Small Flows Quarterly Winter 2006

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aN E W S & N 0 T E S New EPA Handbook To Help Accelerate Watershed - Protection Programs A new handbook released by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) addresses questions about managing pollution runoff, in- creasing wildlife habitat, and con- trolling invasive species in the na- tion's estuaries. Community -Based Watershed Management: Lessons from the National Estuary Program is an update to Saving Bays and Estuaries, published in 1989. While the new handbook focuses on estuaries, its principles and examples are relevant to any organization involved in wa- tershed management. The 98 -page handbook describes innovative approaches developed and conducted by the 28 National Estuary Programs, which are com- munity -based watershed- ma nage- ment organizations that restore and protect coastal watersheds. Topics covered range from starting a pro- gram and identifying problems and solutions to planning development and action steps. Estuaries and the lands surrounding them are where rivers meet the sea, and where fresh water meets salt water. The National Estuary Program centers on four areas of the U.S.: Northeast, Middle and South Atlantic, Gulf of Mexico, ' and the West Coast. The handbook can be down- loaded or ordered at the EPA Web site www.epa.gov /owow /estuar Iles /nepprimer /factsheet.htm. For more information about the National Estuary Program, go to www.epa. gov /owow /estuaries /. Gulf of Mexico NASA image on the right courtesy of the SeaWiFS Project, NASA /Goddard Space Flight Center, and ORBIMAGE. Photo by Tom Campbell, Purdue Agricultural Communication. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently published National Management Measures to Protect and Restore Wetlands and Riparian Areas for the Abatement of Nonpoint Source Pollution. This technical guidance and reference docu- ment was developed for use by state, territory, and authorized tribal managers, as well as the public, in the implementation of nonpoint source (NPS) pollution management programs. The guidance provides background information about NPS pollution, including where it comes from and how it enters the nation's waters; discusses the broad concept of assessing and addressing water quality problems on a watershed level; and presents recent technical information about how certain types of NPS pollution can be reduced effectively through the imple- mentation of these management measures. The new guidance contains information on the best available, economically achievable means of reducing nonpoint source pollu- tion through the protection and restoration of wetlands and ripari- an areas, as well as the implementation of vegetated treatment systems. For more information about the guidance or to download the document, click on epa.gov /owow /nps /wetmeasures /. EPA Proposes New Test Methods for Wastewater and Sewage Sludge The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing new test methods that will lead to the detection of four types of bacteria in wastewater and sewage sludge. EPA's pro- posal centers on culture -based approaches to detecting enterococci and Escherichia coli (E. coli) in wastewater. Additional tests will iden- tify Salmonella and fecal coliform bacteria in sewage sludge. The bacteria are seen as "health indicators" that point to possible contamination and the need for further in- vestigation and treatment. The new tests will yield results within 24 hours and provide treatment facilities with an indication of the effectiveness of their treatment techniques. Information about this and other water analytical methods are available at: www.epa.gov /waterscience /methods. Anaerobic sludge digestion tanks photo by Thomas W. Simmons, Indiana University of Pennsylvania.