Reducing Nitrogen in Groundwater Webinar
Excess nutrients are a widespread cause of water quality degradation and adverse outcomes for people and ecosystems throughout the United States. Mitigating nutrient pollution can be a complex challenge due to the diffuse nature of sources and regulatory authorities, physical and temporal distance between sources and receptors, and the performance, availability, and social acceptability of interventions. In Cape Cod, Massachusetts, stakeholders are working within this context on a range of traditional and alternative approaches to reduce nitrogen loading to impaired estuaries. Here the nitrogen source is primarily onsite wastewater treatment systems. Enhanced septic systems and wetland restoration are two biogeochemically related approaches for reducing nitrogen loads to sensitive water bodies. They have the potential to?better denitrify effluent prior to subsurface discharge or intercept legacy pollution in groundwater. The success of either approach with respect to this objective, however, depends on design and implementation.
This webinar discussed efforts among EPA and a group of multi-institutional and multi-sectoral partners to make advancements in denitrifying septic system technologies and wetland restoration of cranberry bogs to help stem pervasive groundwater pollution.
Presenter:?Laura Erban, Ph.D. Laura is a hydrogeologist with EPA-ORD’s Center for Environmental Measurement and Modeling, Atlantic Coastal Environmental Sciences Division. Broadly trained in earth system science, her research has focused on sustainable use of water resources given challenges such as geogenic arsenic in aquifers, pumping-induced land subsidence, and excess nutrients from a range of human activities. She works collaboratively with a range of local, state, federal, Tribal, and non-governmental partners to reduce legacy and recurring groundwater pollution. Laura earned her Ph.D. and M.S. degrees from Stanford University, and a B.S. from the University of Virginia.