JAY — A public hearing will be held 6 p.m., Tuesday, Oct. 23 in the Spruce Mountain Middle School Cafeteria regarding a proposed watershed survey for Parker and Moose Hill Ponds.

The survey is being planned for the spring of 2019 to assess the health of the
watersheds of Moose Hill Pond and Parker Pond, the two sources of water for the Livermore Falls Water District. The district sells water to neighboring Jay Village.

In watershed surveys, trained volunteers identify sources of water pollution and help their communities find ways to eliminate them.

A watershed includes all the land that drains to a lake through streams, ditches, directly over the ground’s surface, or through groundwater. This Watershed Survey is a collective effort of individual local citizens and groups, including the Livermore Falls Water District, the Spruce Mountain High School Envirothon Program, the Jay Planning Board, and others.

A public hearing on a proposed watershed survey for Moose Hill and Parker Ponds will be held 6 p.m., Oct. 23 in the Spruce Mountain Middle School cafeteria. As seen in this 2015 file photo, members of the Spruce Mountain Envirothon Team annually monitor water quality indicators such as dissolved oxygen levels, water clarity and temperature. (Livermore Falls Advertiser File photo) 

The meeting will explain the purpose of the watershed survey, gather contact
information for interested participants, and provide information on the importance of watersheds in maintaining the health of water bodies.

The meeting will start with participant sign ins. During the first half hour there will be ineractive watershed models and watershed displays to view.

At 6:30 p.m., an overview of the watershed survey process will be shared. Questions and answers will follow.

In June, Jay voters approved adding Parker Pond to a Resource Protection District within the town’s Shoreland Zoning Ordinanc, 413-376. It had been mapped as resource protection but lacked wording to meet the criteria in the ordinance.

According to an article in the Dec. 16, 2004 Sun Journal, Envirothon coach Rob Taylor began monitoring water quality in 1994 when he partnered with Doug Burdo of the Livermore Falls Water District to teach students conservation techniques with the water district’s equipment. Valuable data was gathered for the towns in the process.

Since the formation of the Spruce Mountain School District, Taylor’s envirothon team has continued to monitor water quality. Team members also volunteered during a watershed survey completed for Wilson Lake, Pease Pond and Varnum Pond.

For more information contact Rob Taylor at rtaylor@rsu73.com or Scott Greenleaf at lfwd@myfairpoint.net.

pharnden@sunmediagroup.net