Imperiled Ecosystems in a Shifting Climate
2016 Atlantic White Cedar Symposium
May 24-26, 2016

Hotel 1620, 180 Water St., Plymouth, MA

Effects of Municipal Pumping adjacent to an Atlantic White Cedar Swamp

Abstract
This paper will document 15 years of experience monitoring and regulating two municipal water supply well complexes in and adjacent to the Witch Pond Atlantic white cedar [Chamaecyparis thyoides] swamp in southeast Massachusetts.  The effects of pumping on ground water hydrology and AWC vegetation are described, as are regulatory measures taken to limit the impacts of pumping.  Issues specific to monitoring and impact assessment in the AWC environment are addressed, and recommendations are offered based on this experience.

Keywords: pumping, wetlands, vegetation, groundwater, hydrology, peat.

Tim Simmons, Restoration Ecologist MA Department of Fish and Game, will present the poster that was originally submitted by Linda Hutchins who, at the time of submission, was with the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation, Office of Water Resources in Boston, MA.