title: Prioritizing subwatersheds for stormwater pollution to Wachusett Reservoir.
abstract: The Wachusett Reservoir is a primary drinking water resource for the greater Boston, Massachusetts, area. With a drainage area of 280 km2, the watershed has been gradually urbanized with increased residential, commercial, industrial, and transportation land uses. Increased impervious surface area as a result of urbanization results in increased runoff volume and pollutant loads to the reservoir. This study estimated annual stormwater pollutant mass loads in the watershed to prioritize sub-basins and to identify areas susceptible to stormwater pollution. Catchment Prioritization Index (CPI) was calculated using annual stormwater pollutant mass loads, which were further used to identify clustered hotspots through application of the Getis-Ord Gi* statistic. Validation with observed data showed higher levels of fecal coliform bacteria loading from identified hotspots. This approach will be useful to prioritize sub-basins for future (1) development of stormwater monitoring strategies and (2) best management practices (BMPs) in the watershed.
authors.affiliation: Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, 130 Natural Resources Road, Amherst, MA 01003, USA.
authors.forename: Kyung Hwa
authors.initials: KH
authors.lastname: Cho
authors.forename: Mi-Hyun
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: Park
mesh_terms: D000465:Algorithms; D040362:Geographic Information Systems; D005843:Geography; D008404:Massachusetts; D008962:Models, Theoretical; D014873:Water Pollutants; D014876:Water Pollution; D060753:Water Quality; D062066:Water Resources; D014881:Water Supply; D014887:Weather
chemical_list: D014873:Water Pollutants