Results of developing a watershed
model for the Upper Maurice River watershed are presented. The model was calibrated
against observed stream-flow using local coastal plain meteorology as input,
for the ultimate purpose of estimating future development impacts on local hydrology,
stream-flow and water quality. Due to insufficient data, the model has not been
validated yet.
Typically, development impacts expected
to include are more frequent peak flows, flooding, increased channel-bed erosion,
loss of wetlands, loss of forested land and more surface runoff, while water
quality impacts expected to occur are an increase in nuisance vegetation in
lakes and streams, and stream/lakewater quality degradation due to increased
loads of pollutants. This paper reveals that there will be also another kind
of development impact. A significant decrease in recharge of the Kirkwood-Cohansey
unconfined aquifer system, lying below the watershed, will occur with further
development, because development will alter the land-use toward more urbanization
resulting in less water infiltration into the
ground, hence less recharge of the aquifers below. Hydrologic Simulation Program,
Fortran (HSPF), within the USEPA’s BASINS-3 software system (EPA, 2001),
was the modeling program used (Bicknell et al., 2001).