Modeling the Hydrology and water quality using BASINS/HSPF for the upper Maurice River watershed, New Jersey

Abstract

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/lake-water quality degradation due to increased loads of pollutants. This paper reveals that 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, hence less recharge of the aquifers below. Hydrologic Simulation Program, Fortran (HSPF), within the USEPA's BASINS-3 software system, was the modeling program used.

Keywords:

• HSPF
• Hydrologic modeling
• water quality
• nutrient and sediment
• recharge
• interception
• infiltration
• urbanization
• watershed

Acknowledgments

This work was funded, in part, by the Camden County Soil Conservation District (CCSCD), NJ, the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, Steve Jacobus, Project Officer, and the NJ Agricultural Experiment Station. We would like to thank Craig McGee of the CCSCD, in particular, for his cooperation in providing us with meteorological data, and Sharon W. Ho Tsay of Metcalf & Eddy, Inc. for constructing the initial model.