Starting in mid-July, the Memphremagog Watershed Association, in partnership with the City of Newport, will be breaking ground on a stormwater improvement project on Farrant Street near the Newport Marina and former Numia Medical Technology building. The stormwater improvements will prevent approximately 19.8 pounds of phosphorus and over 1,000 pounds of sediment from entering Lake Memphremagog each year. The work will include approximately 600 feet of new storm drain, multiple catch-basins, a grit separator, and a 3,500 square-foot gravel treatment wetland. The project will capture and treat stormwater runoff from over 125 acres in the Lake Road and Prouty Bay neighborhoods. The contributing drainage area includes over 25 acres of impervious surfaces, which prevent water from infiltrating into the ground and therefore increases storm runoff volume and pollutant loading to the Lake. Existing underground storm drain networks will capture this runoff, and the project will divert storm drains into newly constructed above- and below-ground treatment areas.

The design uses a combination of natural and artificial treatment systems to reduce stormwater runoff volume and pollutant loads. Buried structures will trap grit, road sand, and other large particles that enter the storm drain system. This pre-treated stormwater will then flow into a constructed gravel wetland where native plants and microbiological processes will remove nutrients, oil and grease, pathogens, and other pollutants. Treated stormwater will then infiltrate into the ground for further treatment before entering the Lake. An engineered overflow will allow large rainstorms to safely bypass pre-treated stormwater through the system while continuing to treat the ‘first flush’, which often carries with it the highest concentrations of nutrients and sediment. 

The project, in planning for 5 years, received $450,000 from Vermont’s Water Investment Division through a Design & Implementation Block Grant awarded to the Memphremagog Watershed Association through Watersheds United Vermont. The Newport Marina Condo Association donated $10,000 toward construction of the project. The Spates Family, LLC donated a permanent easement to the City of Newport to construct and maintain the project. Design and engineering were completed by Watershed Consulting Associates of South Burlington. MWA awarded a construction contract to Dale E Percy, Inc. of Stowe to implement the work.

For further information about this project contact:  Patrick Hurley – Project Manager Memphremagog Watershed Association;  phurley@mwavt.org or 781.389.4494