Narrow River Watershed Plan

In 2023, The Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management released the final version of the Narrow River Watershed Plan.

Click here to see the full Narrow River Watershed Plan.

Here are excerpts from the Executive Summary:

Project Overview
Introduction

The Narrow River Watershed has long been recognized as a special place. The scenic beauty of the Narrow River (aka the Pettaquamscutt Estuary), the ecological resources of the estuary and wetlands, the historic and cultural resources along the rivers, and the opportunities for water-based recreation, including fishing, shellfishing, and swimming in the watershed are important values to the local communities and to the State of Rhode Island. In some areas of the watershed, these water resources (both groundwater and surface water) are of excellent quality. However, in other areas, waterbodies are not meeting their designated water quality goals.

Purpose of Plan

This plan is for the purpose of guiding actions to protect and restore the quality of the water resources and aquatic habitats in the Narrow River watershed. A description of the water resource conditions, and the pollutants and other stressors and threats to water resources are discussed, along with a history of key actions that have been taken to protect and improve the water resources in the watershed. Recommended actions and responsible parties are presented in Table 9 later in this report, while high priority recommended actions are summarized in this executive summary

Watershed Plan Goals

Goals for the Narrow River Watershed Plan are to:

1. Improve water quality of the Narrow River (including its tributaries) to meet the shellfishing criteria of the Water Quality Regulations, which is currently not met due to bacteria
   (pathogens) sources in the watershed. Strive to have this impairment delisted on the State’s List of Impaired Waterbodies.
2. Protect and maintain good water quality of drinking water supplies of the Pettaquamscutt Aquifer.
3. Improve water quality in the Narrow River (including its tributaries) for fish and wildlife habitat, which is currently threatened by excess nitrogen.
4. Improve water quality of the Silver Spring Lake and the Silver Lake, which are currently impaired for fish and wildlife habitat due to excess phosphorus.
5. Reduce and control Aquatic Invasive Species (AIS) in the Silver Spring Lake and Carr Pond, which has impaired these waterbodies for fish and wildlife habitat, and interferes with their aesthetic enjoyment and recreational uses.
6. Protect and restore wetlands and their buffers throughout the watershed for water quality protection, fish and wildlife habitat, and as a resiliency strategy for flooding, sea level rise, and climate change impacts.
7. Restore stream connectivity, where possible, to improve fish and wildlife habitat in the watershed.
8. Protect swimming and fishing recreational opportunities.