CCMP UPDATES & PDE GOALS

STAC/EIC Meeting– Sept. 5th, 2013

Ground Rules

Agenda Time: 1.5 Hour

No comments until after the presentation!

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Origins: Delaware Estuary Program 1988 - Delaware Estuary was nominated by the three state

governors for inclusion into the National Estuary Program

PA, DE, NJ

1990 - Delaware Estuary joined the National Estuary Program Original Partners: EPA, DRBC, NJ, PA, DE,

NOAA, USACE

1996 - Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan (CCMP)

Management Division

DELEP

Partnership for the Delaware Estuary

(PDE)

Oversee Management Plan (CCMP)

Coordinate dozens of partners(Agency, NGO, Academic, Corporate)

SciencePolicyRestorationEducationFundraising

DRBC

Water Quantity & QualityMonitoringState of the EstuaryAdvisory Committees

States

Various:

Restore habitat, Monitoring, Land management, etc.

Reorganization in 2005

Where is the Management Plan Now?

PDE annually reports CCMP implementation to EPA

State of the Estuary Reports: 1996, 2002, 2008, 2012

CCMP Updates (est. 2013-2014)

EPA Requirement – Measurable Goals for the Delaware Estuary

Updating the CCMP

Category

Action Ref. Status CCMP Original Update

Climate H7 Needs updating

Protect Littoral Habitats from Sea Level Rise Threats

Refresh language to reflect current climate program & partner efforts

Badge & Mascot

E21, E22

Not relevant

Create Estuary Environmental Badge & Mascot

Delete CCMP Actions

Wetlands H4 Needs

updating

Coordinate/Enhance Wetlands Management

New wetland monitoring programs & restoration

STAC/EIC feedback from 2012 workshop Website to contain updates Roll out – Winter 2013

PDE Measurable Goals

Healthy Waters

1. Brownfields, Public Access, Ecotourism, Urban Forests, Public Participation, Estuary Engagement

Healthy Communities

1. Wetlands, Forests, Riparian Buffers, Fish & Shellfish

Healthy Habitats

Toxics, Nutrients, Dissolved Oxygen, Flow, Salinity

Progress Update

Year Date Activity

2013 Oct. 3 Steering Committee

2013 Aug 22- Sept 26

STAC/EIC – Final Review Period

2013 Sept. 5 STAC/EIC Meeting

2013 June 6 Toxics Advisory Committee Meeting

2013 Feb-July

STAC Committees/Webinars/Interviews

2013 Jan. 28 Delaware Estuary Science & Environmental Summit - Polling

2012 Oct. 11 Steering Committee (13 Goals Accepted)

2012 Oct. 1-2

STAC/EIC Workshop

2012 June-Sept

STAC Committees

Goals: Healthy Habitats

Wetlands, Forests, Riparian Buffers, Fish & Shellfish

Goals: Healthy HabitatsHealthy Habitats =

Measure – short term Measure – long term Responsible Agencies:

Assumptions/Needs

Functioning wetlands

Get a robust tidal wetland monitoring program with a regional body for coordination and consistency of tracking wetland health in place by 2020

Develop estuary-wide baseline for tidal wetland health by 2020 and goals to sustain tidal wetland health by 2022.

Identify and implement tactics to maintain high value tidal wetlands and limit acreage loss to 5% of 2006 acreage by 2025

Take aggressive action to limit net acreage loss of tidal wetlands to 15% of 2006 acres by 2040

Tidal wetland health TBD in 2022 based on short term actions

No net loss of non-tidal wetlands

PDE, EPA, States, USFWS, NOAA

- Sustain MACWA to track wetland acreage and health- Establish wetland regional body- Develop estuary-wide baseline for health by 2020

Contiguous/connected forests

Stem forest loss to less than 1% per year by 2025 Develop metrics and tracking system for loss of

buffers and connectedness by 2017

TBD in/after 2025 based on short term actions

States, USFW, USFWS, DRBC, EPA, TNC, NFS, USFS Field station, DVRPC

Work with partners and existing tools to track forests

Healthy fish and shellfish habitat

Secure dedicated funding of $1million or more per year for oyster shell planting by 2015

By 2017 define, map and inventory and by 2030 protect the following critical species habitat:o Mussel habitat (fresh and marsh)o Vegetated nursery habitat for fish & crabs,

particularly in shallow intertidal areaso Beach habitat for horseshoe crabso Critical bottom habitat for sturgeon (and

other fish) Facilitate 1-2 fish passage projects per year

Maintain or increase oyster beds at 2012 acreage with 25% increase in productivity by 2030

Increase freshwater mussel abundance and habitat by year and amount TBD based short term results

Achieve goals established in recovery plans for Atlantic and short-nosed sturgeon to improve habitat

PDE, States, EPA, USFWS, NOAA, USCG, USACE, DRBC, ASMFC

- EPA cannot participate in solicitation of funding- Subject to completion of MOU with NJ Heritage Program to id/map mussel habitat- Collaborate with partners in the areas of sturgeon recovery, fish passage, and oyster recovery

Goals: Healthy Communities

Brownfields, Public Access, Ecotourism, Urban Forests, Public Participation, Estuary

Engagement

Goals: Healthy Communities

Healthy Communities =

Measure – short term Measure – long term Responsible Agencies:

Assumptions/Needs:

Growth That Helps People and Living Resources

Assess and inventory urban waterfront brownfields (UWB) and public access opportunities by 2015

Prioritize and increase urban waterfront brownfield projects by 2017

Reclaim 50% of waterfront brownfields to include public access and living shorelines/wetlands by 2050

States, EPA, NOAA, DRBC, PWD, counties & municipalities, PDE

- UWB = brownfields with frontage on tidal waters- Standardize use of term “brownfield” to align with EPA’s definition- Connect with existing brownfield partners to inventory, prioritize, and increase brownfield projects

Restored/Protected Living Resources*

Establish goals and measures to reconnect the public to natural resources through ecotourism, urban forests, and protected lands with public access by 2015

Sustain or enhance existing public access points in bay-front communities, and increase access points (relative to 2012) in underserved urban areas to reconnect communities to the water

States, USFS, EPA, PWD, DRBC, USFW, counties & municipalities, PDE, UWFP

Connect with other organizations and partnerships working on similar goals

Public Understand-ing and Participation

PDE marketing & communications plan completed by 2015

Begin implementing marketing/branding campaign by 2018 with means to measure results

TBD between 2015 and 2018 based on PDE marketing and communications plan

PDE, States, EPA, USFWS,NPS

- Coordinate with partners to connect with other regional marketing and communication plans- Contract with marketing professions- Include assessing feasibility of using public polling to determine increase in affinity for Delaware River and Bay and its major tributaries in planning

Goals: Healthy Waters

Toxics, Nutrients, Dissolved Oxygen, Flow & Salinity

Healthy Waters =

Measure – short-term Measure – long-term Responsible Agencies:

Assumptions/Needs:

Few or no toxic impacts

Assess the need for and establish biological endpoint criteria for contaminants of concern by 2020

Continue support for established monitoring programs, and achieve expansion of toxics monitoring with biological endpoints by 2025

Prioritize urban waterfront brownfield projects by 2015

Reduce PCB concentrations in fish tissue by 25% by 2050 (relative to 2013 levels)

Notes – Establishing new biological endpoints by 2020 will help to guide long-term reduction goals.

DRBC, States, EPA, NOAA, PDE

-Inventory existing toxics monitoring programs by 2015-Conduct gap analysis of monitoring programs, funding needs-Identify relevant biological endpoints (eggs, blood, tissue, drinking water, etc.) by 2017-Total load reduction of PCBs by ~25% by 2025

Few or no nutrient impacts

Assess nutrient impacts on estuarine resources (e.g. wetlands and shellfish); establish criteria by 2015 and targets based on that assessment by 2020

Implement appropriate DO standards in Zone 2-6 for fish and other key aquatic species, with interim standards for existing use by 2015 and standards for highest attainable use by 2020..

By 2030, estuarine resource endpoints show improvement from targeted nutrient reductions.

Achieve highest attainable use for DO by 2030

DRBC, States, EPA, counties & municipalities, PDE

Following EPA’s release of ammonia criteria, further assessment into other nutrient impactsResearch nutrient impacts on shellfish (e.g. sediment ammonia and freshwater mussel erosion)Research nutrient impacts on wetlands by 2020

Flow to support drinking water and ecology

Utilize model-derived benchmarks for flow management as they become available

Establish and incorporate low flow/salinity benchmarks for natural balance and ecological highest attainable use in flow management by 2017

By 2025 achieve and maintain flow at benchmarks for drinking water and ecological highest attainable use in the face of changing watershed conditions, including climate change.

DRBC, States, PWD, ACOE, NYC, water purveyors (WRADRB). PDE

Biological inputs needed for flow model

Goals: Healthy Waters

Goals: Comments Received

Request to add The Nature Conservancy as a partner for two goals: Restored/Protected Living Resources and Public Understanding and Participation

Request to remove climate change language from the Healthy Waters goals.

Concerns raised about the “criteria setting” language in the Healthy Waters goals, especially with “establishing biological endpoint criteria by 2020” (Healthy Waters Row # 1) and “nutrient criteria by 2015” (Healthy Waters Row # 2); Request to consider replacing with language establishing metrics upon which eventual criteria would be based in the future.