Hydrology + Water Quality
NAI staff have completed monitoring and reporting on over 30 different Watershed Assessments (WA), Watershed Protection Plans (WPP), and WPP implementation projects to restore, protect, or maintain water quality and biological integrity of streams throughout the state of Georgia.
The NAI WA and WPP project team have worked extensively throughout Georgia, combine for over 75 years of WA and WPP experience, and have assessed water quality and/or biological conditions at 181 monitoring stations in watersheds spanning 1,045 square miles across Georgia.
The development and implementation of a Watershed Assessment (WA) and Watershed Protection Plan (WPP) are required to satisfy the conditions of a wastewater facility’s National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit. The results of the WA establish baseline conditions of streams in the facility’s service area and are used by the NAI project team to develop the WPP. The watershed protection strategies developed by NAI in the WPP are adopted and implemented by permit holders to address water quality concerns identified during the WA, and minimize or eliminate the effects future growth and development in the wastewater facility’s service area.
Services Provided
NAI are familiar with the Standard Operating Procedures, guidance documents, and protocols, and have a strong relationship with Georgia Environmental Protection Division (GAEPD) regulators that oversee the WA and WPP program. Services included:
- WA of physicochemical, analytical, and bacteriological water quality and biological monitoring by NAI in accordance with an approved Watershed Monitoring Plan.
- Development of a WPP by NAI based on the results of the WA that included:
- Best management practices (BMPs) that are required to be implemented by the permit holder; and
- A long-term monitoring plan to track the effectiveness of the BMPs and determine areas where additional BMPs are needed.
- WPP monitoring and implementation by NAI that included:
- Dry weather, wet weather, and bacteria water quality monitoring conducted on an annual basis;
- Biological monitoring (fish and macroinvertebrate community assessments) that are conducted two years out of every five-year period; and
- Development and submission of an annual progress report.
- The annual progress report developed by NAI included:
- A summary of implemented BMPs;
- Results of current water quality and/or biological monitoring trends; and
- Proposed and approved changes to the WPP.
NAI personnel sampling a stream (image 1/4)
A turbid stream associated with a construction site. (image 2/4)
Identifying macroinvertebrates from stream sediment samples using an optical microscope (image 3/4)
A graphic showing statewide distribution of watershed assessments completed by Nutter and Associates (image 4/4)
