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Week of October 2 – 8, 2022

​Phillipsdale Landing

​Sondes were swapped for routine maintenance during the morning on October 4th. Overall, water quality at Phillipsdale Landing was good this week. Weather conditions were moderately wet, with 1.28 inches of rainfall recorded at T.F. Green. The Blackstone River flow increased above the 17-year median flow rate towards the end of the week. Salinity at the surface averaged 21.0 ppt and ranged from 8.9 ppt – 26.3 ppt. At the bottom, salinity averaged 26.0 ppt and ranged from 19.3 ppt – 29.8 ppt. Temperatures cooled this week, averaging 16.6°C at the surface and 17.1°C at the bottom. Surface temperatures ranged from 15.1°C to 19.5°C, while bottom temperatures ranged from 15.4°C to 18.9°C.

Dissolved oxygen (DO) has increased at Phillipsdale Landing, with the surface and bottom waters above the hypoxia threshold (i.e., DO >2.9 mg/L) throughout the week. Bottom water DO concentration averaged 5.7 mg/L and ranged from 3.8 mg/L to 7.0 mg/L. Surface DO was higher, averaging 6.5 mg/L and ranging 4.7 – 8.3 mg/L. Chlorophyll concentrations were low, averaging 2.8 ug/L at the surface and 2.3 ug/L at the bottom. Maximum surface chlorophyll readings reached just 7.5 ug/L, recorded on the morning of October 2nd and afternoon on October 7th. Please note that tidal fluctuations and Blackstone River flows greatly influence water column salinity, temperature, and DO at this location. 

Bullock Reach  

Overall, water quality was good at Bullock Reach this week. Salinity averaged 29.0 ppt, 29.9 ppt, and 31.4 ppt at the surface, middle, and bottom sondes, respectively. Surface salinity ranged 26.3 – 30.2 ppt, mid salinity ranged 28.4 – 31.4 ppt, and bottom salinity ranged 29.4 – 32.3 ppt. Temperatures decreased from the previous week. Surface temperature averaged 16.8°C and ranged from 15.8°C to 18.0°C. Mid temperatures averaged 16.8°C and ranged from 16.2°C to 18.1°C. Bottom temperatures averaged 16.9°C and ranged from 16.2°C to 18.6°C.

DO concentrations at Bullock Reach remained above the hypoxia threshold all week. Surface DO averaged 7.4 mg/L and ranged 6.2 – 8.9 mg/L. In the mid waters, DO averaged 7.3 mg/L and ranged 6.2 – 8.3 mg/L. At the bottom, DO averaged 7.0 mg/L and ranged 5.7– 7.5 mg/L. Chlorophyll concentrations were low all week. Overall, chlorophyll averaged 3.0 ug/L, 4.0 ug/L, and 1.8 ug/L at the surface, mid, and bottom waters, respectively. The maximum surface chlorophyll reading was 6.2 ug/L on October 7th.

2020 Earth Day Clean Up Grants Available

The Narragansett Bay Commission (NBC) is offering grants ranging from $250 up to $1,000 for local Earth Day River and Lake Cleanups, restoration or beautification projects for areas located within the NBC service area or along NBC receiving waters. The goal of the NBC 2020 Earth Day River Cleanup Grant Program is to clean up our important environmental resources by providing funding assistance to local organizations restoring and improving the green spaces in their communities.

The grants may be used for Earth Day volunteer cleanup projects of green spaces and river, lake and pond cleanup projects located within the NBC service district or along NBC receiving waters. Projects that include an educational component to educate volunteers about some aspect of the environment, environmental restoration, protection are preferred. All sections of the grant application, including the project description form must be completed. Applications must be accompanied with an invoice on organizational letterhead with the grant award total request listed. The invoice must have the letterhead of your organization. Any incomplete grant application forms received will not be considered. Only one application per project will be considered, and projects must be completed no later than August 31, 2020. The range of funding for any single project shall be between $250 and $1,000, depending upon the number of applicants and funding availability.

Application forms are available here and are due by February 21, 2020.

Narragansett Bay Commission Limits Public Access in Response to Coronavirus

The Narragansett Bay Commission (NBC) has limited access to its offices to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. Beginning Monday, March 16, 2020, NBC will restrict customer and visitor access to all NBC facilities, including the corporate office at One Service Road, Providence, until further notice.

While the corporate office is closed, customers are encouraged to call Customer Service at (401) 461-8828 or email cs@narrabay.com.  Customers may also visit the agency’s website at www.narrabay.com for on-line bill payment and account management. All transactions except the acceptance of cash payments and site visits can be completed through NBC’s automated phone service or on-line.

During this time, NBC will suspend water service terminations and collection calls arising from non-payment.

NBC is committed to its environmental and public health mission to deliver safe and reliable wastewater collections and treatment service, while protecting the health of its employees and customers.

More information is available from the Centers for Disease Control and the Rhode Island Department of Health.

For additional information about coronavirus and water safety, visit www.epa.gov/coronavirus/coronavirus-and-drinking-water-and-wastewater

Don’t Flush! No Tirar en el Inodoro!

The Narragansett Bay Commission encourages everyone to refrain from flushing disposable wipes. The wipes do not dissolve in water and can lead to unpleasant toilet back-ups as well as larger sewer system issues.

Only the 3 Ps should go in the toilet: pee, poo, and (toilet) paper.

Please see these Spanish and English language flyers explaining why #WipesClogPipes.

NBC Named One of RI’s Best Places to Work

For the tenth consecutive year, the Narragansett Bay Commission has been named on of Rhode Island’s Best Places to Work by the Providence Business News.

According to the PBN, “Each of the companies recognized for this year’s program were judged based on human resources policies and confidential surveys of employees put together by Best Companies Group.”

Companies will be recognized in a virtual ceremony held Wednesday, Sept. 30 at 4 p.m. and profiled in a special section to be included in the Oct. 2-8 print edition of PBN.

The NBC is one of 66 companies recognized for 2020.

NBC Honored as Utility of the Future

The Narragansett Bay Commission (NBC), along with sixty-four other clean water utilities worldwide, has been recognized as a Utility of the Future (UOTF) for transformational initiatives in the clean water sector. The UOTF designation lauds utilities for recovering resources from wastewater, leading community engagement, forming unique partnerships, and building an internal culture of innovation.

The Utility of the Future Today program was launched in 2016 by the National Association of Clean Water Agencies (NACWA), the Water Environment Federation (WEF), the Water Research Foundation (WRF) and the WateReuse Association, with input from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The recognition celebrates the achievements of water utilities that transform from the traditional wastewater treatment system to a resource recovery center and leader in the overall sustainability and resilience of the communities they serve. The NBC has received UOTF designation twice since the award’s inception.

“The innovations coming to the water sector present an opportunity for a paradigm shift in the way utilities think about and solve long-standing challenges to clean and reliable water,” said Jackie Jarrell, WEF President. “WEF is excited to recognize the Narragansett Bay Commission for embracing innovative ways to better serve their communities.”

The UOTF lauded the NBC’s leadership in renewable energy, robust environmental monitoring program, excellence in water treatment and management, and commitment to community support.

“This agency has made great strides for Narragansett Bay and our urban rivers,” said NBC Chairman Vincent Mesolella. “Narragansett Bay is cleaner than it has been in 150 years. Our shellfishermen have access to thousands of additional acres of grounds. The NBC generates 80 percent of our own energy through renewable sources and we operate award-winning community and education programs. Thanks to an engaged and committed Board and a staff of environmental professionals, the NBC truly is embracing the future today.”

A virtual celebration will publicly honor all UOTF recipients on October 9.

Narragansett Bay Commission Elects Mesolella for 30th Term as Chairman

At the April 2021 meeting of the Narragansett Bay Commission, the Board of Commissioners voted unanimously to reaffirm its current slate of officers: Chairman Vincent Mesolella, Vice Chairman Angelo Rotella, and Treasurer Robert Andrade. 2021 marks Mesolella’s thirtieth year at the helm of the internationally-recognized clean water agency.

“The accomplishments of the Narragansett Bay Commission and this Board is an extreme source of pride for me, as I know it is for all of us,” Mesolella said upon the vote. “I thank you, for the thirtieth time, for the confidence you have bestowed upon me. Together, this Board and this Commission has made Rhode Island a better place and we will continue on that mission.”

Under Mesolella’s leadership, the NBC has been named twice a Utility of the Future and received numerous national and regional awards for operational, managerial, and fiscal excellence as well as for community engagement and environmental education. The NBC has established itself as a leader in renewable energy, with approximately 80% of its annual energy needs met by NBC-owned renewable sources, such as wind, solar, and biogas. In the 1990s, as Mesolella assumed the Chairmanship, the NBC embarked on a comprehensive three-phase plan to deal with Combined Sewer Overflows (CSOs), which has resulted in significant improvements in water quality in Narragansett Bay and great enhancements in both bathing beaches and the shellfishing industry. The final phase of the CSO project starts construction in 2021.

NBC LAUNCHES LIVE CSO MAP

The Narragansett Bay Commission (NBC) has launched a live on-line map that tracks the status of combined sewer overflows (CSOs) and dry weather overflows (DWOs) into the Providence, Moshassuck, Woonasquatucket, West, and Seekonk Rivers.

“Reliable infrastructure—including pipes, treatment plants, trained and committed staff—is critical for clean water,” said NBC Chairman Vincent Mesolella, “and so is information. This map offers the public an important tool to see what’s happening in our rivers.”

The map, on the NBC’s website at https://narrabay.com/csomap, uses a real-time web-based notification system to provide advanced monitoring and will show overflows as they occur and keep them visible for up to 48 hours. The development of this interactive tool was required by the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management and is based on efforts in other states and wastewater jurisdictions to notify the public of sewage overflows. The NBC map is the first of its kind in Rhode Island.

CSOs are the legacy of an historic sewer system. In the late 1800s, most larger cities across the nation built sewer systems to carry rain water and sewage in the same pipe. This is called a combined sewer. During dry weather conditions, the sewer system typically works very well. But, during heavy rainstorms, these combined flows can exceed the capacity of the sewer system and overflow into local rivers and Narragansett Bay. This is a combined sewer overflow, or CSO. CSOs violate the Federal Clean Water Act.

The NBC embarked on a three-phase project in 2001 to construct deep rock storage tunnels to temporarily store the flow from these CSOs during the storm and then transport it to the wastewater treatment facility when the storm ends. Phases I & II of NBC’s Comprehensive CSO Project have eliminated approximately 60% of CSOs to upper Narragansett Bay, at the rate of 1.1 billion gallons of combined sewage per year. Phase III, which begins construction in 2021, will eliminate another 38% resulting in an 80% reduction in shellfish bed closures, fewer bathing beach closures and a cleaner healthier Bay for all Rhode Islanders.

Development of the map included input from several stakeholder groups including the Woonasquatucket River Watershed Council, Save the Bay, and the Community Boating Center. “The Woonasquatucket River Watershed Council (WRWC) has been a long-time partner with the NBC to make the Woonasquatucket cleaner,” commented Alicia Lehrer, Executive Director of the WRWC. “We share a long-term vision of making the Woonasquatucket swimmable and fishable for all. We are so excited about NBC’s real-time CSO map so we can all watch together as the river improves and know when we need to be cautious.”

“Through the efforts of DEM, NBC and many partners, we have made incredible progress in cleaning up Rhode Island’s waters,” said DEM Director Janet Coit. “Today our bays, rivers, and coastal waters are cleaner and healthier, supporting our economy and increasing shellfishing and recreational opportunities. Kudos to NBC for implementing this new alert tool and for their investments in sewer system operations, maintenance, and monitoring.“

“I’m very proud of the work the NBC team, in conjunction with DEM and our stakeholders, to bring this project to fruition,” Mesolella added. “It speaks to the high quality and reliability of the NBC’s flow monitoring program and enables more Rhode Islanders to safely experience and enjoy our rivers and bay, which is of course the goal we’re all striving for.”

The website also provides information about the NBC sewer system, the possible causes of sewer overflows, and general language about recreation and contact with urban rivers

NARRAGANSETT BAY COMMISSION NAMES PAWTUCKET’S HEON “ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATOR OF THE YEAR”

The Narragansett Bay Commission (NBC) has selected Kimberly Heon, a second-grade teacher at Agnes Little Elementary School, as its 2020-2021 NBC Watershed Explorer Environmental Educator of the Year. The NBC’s Watershed Explorers program provides hands-on water quality education to students in grades 2-5 and has won numerous national awards for excellence.

Heon, a thirty-year veteran of the Pawtucket system, has participated in the NBC’s Watershed Explorer program for over fifteen years, engaging her students in hands-on water quality science and weaving important environmental lessons into other parts of her curriculum to reinforce her students’ knowledge of key environmental science concepts.

NBC Environmental Education Coordinator Cynthia Morissette presented Heon with inaugural award during Teacher Appreciation Week. “I am extremely proud to present the first NBC Watershed Explorer Educator of the Year Award to Mrs. Heon,” Morissette said. “She is an exceptional educator who works tirelessly to create the most comprehensive educational experiences for her students. Her compassion and dedication, ensuring that all students love learning is what makes her so special.”

Over the last year, even with all the difficulties and challenges of distance learning, Heon continued to support the Watershed Explorer Program. Her students’ involvement with NBC remained strong through virtual lessons, conducting water testing, building models of a watershed, learning about macroinvertebrates, and creating informational posters about a variety of water-dependent critters.

“I am a proud graduate of Pawtucket Schools- attending Baldwin Elementary, Slater Junior High School and Shea Senior High School,” remarked Heon. The University of Rhode Island graduate says her favorite subject to teach is Science, and over the past year she and her students have virtually followed the progress of a Robin family, from nest-making to fledgling and completed a virtual dissection of  owl pellets in conjunction with the Audubon Society.

“Mrs. Heon is a shining example of what every educator should strive to be,” said Morissette as she delivered the award.

R/V Monitor on Upper Bay

Another R/V Monitor post

On Wednesday, July 7th, the crew of the R/V Monitor was out on the upper Bay collecting bacteria samples, taking Secchi Disk water clarity measurements, and conducting water column profiles using the Seabird instrument, all in an effort to document water quality improvements associated with NBC construction projects.  Real-time surface mapping of water quality parameters and Par sensor water clarity measurements were not collected this day due to a computer malfunction. Jeff captained the boat while monitoring professionals Gerard, Justin, and Steve collected the samples and data. It was a warm, humid and partly sunny day. There was no breeze early on, but one picked up as the day progressed. The featured photo is of some swans enjoying the fine summer weather.

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