Federal Agencies Work Group Meeting Minutes, August 10, 2004

LAKE CHAMPLAIN BASIN PROGRAM
FEDERAL AGENCIES WORK GROUP

AUGUST 10, 2004, MEETING SUMMARY

LOCATION:
City of Burlington Wastewater Treatment Plant, Lavalley Lane, Burlington

ATTENDEES :

Erik Beck, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region I
Tom Berry, Senator Jefford's Office
Juli Beth Hoover, City of South Burlington, VT
Bill Howland, Lake Champlain Basin Program
Bob Kort, Natural Resources Conservation Service
Laura Medalie, U.S. Geological Survey
Brian Mrazik, Chair, U.S. Geological Survey
Pauline Pare, Natural Resources Conservation Service
Donna Parrish, U.S. Geological Survey
Jim Pease, VT Department of Environmental Conservation
Eric Perkins, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region I
Steve Roy, City of Burlington, VT
Dave Tilton, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
Ken Toppin, U.S. Geological Survey

SUMMARY:

Federal Agencies Work Group Report: All agencies should update their section of the “Opportunities for Federal Action” by October 15. The updated report will be discussed at the November meeting, with a target for printing by January 15. Costs of printing will be jointly funded by agencies that can contribute.

Invitation Letters for Canadian Agencies: It was agreed that our Quebec partners should have the lead in coordinating and arranging Canadian Federal participation in the Federal Work Group. The Work Group's invitational letters to Fisheries and Oceans Canada and Parks Canada will be held until we receive further guidance from the Steering Committee.

Lake Champlain Basin Program Update: The next Steering Committee meeting will be on September 13-14 at the Hampton Inn in Burlington. The meeting will focus on developing program priorities for FY-05 and developing guidance for preparing the FY-05 budget. Priorities will then be discussed at public meetings and meetings of the advisory committees. The LCBP would like to get funding to projects earlier in the year (May-June) than in the past.

Bill Howland reported on successes of the LCBP in project planning and management roles for NRCS manure management funding in the basin and that a similar role for Corps of Engineers funding has been endorsed by COE headquarters and the Steering Committee. The Steering Committee will address the focus of the RFP for COE FY-05 funding at the September meeting.

A commission has been established by Vermont, New York and Quebec to plan and coordinate a cooperative quadracentenial celebration of Champlain's arrival on the Lake in 1609. Tom Berry reported that Senator's Leahy and Jeffords have introduced legislation to create a Federal commission to formalize involvement of the National Park Service in this activity.

A Memorandum of Understanding has been developed between Vermont, New York and Quebec for the development of an annual “State of the Lake” conference and report. The conference is being targeted for the January-February 2005 timeframe, with the report to follow.

‘Featured Agency' Presentations for Future Steering Committee Meetings: Bill Howland advised that 20 minutes has been reserved at the September Steering Committee meeting for the “Featured Agency” presentation. Brian Mrazik will call Jurij Homziak to verify that he will make a presentation on the Sea Grant Coherent Area Program.

Work Group Web Page: The Work Group discussed the content of a Federal Partners Web page for Lake Champlain. It was agreed that the web page should include our Memorandum of Understanding, membership, minutes of meetings, the “Opportunities for Federal Action” and links to agency websites. Erik and Brian will get together in the next month to work out the page design assignments.

Federal Agency Updates:

Fish & Wildlife Service – F&WS is continuing to fund fisheries and stream restoration activities, including sea lamprey control in the Winooski and Saranac delta. There will be a vacancy in the Partners for Fish and Wildlife program. Dave reported on the potential invasion of alewife in Lake Champlain.

EPA - Region I is reorganizing the Office of Ecosystems Protection to move away from state teams to an organization that focuses on media groups. The potential start date under the new organization is October 1, 2004.

USGS – Donna Parrish and Terri Donovan are currently working on studies of cormorants and sea lampreys at the Vermont Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit . A third Unit position is vacant and probably will not be filled. USGS, in cooperation with the City of South Burlington, and the Vermont Agency of Transportation, has recently completed installation of a streamflow gaging station to support stormwater management programs on Potash Brook in South Burlington. Negotiations for a gage on Allen Brook, for similar purposes, are also underway between USGS, VAOT and the Town of Williston. USGS is in discussions with the Lake Champlain ECHO Center about moving the Burlington lake gage to the Center and potentially incorporating it into an educational display.

NRCS – Pauline Pare and Bob Kort reported that NRCS Farm Bill funding for projects in the Lake Champlain has been healthy, including regional equity funds, funding for the grassland program, the WHIP program, the Farmland Protection Program, the Farm Viability project. A Grazing Support project has been awarded to UVM. NRCS also is supporting urban storm-water projects with Conservation Districts in the Allen and Potash Brook watersheds. For Allen Brook, a PL-566 Urban Conservation plan may be funded.

Congressional Delegation – Tom Berry reported that at the groundbreaking ceremony for the Route 78 bridge, which was attended by Senator Jeffords, water-quality in Missisquoi Bay became a major focus of discussion.

LCBP – Bill reported that 3 people in the Program office are now working on technical project management.

Federal Agency Project Collaboration Opportunities: The Work Group discussed two areas where potential interagency coordinated planning efforts and collaborative opportunities were greatest, including the urban storm-water management programs in Chittenden County and water-quality improvement programs in Missisquoi Bay. EPA, NRCS, USGS and other Federal, state, university, and local partners are already conducting various activities in the Englesby, Potash, and Allen Brook watersheds that could conceivably have greater Federal collaboration under a coordinated plan. Federal activities could involve the funding, demonstration, and scientific evaluation of various BMPs and stream and watershed restoration activities. In the Missisquoi Bay area, the International Joint Commission is investigating the effects of causeway alteration on water quality in the Bay. The Corps of Engineers is reviewing the hydrodynamic model and EPA is providing Sec. 319 funds for the geomorphic assessment. USDA and the Fish & Wildlife Service also have substantial involvement in this area. Bill Howland encouraged the Federal Agencies to work with the LCBP Technical Advisory Committee in developing collaborative project proposals.

Following a general discussion of collaborative opportunities, 3 presentations were made on storm-water projects, with Federal involvement, in Chittenden County. Steve Roy, Burlington Department of Public Works, presented the Englesby Brook Watershed Restoration Project, where a number of best management practices have, and will be implemented to improve the hydrology and water quality of the Brook and Blanchard Beach. Funding for this effort is largely derived from the Pine St. Barge Canal superfund settlement. Funding is also being derived from EPA STAG grants, congressional earmarks, state grants, and possible Corps of Engineers Sec. 542 funding. Laura Medalie, USGS Montpelier Office, discussed the objectives, approach, and early findings of the urban BMP effectiveness study on Englesby Brook. The study is focusing on evaluating reductions in phosphorous and sediment loading resulting from the storm-water improvements in the basin. Four years of pre-BMP data have now been collected. Erik Beck, EPA Region I, discussed Federal activities in the Potash Brook basin and the restoration plan being implemented by the City of South Burlington. The project is being funded from a $1.5 million EPA National Decentralized Water Resource Demonstration Grant. Partners include the City, UVM, the Champlain Water District NRCS (through the Winnooski Conservation District), the Corps of Engineers (through Sec. 206 and 542), the Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation, LCBP and USDA (grant to UVM).

During the afternoon, field trips were lead by Laura Medalie, Juli Beth Hoover, and Jim Pease to sites on Englesby, Potash, and Bartlett Brooks to observe stormwater management activities and water-quality monitoring stations.

Next Meeting: Our next meeting will be on Tuesday November 9 th at 1:00 PM at the NRCS Office in Colchester.