“Collaboration between hands-on partners at the local level and programs at the state and federal levels results in a system of integrated watershed management that benefits everyone,” said Tom Borden, program director of the Narragansett Bay Estuary Program, in a statement. “This collaboration between grassroots groups, towns, and governmental agencies is evident in the Taunton River, which obtained the highly sought federal designation of the national Wild and Scenic River program.”

Sixty nonprofits, government agencies, academic institutions, along with other organizations, comprise Watershed Counts. It is co-coordinated by the Coastal Institute at URI and the Narragansett Bay Estuary Program.

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