Maine Department of Marine Resources letter to Orland Dam Committee

from a letter to the Orland Dam Committee from Claire Enterline, Maine Department of Marine Resources, 2013

RE: Orland Village Dam Alternatives Feasibility Study

To the members of the Orland Dam Committee:

The Maine Dept. of Marine Resouces (DMR) would like to commend the Committee for its efforts to identify alternatives to the current management of the Orland Village Dam, and offer comments and DMR data that may be helpful to the Committee moving forward.

DMR has documented Atlantic salmon, alewife, blueback herring, and American eel using habitat above the Orland Village Dam. Data from the University of Maine (G. Zydlewski, personal communication), and informal reports from town residents indicate that shortnose and Atlantic sturgeon are making use of the area below the dam and may be present above the dam on occasion. Additionally, town residents have informally noted that Atlantic gray seals are also seen below the dam and may be present above the dam on occasion. Of these species, Atlantic salmon, shortnose sturgeon, and Atlantic gray seals are currently listed as “Endangered” under the Endangered Species Act (ESA), Atlantic sturgeon are listed at “Threatened”, and alewife, blueback herring, and American eel are currently being considered for listing under the ESA. Because of the status of these species, the ability of each to move efficiently and without harm between marine, estuary, and spawning locations is an important concern.

The June 2013 report, “Orland Village Dam Alternatives Feasibility Study”, prepared for the Committee by Stantec Consulting describes the potential impacts of four different alternatives on various resources including fisheries resources. The report indicates that two options (no action, dam and fishway rehabilitation) would have negligible beneficial impacts on the fisheries resource, and major adverse impacts on the fisheries resource. The DMR agrees with these conclusions. Current fish passage facilities in the form of two Alaskan steeppass sections that are not accessible for fish passage at all tides are inefficiently passing Atlantic salmon and river herring, and the American eel, specifically during the elver (juvenile) stage, do not pass Alaskan steeppass sections efficiently. Further, these structures are not large enough to pass other species that are in the Orland River (shortnose and Atlantic sturgeon, Atlantic gray seal). While these larger species may get above the dam only on the highest high tides, they will not be able to descend through the fishway or over the dam without injury. As the report indicates, the Maine Geologic Survey (MGS) for the Maine Coastal Program indicate that the State of Maine is planning for a predicted 2-ft rise in sea level over the next 100 years, which would increase the frequency of occurrences of the tide over topping the dam, and possibly also increase the number of Endangered marine species stranded behind the dam.

The report indicates that the third option, dam and fishway modification, would result in moderate beneficial and adverse impacts to fisheries resources. Again, DMR agrees with this conclusion. Fishway modification that would increase the passage efficiency and capacity would be moderately beneficial for river herring and Atlantic salmon, but as the report states there are “inherent limitations of technical fishpasses” and 100% upstream and downstream passage efficiency would likely not be achieved. Further, fishway modifications would not provide any benefit to the larger marine species that are also present in the area. Additionally, if the fishway modifications suggested in the report (Denil-style fishway) are used, passage for the elver stage of American eel would need to be built separately as Denil-style fishways do not effectively pass elvers (the estimated cost associated with the option does not include additional elver passage construction/maintenance).

The report indicates that the fourth option, dam removal, would result in major beneficial and minor adverse impacts to fisheries resources. The DMR again agrees with the conclusion that there would be major beneficial impacts to the fisheries resources. This alternative would provide unobstructed access to the species currently found within the area, and would likely result in increased spawning habitat for blueback herring, American shad, rainbow smelt, and Atlantic tomcod, all which spawn within freshwater mainstem habitat where water is quick moving. Improving the populations of these species within this river stretch could lead to increased recreational fishing opportunities, especially for American shad and rainbow smelt which support popular recreational fishing in other areas of the state.

The report also indicates that this option would have “moderate beneficial and moderate adverse impacts to river herring harvesting facilities located immediately downstream from the Orland Village Dam. The moderate beneficial impact … based on the potential for increased alewife production and associated increased revenue for facilities operation and maintenance. [The] adverse intensity level … based on the assumption that the existing facility could still be used at low tide. A higher adverse intensity level would be appropriate if it was determined that alewife harvesting operations would need to be moved upstream to the vicinity of the Alamoosook Lake Dam.” The DMR recommends that the Orland Dam Committee consider these statement together with other information regarding the harvest and its current location, presented below.

The DMR provides the following information about the river herring harvest for the Orland Dam Committee to consider in addition to the report prepared by Stantec Consulting, and with the hope of providing insight into DMR’s management of the river herring fishery as well as biological considerations.

...All commercial river herring harvests in Maine are approved jointly by the DMR and the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC), a multi-state group that collaboratively forms management decisions about fisheries for species that cross state boundaries, based on sustainability criteria that were adopted in 2009. Fisheries that were allowed to remain open had to meet the following criteria: the run could not be stocked with river herring from an outside source, average 20-year escapement during closed days had to exceed 35 fish per acre of spawning habitat, and the spawning population had to be considered biologically stable (as evidenced by age distribution and repeat spawning rates). The Orland fishery was approved to remain open because the escapement target (35 fish/acre) was based only on the acreage of Alamoosook Lake, not all available habitat, based on the assumption that other available habitat was not productive for alewives because of the high number of non-native predator gamefish species (largemouth bass, chain pickerel). If all available habitat were to be considered (4968 acres), the watershed could potentially support 1,167,385 alewives without a harvest (based on a production capacity of 235 fish/acre), and with a harvest would require escapement of 173,865 alewives (35 fish/acre). If the harvest location were to move to a location targeting fewer spawning lakes, only the acreage of the spawning lakes above that new location would be considered when calculating the target escapement.

The commercial harvest is currently encountering immature blueback herring and alewife (age 1-2). The harvest of immature river herring does not meet the sustainability standards identified by the DMR and the ASMFC because the origin of these fish cannot be determined and because the fish have not yet been able to spawn. Blueback herring  and alewife reach maturation at sometimes 3-years-old, but more typically 4-years old. At this point, the fish ascend freshwater rivers to spawn, and then return to coastal waters. Because the adult spawning fish return to the same location every year, we are able to define these adult spawning fish as unique “stocks” according to their spawning locations, and track the status of that population stock over time.  It is not possible at this time, however, to determine the “birth place” of immature fish. Immature fish, under the age of 3 or 4-years-old, from the entire Atlantic Coast, from Florida to Labrador, likely school together spending winters off of Cape Hatteras, NC, and migrating upwards along the coast annually as part of feeding. Because of these migration patterns, the immature fish in near-shore coastal Maine likely belong to a “mixed stock” that is not managed by Maine, but originated from multiple states, each returning to the original spawning location once they are mature. Because there are serious river herring population declines to the south, Maine has entered into agreement with all other Atlantic states to not allow fisheries to target these immature fish of unknown origin. While some bycatch of immature fish may occur, continued catches of immature will become a problem. Tables showing the age distribution at the Orland harvest location by year and compared to other harvest locations are attached.

The term “repeat spawning rate” is used to describe the number of alewives or blueback herring that have spawned in one or more previous years. Unlike some anadromous species, both alewife and blueback herring typically do not die after spawning, but return to the ocean and will return to the same location annually. The migration into freshwater for spawning leaves a mark on the fish’s scales that we use to identify how many times each fish spawned in years prior. A run with a high repeat spawning rate indicates that many fish are successfully spawning in multiple years, so have high survival and is likely a more stable run over time. Tables attached to this letter show the repeat spawning rates for the current harvest location, for alewives taken from the fishway leading into Toddy Pond, and for all other harvest locations. Combining 2008-2012, the current harvest location has, on average, a lower repeat spawning rate than the fish taken from the Toddy Pond fishway. Further, the Toddy Pond fishway samples were composed entirely of alewife, while both alewife and blueback herring are caught at the current harvest site.

for information about alewives and other migratory fish in the Orland-Narramissic river system, contact Oliver Cox at Maine Department of Marine Resources, 207.941.4487.

How dam removal would benefit the ecology of the Orland/Narramissic River

by Matthew Bernier, Civil Engineer/Fisheries Habitat Restoration Specialist, NOAA Restoration Center

A removal of the Orland Village dam would have numerous ecological benefits for species and habitats of interest to NOAA Fisheries. Historically, before the presence of a dam at the site, tidal flow extended at least two miles farther upstream into the Narramissic River, creating a complex mosaic of tidal reversing falls and salt marshes teeming with fish species that are still found in the lower Penobscot River today, including alewife and blueback herring, Atlantic salmon, American eel, rainbow smelt, striped bass and possibly shortnose sturgeon.

Benefits of a dam removal for some species, such as rainbow smelt, could be profound. In the spring, adult smelt migrate upstream from saltwater to freshwater riffles above the head of tide for spawning. Rainbow smelt are relatively poor swimmers and are not able to ascend steep, narrow fish ladders such as exist at the Orland Village dam. Without a dam, rainbow smelt would likely move upstream to spawning areas below Alamoosook Lake. Obviously, successful reproduction is critical for fish like rainbow smelt to sustain their populations. Rainbow smelt, being relatively small, are fairly low on the food chain and therefore provide nutritious forage for lots of fish and wildlife.

While the existing fish ladders do pass some species, notably alewife, the passage is thought to be severely compromised. At lower tide levels, the fish ladders are completely out of the water, leaving them inaccessible to upstream migrating fish.

 

At higher tide levels, fish may be delayed as they search for the narrow entrances to the fish ladders, or experience trauma as they try to crowd into passages that are considered too small for the potential size of the alewife run on the Orland River, which could be over one million adult alewives attempting to migrate to upstream spawning habitat. The compromised passage means that fewer fish can move upstream, which means fewer fish spawning and fewer alewives migrating back to the Gulf of Maine. For a species like alewife, improved passage through dam removal would likely have the beneficial effect of boosting the run size, resulting in more fish in the Orland River, lower Penobscot River and the Gulf of Maine.

Alewives are also thought to be impacted by the lack of dedicated downstream passage at the Orland Village dam. After spawning in upstream lakes, many adult alewives will try to migrate back to the Gulf of Maine, returning to the Orland River in subsequent years to spawn again. Successful downstream passage for adults requires deep channels for outmigration that don’t exist at the Orland Village Dam. Outmigrating juvenile alewives also experience well-documented problems with downstream passage, when the dam acts as a strainer and results in large kills of fish on the timber spillway.

 

If able to migrate successfully, juvenile alewives would migrate back to Penobscot Bay in abundance and provide forage for groundfish such as cod, haddock and pollock. Similar to the improvements in upstream passage, removal of the Orland Village dam would improve downstream passage for alewives and increase the distribution and numbers of prey fish in the Gulf of Maine.

The restoration of historic salt marsh habitat upstream of the Orland Village dam is likely to have beneficial ecological impacts as well. Currently the impoundment upstream of the dam is relatively shallow, warm and poorly oxygenated in some areas, an artificial habitat that is favored by non-native species such as smallmouth bass and chain pickerel. A dam removal would restore brackish tidal flow to nearly two miles of river, with large freshwater marshes reverting to salt marshes that would teem with small forage fish such as mummichog. With small fish come bigger fish, such as striped bass, and marine mammals, such as harbor seals, that might swim in and out with the tide in a reconnected Orland River.

Mercury in the Penobscot and Orland Rivers

In early November 2015, a team of scientists sampled sediment in the Narramissic River. Their goal was to measure mercury to see whether or not it had been carried by tidal waters over the Orland Dam. Mercury is a toxic element present in high concentrations in the lower Penobscot Riverand tidal tributaries. People are exposed to mercury primarily through eating contaminated fish.

Mercury in Maine

Mercury is a concern throughout Maine, and statewide fish consumption advisories recommend limits on eating fish from inland and coastal waters. Mercury comes from Midwestern coal-burning power plants and other industrial sources, and travels east on prevailing winds. Mercury eventually falls to the landscape with rain and snow and washes into lakes, wetlands, and rivers, where it is processed by aquatic bacteria in the sediment and magnifies up the food chain into fish.

Mercury in the Penobscot and Orland watersheds

The lower Penobscot River is contaminated by an additional, local source of mercury: the former HoltraChem chemical factory in Orrington, which operated from 1967 until 2000. Over this period of time, the plant discharged (legally and illegally) 6 to 12 tons of mercury to the Penobscot River. Mercury pollution in the Penobscot is the subject of major court-ordered studies to assess the contamination and come up with a clean-up plan. To date, the studies have found high concentrations of mercury in parts of the Penobscot estuary where sediment naturally accumulates, including the mudflats from Orrington south to Fort Point, Mendall Marsh in Frankfort, the East Channel of the Penobscot, and the Orland River.

HoltraChem mercury is not just in the river. A unique metal that is liquid at room temperature, mercury readily evaporates to the air. In contrast to air pollution that comes from a smokestack, mercury emissions are diffuse and difficult to measure. In the 1990s, the Maine Department of Environmental Protection sampled lakes in the area downwind (east) of the HoltraChem factory  and found concentrations of mercury in fish (perch) and lake sediments to be higher than lakes outside of the area. Swetts Pond, Fields Pond, Brewer Lake, Mud Pond, Long Pond, Thurston Pond, and Williams Pond were predicted to receive the most mercury deposited from the air; both Alamoosook and Toddy ponds were in the range of HoltraChem's air emissions (Source: Courtemanch, D.L., J. Hopeck, and K. Ostrowski. 1997. Mercury contamination in lakes downwind of HoltraChem Manufacturing Co., Appendix 5 in Initial Evaluation & Recommendations on Mercury in Maine, Appendix A to the Land & Water Resources Council 1997 Annual Report, Submitted to the Joint Standing Committee on Natural Resources, January 28, 1998).

Sampling for Mercury in Orland

In the 2015 study, the Orland Dam Committee, NOAA, and The Nature Conservancy sought to address the following questions:

• What are the concentrations of mercury in the Narramissic River above the Orland Village Dam?
  
• Is the dam preventing mercury from spreading, or, because the river overtops the dam during monthly high tides, has contaminated sediment already entered the Narramissic?

The scientists collected surface sediment from the river bed, a total of 36 samples from 12 sites, six sites along the channel of the Narramissic River from the Orland Dam upstream to the Upper Falls Road Bridge, and three sites in each of the wetlands at Duck Cove and Wight’s Brook.

They found mercury concentrations greater than regional background levels in the surface sediments of the Narramissic River. Mercury concentrations were greatest directly upstream of the Orland Dam (305 nanogram per gram dry weight), and decreased to a low of 69 ng/g dw near the Upper Falls Road Bridge. (Compared to below the dam, where concentrations in the surface sediment average 1,000 ng/g dw and range from 375 ng/g dw to over 1,800 ng/g dw).

According to the report, “In the river, the decline in mercury concentrations with distance from the dam was not altered by variations in total organic carbon or sediment grain size. This finding supports the hypothesis that the mercury in the surface sediments of the Narramissic River came from contaminated sediments present in the Orland River that moved over or through the Orland Dam, carried by storm surges or tidal flows, and into the Narramissic River. If tidal flows are restored to the Narramissic it is likely that some portion of the toxic sediments currently in the Orland River will be carried by incoming tides into the Narramissic. More information is needed on the range of the tidal influence predicted for the Narramissic River before the geographic extent and the change in mercury concentrations can be estimated.”

At the concentrations found in the surface sediments of the Narramissic, toxicity to aquatic life is not expected, but is possible at the site closest to the Orland Dam. Mercury in the Penobscot and Orland rivers does not pose a threat to people who are boating, swimming, or using the water for household purposes. The mercury is a concern for people who eat contaminated fish, shellfish, or waterfowl from the lower Penobscot River region; for birds and mammals that eat fish, such as osprey, eagles, otter and mink; and marsh songbirds that eat insects with high mercury concentrations.

Read the full report (PDF)

Ellsworth American story

Voters to decide fate of Orland Village Dam

 

May 21, 2016 by Taylor Bigler

Residents will decide the fate of the Orland Village Dam during a vote ahead of the annual Town Meeting.

Residents will vote on whether to keep and maintain the dam or work to have it removed.

The vote will be done by secret ballot from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. at the Orland Community Center on Friday, June 14, and the result will be announced at Town Meeting the following day.

In the 1930’s, the Maine Seaboard Paper Co. built the dam to create a water supply for its Bucksport mill, but the Narramissic River was never used for that purpose.

Verso Paper owned the dam until 2010, when it turned ownership over to the town.

Since then, the Orland Dam Committee has raised funds for several rounds of feasibility studies by the engineering firm Stantec, the National Oceanic and Atmosphere Administration (NOAA), The Nature Conservancy and Maine Sea Grant to determine feasible options for what to do with the dam.

Those studies determined that the two most reasonable options are either for the town to pay for annual dam maintenance and future repairs or to work toward removing the dam completely.
Annual dam and fish run maintenance costs $7,000 in addition to future repairs. The dam has a life expectancy of about 30 years and it has been 17 since its last repair.

“The liability of keeping it is the cost of it in the future,” said committee Chairman John Barlow. “There could be major expenditures in the future.”

If the dam remains in place, the town would also be responsible for complying with federal fisheries regulations because of the existence of several species, including two threatened species.

The cost of dam removal is $500,000. The NOAA Fisheries Service is ready to help fund the removal because the river is seen as an environmental asset.

“Those funds are available right now should they decide to vote on removal,” Barlow said.
If voters do not decide to remove the dam this year, but change their minds in the future, the town would have to come up with that money itself.

“They aren’t going to just hold on to the money for us,” Barlow said.

The watershed is considered by NOAA to have the potential for restoration of several native fish habitats for species such as alewives and rainbow smelt among others. Matt Bernier, civil engineer and fisheries habitat restoration specialist with NOAA, said that since the fish ladder is only accessible at high tide, fewer fish are able to migrate upstream.

The Narramissic River once had the third-highest alewife population in the state, but the fishery has been in decline since alewives have difficulty getting through the narrow passage.

“There are problems with the downstream passage as well for alewives, without having the downstream passage at the site,” Bernier said. According to NOAA, if the dam were removed, several other fish species and possibly marine mammals might be able to swim in and out with the tide.

While dam removal has its ecological and financial benefits, it also has its disadvantages.

“Aesthetics are the main thing,” Barlow said. “What will it look like? We have seen some options, but there are still some unknowns.”

Fire protection is also a concern if the dam is removed.

Orland Fire Chief Bobby Conary is wary of dam removal, saying it will be difficult for firefighters to quickly access a water source should a fire break out in that part of the village.

“The bottom line is that I would hate to lose it because it is such a great water source right there,” he said. “It’s a historical part of town and it is probably one of the most congested areas we have.”
Conary said that should the town vote on dam removal, the department would fight fires the way it does in other areas of town that are not close to water sources.

“We will do whatever it takes to do fire suppression, whether the dam is there or not,” he said.

According to Barlow, the half-million dollar price tag for dam removal also includes funding for securing water for firefighting and determining how many homeowners’ wells would be susceptible to salt water intrusion.

“We don’t think many wells would be affected,” Barlow said.

The river’s current also will become much faster and work would need to be done on the two nearby bridges that would see saltwater intrusion.

Researchers also are studying the presence of a mercury hotspot beneath the dam.

Even if voters decide on removal, nothing will happen to the dam overnight. Removal would require permits and approval from groups ranging from historical to environmental and archaeological.

“It will be a number of years if it is ever removed,” Barlow said.

There will be an Orland Village Dam forum at 6 p.m. on June 1 at the Orland Community Center, where residents will have the opportunity to speak with Bernier and a Stantec engineer about the options for the dam.

Read the story in The Ellsworth American.

How can people learn more about the town's options?

Orland residents will have several opportunities to learn more about their options before the vote on June 14.

On Sunday, May 22, the Orland Village Dam, alewife harvesting operation and fish ladder will be open to the public at 2 p.m., as part of World Fish Migration Day celebrations.

At a public forum on Wednesday, June 1, at 6 p.m. at the Orland Community Center, speakers will present the results of numerous studies done on the dam and Narramissic River since 2011, talk about fish and wildlife changes and visual changes to expect with dam removal, and discuss the funding being offered to the town to remove the dam, and why.

For more information on the Orland Village Dam and upcoming programs, please contact Dam Committee Chair John Barlow at 469-3749. This website will be updated frequently between now and June 14.

What will the Narramissic look like without the dam?

Aerial view of the Orland Village Dam and Narramissic River. Photo by J. Royte

Removal of the dam would restore tidal conditions in the Narramissic River. (The existing dams at Alamoosook Lake and Toddy Pond will remain in place as part of the current proposed project.) Projections of what the river would look like without the dam are based on historical documents, environmental assessments, and engineering studies.

Engineering assessments included borings, water quality studies, and mapping the river bed, to evaluate potential conditions after dam removal. The available information suggests that the river will be constantly in motion, fluctuating with the tide, as a lot of water moves back and forth twice a day. Restoration of tidal conditions will substantially increase flow in the Narramissic River, with daily tidal flows exceeding 500 cubic feet per second (compared to 20 cfs now).

Some sediment and rubble has accumulated between the dam and the Castine Road Bridge; this material would wash downstream, revealing the "Lower Falls"--an area of rapids and tidal or reversing falls. Similar tidal or reversing falls can be found in Damariscotta, Blue Hill, and the Bagaduce River. There is not a lot of sediment upstream from the Castine Road Bridge because the dam at the Upper Falls (Alamoosook Lake) prevents downstream sediment transport.

Downstream of these rapids, the river would look mostly the same, although water quality (dissolved oxygen levels, temperature, etc.) will likely improve with restored tidal exchange.

Above the rapids, the water level in the village area will change depending on the tide. At high tide, the area will look almost the same, with a drop of about one foot (very similar to when the dam gates are open).

At low tide, the water level will be five feet lower than present, leaving a channel with a depth of seven feet in the middle of the river between the Castine Road and US Route 1 bridges. It will still look like a river at low tide, with rapids at the dam site (accentuated by the constriction of the Castine Road Bridge) and more rapids upstream.

Vegetation along the sides of the channel will change from freshwater plants to salt water plants, with salt marsh possibly developing in the wetlands at Duck Cove and up Whites Brook (consultants noted that the shape of the brook channel looks like a tidal stream, and peat is present beneath the surface soil layer, indicating that there was originally salt marsh in these areas). Especially in the narrower reaches, conditions will be similar to those below the dam, where coarse substrate (cobble, boulder) will be watered and dewatered with the tides but without a lot of vegetation due to velocities. Large expanses of mudflats are not predicted.

Projection of water levels (elevation at high tide in light and dark blue and low tide in light blue) without the dam, from Stantec consultants.

The natural upper limit of the tide appears to be Upper Falls, two miles upstream from the Orland Village Dam.

Consultants with Stantec who have been studying the river over the last several years created the following simulated images of the river at high and low tide.

Looking upstream from Narramissic Drive, high tide (simulation by Stantec)

Looking upstream from Narramissic Drive, low tide (simulation by Stantec)

Looking west from Lower Falls Road, high tide (simulation by Stantec)

Looking west from Lower Falls Road, low tide (simulation by Stantec)

Looking upstream from dam site toward Castine Road Bridge, high tide (simulation by Stantec)

Looking upstream from dam site toward Castine Road Bridge, low tide (simulation by Stantec)

Letter to the Editor: Orland Dam should stay

published in the Bangor Daily News

May 12, 2016 

Until the Orland Dam Committee can guarantee it can protect domestic wells and the Narramissic River from mercury and saline contamination and secure a new fresh water source to fight fires, the dam must stay. Luckily, it’s in good condition.

The dam committee should stop wasting town dollars on the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s agenda. If it has to study something, how about looking into raising the dam to hold back rising tides and getting the mercury out of the Penobscot River? Poison fish won’t do anyone any good.

In the meantime, the question shouldn’t even be on the June 14 town ballot.

Sharon Thompson
Orland