NEW ENGLAND COASTAL BASINS NAWQA PROGRAM: LIAISON COMMITTEE

NEW ENGLAND COASTAL BASINS LIAISON COMMITTEE

On-going and proposed ground-water monitoring activities
for the New England Coastal Basins NAWQA Study - March, 1999

Activity	Purpose of study	Where and When Would this Occur	Specifics of Activity
Urban Land-Use Study	Determine how recent development of formerly rural areas affects the quality of shallow ground waters in terms of nutrients, VOCs, pesticides, and trace elements.	Sites have been selected in newly urbanized (post-1960s) areas located over stratified drift deposits in the Boston metropolitan area (eastern Massachusetts and south/southeastern New Hampshire - see the enclosed figure). Monitoring wells have been installed since September, 1998 at 25 sites. Well drilling will be completed in the Spring, 1999 with sampling of the wells to be completed in the Summer, 1999.	- Well sites were randomly located after screening for appropriate percent of new urban land uses within a 500 meter distance from the site. - A number of selected sites had unsuitable stratified drift deposits for a well (too shallow to bedrock, clays present) - Each well to be sampled once. Age-dating of the water will be conducted.
Bedrock Aquifer Studies	Assess variations in water-quality, with a focus on trace metals (arsenic, iron, and manganese), in 3 major lithochemical bedrock groupings and determine if the water-quality variations found in retrospective analysis can be duplicated.	The 3 major lithochemical bedrock groupings include: calcareous metasedimentary rocks, noncalcareous metasedimentary rocks, and felsic igneous rocks. Calcareous metasedimentary sampling would be completed by December, 1999; noncalcareous metasedimentary sampling completed in the Summer, 2000; and felsic igneous sampling completed by the end of 2000.	- 30 existing wells to be sampled in each bedrock group (likely a combination of domestic and public supply wells); wells to be randomly located and will reflect a variety of land uses. - Nutrients, trace metals, VOCs, and pesticides proposed to be sampled in the calcareous metasedimentary study; nutrients and trace metals proposed for the noncalcareous metasedimentary and felsic igneous studies; age-dating of water performed in all studies. - Geochemical modeling for metals (arsenic) being considered.
Stratified-Drift Aquifer Study	Assess the quality of water in the most important water-supply aquifer in the study unit and determine if water-quality in the aquifer throughout the study unit varies by land use.	Stratified drift deposits throughout the study unit will be included. Study is proposed for 2001.	- 30 existing wells to be sampled in each bedrock group (likely a combination of domestic and public supply wells); wells to be randomly located and will reflect a variety of land uses. - Nutrients, trace metals, VOC, and pesticide analyses to be done along with age-dating of water.