2025 MSWC Session I – Sustainable water resources for Maine agriculture and rural water use – Senator George J. Mitchell Center for Sustainability Solutions

Session B – flood evaluation and recovery

Afternoon session
Moderators are displayed in fat printed font.

Co-chairman session:
Rachel Schattman, School of Food and Agriculture, Umaine, [email protected]
Sarah Murphy, New England Water Science Center, US Geological Survey, [email protected] (USGS)
Joe Ayotte, New England Water Science Center, US Geological Survey, [email protected] (USGS)

Changes to the hydrological system due to climate change increasingly influence the way people interact with the environment, and in particular how the agricultural community will ensure that the plants are given the water they need to be viable. In the rural environment there is also a simultaneous connection between agricultural water needs and the needs of domestic water supply. In this session we invite lectures that appeal to every aspect of evaluation, obtaining and using water resources in agriculture in Maine. Our goal is to present new ideas and research on a wide range of topics in the availability and security of the country and the domestic water. Interesting topics include, without restricting water sources for irrigation and agricultural/domestic care, changes in water availability after changing climate and how this can vary spatially and time, method development for irrigation to provide water more on plants, in order to do more Plants to deliver efficiently in time and volume, obstacles to water availability and safety in connection with borehole constructions and (or) geohydrological characteristics.

Session schedule

Afternoon session

1:30 p.m. – 1:50 p.m.
Welcome and overview

Rachel SchattmanSchool of Food & Agriculture, Umaine, [email protected]
Joe AyotteNew England Water Science Center, USGS, [email protected] (USGS)

1:50 p.m. – 2.10 p.m.
Use of a floor water compensation model

Ryan GordonMaine Geological Survey, Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry, [email protected]

Models for the harvest water requirement are distributed, process -based models of the floor water and their use by plants that use climatic data on precipitation and evapoctranspiration as well as physical parameters with regard to soil properties and plant -specific water consumption. For important harvesting types in Maine, a model of the USGS model (SWB) with the FAO 56 evapotranspiration method for estimating the irrigation water requirements was developed in three years in the 2010s.

The SWB model uses grid input from NRCS bödendenden, the USDA Cropland Data Layer and Dayymet Daily Meteorological Data. The model was run in a daily time step for the years 2012-2013 and 2015-2017. The direct output of the model consists of the needs of the grids irrigation water requirements in customs in customs. This is the harvest water requirement that is not filled by precipitation. The model was calibrated by comparing the estimated irrigation requirement according to important harvesting types with the actual reported irrigation depths from a water consumption survey among farmers for 2016. Evapo transiration, plant stress, root zone depths and irrigation practices.

The calibrated model was used to estimate the irrigation water issue volume in Maine for 2013, 2016 and 2017 by multiplying the modeled irrigation requirement by estimates the irrigated cultivation area for important harvest. This calibrated model could be used for later years or implemented for use with climate protection projections or hypothetical drought scenarios.

2:10 p.m. – 2:30 p.m.
Diversification of water sources on the Hart Farm

Andrew TootothackerCo -owner/operator of Hart Farm, [email protected]

A first generation farm like ours has many infrastructural hurdles to overcome in order to become into operation. The development and improvement of reliable water sources was a priority when our business was started and is still an area for which we budget annual improvements. We have made many investments since 2020 to improve a borehole borehole. Fortunately for our business, the risk of installing the NSW has paid out and now offers us a reliable water source with a high volume in a cheap place.

We appreciate the diversification of the water sources of our farm as the main improvement factor for our general resilience in a newly susceptible climate for longer drought and extreme weather events. Since our water sources react differently to drought, we can maintain the consistency with our irrigation needs and stabilize our production -based business. The movement of water through our various soils ultimately provides information on the continuous development of our water systems. The significant development and logging over our farm has influenced the 110 hectare water sheath, which flows through our property and make the decisions that we make even more critical for the corpses under our property. These unique factors lead us to further diversify our hydrological system, whereby strategically placed holding ponds can be charged to charge our NSW and reduce the erosion by slowing down the total water flow in critical areas.

3:00 p.m. – 3:20 p.m.
Quantification of the hydrological effects of the changing climatic conditions on agricultural water resources in Neuengland using the precipitation outflow modeling system

Sarah Y. MurphyUs geological survey, Augusta, me, [email protected]
Courtney Hammond Wagner, USDA Agriculture Research Service, Burlington, VT
Rachel Schattman, School of Food and Agriculture at the University of Maine, Orono, I
Hannah Peplinski, USDA Agriculture Research Service, Burlington, VT

It is expected that water availability for irrigation and agricultural use will be influenced by changing the temperature and precipitation patterns associated with changes in the climate. However, the specific hydrological effects of localized changes are very uncertain, whereby agricultural planning and human activities introduce additional variability. Global climate models (GCMS) serve as inputs for the precipitation drainage modeling system (PRMS), a physically based flows model that is extracted from the national hydrological model, which can estimate hydrological changes under different projected conditions (from GCMS). A PRMS model on the New England scale is calibrated in order to present changes in the water cycle exactly, which are of crucial importance for irrigation, water resources and other agricultural activities. The US Geological Survey works with the USDA (US agricultural research service) of the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) together and the Maine University in order to communicate the potential effects of climate change on water resources, so that it rely on farmers so that they rely on scientific information have made more informed decisions about future agricultural irrigation practices. In this presentation, the model selection is discussed and preliminary results of a water sheath in central shade are displayed.

3:20 p.m. – 3:40 p.m.
Envirowell and sustainable access for safe water

Stephen AndersonCEO Envirowell, [email protected]

Envirowell is a revolutionary company that brings a secure, directed, drought-resistant reasons for the technology (SDDW for short) technology, which was developed by Joseph Ayote Pionier to the public and private sector. SDDW technology offers rural communities clean water and drought resilience as well as all applications that require the use of a well. SDDWs offer advantages compared to traditional flat fountains and deep wells alike. In contrast to conventional flat fountains, SDDWs are not susceptible to contaminants from wild animals and contain a built -in cistern (with 842 gallons water in residential applications) to create drought. In addition, SDDWs do not suffer from the high arsenic levels that plague deep wells in the glacier to the ground. Our technology can be installed on a single day and can only be half of the costs for a traditionally well -drilled equivalent. We are very happy to be able to offer this incredible technology to the public!

3:40 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.
Collaborative solutions for the safety of rural water: Perspectives from Moscow, ME

Matt duffWater infrastructure specialist in the New England Environmental Finance Center, [email protected]
Laurie StevensRegional Director with RCAP Solutions, [email protected]

The New England Water Infrastructure Network (Newin), which is headed by the New England Environmental Finance Center, is a joint effort that offers free financial, management and technical support for the municipalities, supply companies and tribes of the region. In addition, this is lacking time, experience and resources with low -income and limited communities, in order to adequately invest and maintain in their water systems in their water systems. This presentation will highlight our collaboration with the Moscow Water District (MWD), a small, rural community of ~ 450 people in West Maine who install a new community well and create a safe, sustainable and independent water source for the residents of Moscow. We will highlight our joint efforts with the Newin partner RCAP Solutions (RSOL) and the Maine Trink Water Program (ME DWP) in order to use the financing with low interest rates through the Drinking Water State of Revolving Fund (DWSRF) to finance the project. In addition, we will be the way in which Newin contributes to closing MWD capacity gaps through our free technical support, including support for supporting loan applications, visiting on site and the head of the service line stocks. This project illustrates the importance of collaborative technical support and innovative financing strategies for coping with infrastructure challenges for rural communities. The case of MWD offers a reproducible model for other cities that strive to ensure water quality, affordability and resilience with developing environmental and economic pressure.