rfq-suncook-lakes.pdf

Town of Barnstead, New Hampshire

REQUEST FOR QUALIFICATIONS (RFQ)

for the Development of the

Suncook Lakes Watershed Management Plan

Posted Date: June 5, 2026

Due Date: July 10, 2026

Contents

Introduction

Project Description

Required Qualifications Submissions

Project Team and Level of Participation

Project Approach/Scope of Work

Project Schedule

Selection Criteria

Submission Instructions

Timeline

Insurance Requirements

Disclaimer

Introduction The Town of Barnstead in partnership with the Watershed Management Steering Committee for the Suncook Lakes is issuing this Request for Qualifications (RFQ) to solicit Statements of

Qualifications from qualified environmental consulting firms to develop a comprehensive, nine-element, watershed management plan for the Upper and Lower Suncook Lakes. The partnership formed to lead this effort comprises a diverse group of stakeholders with a wide range of backgrounds and skills who are committed to providing assistance to ensure completion of the required work. The development and publication of this watershed management plan for the

Suncook Lakes will help identify and mitigate current and future threats to water quality, including stormwater runoff, cyanobacteria blooms, erosion, hydromodification, internal nutrient loading from legacy pollution, septic systems, lawns and turf management, agriculture, snow and ice management, and impacts of extreme weather such as flooding. This initiative is supported through a New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services Clean Water State

Revolving Fund (CWSRF) Stormwater Planning Loan. Contractor selection will be through a

Qualification Based Selection (QBS) process.

Project Description Recent weather patterns, including microburst storms in and around the Town of Barnstead, New Hampshire, have led to an increased frequency and severity of stormwater runoff events with associated sediment, bacteria, and nutrient pollution. These impacts are affecting both

Lower and Upper Suncook Lakes, as well as the Suncook River, which flows into Upper Suncook

Lake and outlets over the dam at Lower Suncook Lake. Lower Suncook Lake experienced its first toxic cyanobacteria bloom in the summer of 2024. Milfoil is also a chronic problem in both lakes and the river.

The development of the Suncook Lakes Watershed Management Plan will involve the evaluation of undeveloped and current watershed conditions, quantification of pollutant sources, assessment of public health risks, and development of recommendations of stormwater control measures and best practices required to achieve the desired water quality goals established for the Suncook Lakes. The Suncook Lakes Watershed Management Plan will also present a prioritized list of recommended actions to achieve the established water quality goal(s) established for each lake paired with the associated costs, responsible parties for implementation, and pollutant load reduction numbers achieved once recommended actions have been completed. A successfully completed Suncook Lakes Watershed Management Plan will position the Town of Barnstead and watershed and lake associations to be eligible for future funding opportunities such as U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Clean Water Act

Section 319 Watershed Assistance Grants from the New Hampshire Department of

Environmental Services (NHDES).

• Site Description: The Suncook Lakes are a pair of connected lakes located in Belknap

County in central New Hampshire, in the Town of Barnstead. Upper Suncook Lake encompasses 402 acres (1.63 km2), while Lower Suncook Lake covers 295 acres

(1.19 km2). The lakes are connected by a 1,000-foot-long (300 m) channel, spanned by a road bridge. The Valley Dam, which is owned and operated by NHDES Dam Bureau, at the outlet of Lower Suncook Lake controls the water level of both lakes. The lakes are impoundments of the Suncook River, a major tributary of the Merrimack River. Lower

Suncook Lake has three islands and an average depth of 9 feet (2.7 m) and a maximum depth of 16 feet (4.9 m), while Upper Suncook Lake has a greater average depth of 18 feet (5.6 m) and a maximum depth greater than 40 feet (12 m). Suncook Lakes are used for recreation, and the in-lake habitat supports populations of rainbow trout, small and largemouth bass, eastern chain pickerel, and white and yellow perch. A wetland at an inlet to Upper Suncook provides habitat for amphibians, reptiles, insects, fish, birds, and mammals. There are several public access sites to the lakes, including a boat ramp along

Narrows Road to Upper Suncook Lake from which smaller craft can access Lower

Suncook Lake under a road crossing; a shore access site at the northern end of Upper

Suncook Lake, and a cartop access point near the outlet of Lower Suncook Lake along

Valley Dam Road. Most shoreline residents have docks and use the lakes for power boating, paddling, water sports, fishing, birding, and more. The lakes ice over in the winter months to support ice skating, ice fishing, cross-country skiing and more. While many agree that the Suncook River originates at the outlet of Crystal Lake in Gilmanton, New Hampshire, where the village of Gilmanton Ironworks is situated, the true headwaters of the watershed begin with tributaries flowing into Manning and Sunset

Lakes at the foothills of the Belknap Range in Alton and Gilmanton, New Hampshire.

From the outlet of Crystal Lake, the river flows approximately two miles south to the

Suncook Lakes. Downstream of the lakes, the river continues through the village of

Center Barnstead before entering the town of Pittsfield and continues southwest through the Towns of Chichester, Epsom, Pembroke and Allenstown at the confluence of the Merrimack River.

o Valley Dam, located at the outlet of Lower Suncook Lake, has been classified as a high hazard dam. It is scheduled for renovation in 2027. Both lakes and the river will remain at drawdown winter levels for the summer of 2027. This will affect the development of the watershed management plan and must be taken into consideration for planning purposes.

• Pre-existing Conditions: Upper and Lower Suncook Lakes cover 402 and 295 acres, respectively, in Barnstead, New Hampshire. The 35,105-acre watershed spans four towns

(Barnstead, Gilmanton, Alton, and Gilford) and is mostly forested with predominantly rural-residential development (about 2%) and agricultural land uses (about 6%) throughout the watershed. Both lakes are classified as borderline oligotrophic/mesotrophic according to NHDES Lake Trophic Surveys indicating generally https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Belknap_County,_New_Hampshire https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Belknap_County,_New_Hampshire https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Hampshire https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barnstead,_New_Hampshire https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suncook_River https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Merrimack_River excellent water quality, though the lakes do have in-lake phosphorus concentrations ranging from 8.0 µg/L to 16.0 µg/L signaling a worsening trend and transition from oligotrophic to mesotrophic conditions along with emerging threats like cyanobacteria blooms, Chinese snails, and milfoil. As of the 2024 Surface Water Quality Assessment conducted by NHDES, the lakes are attaining the designated uses of Primary and

Secondary Contact Recreation, Potential Drinking Water Supply, and Aquatic Life

Integrity (Lower Suncook Lake). The 2025 VLAP report showed the following for Upper

Suncook Lake: slightly worsening water transparency, slightly improving hypolimnetic phosphorus levels and improving chlorophyll-a since monitoring began. The 2025 report showed the following for Lower Suncook Lake: worsening epilimnetic conductivity levels, stable water transparency and slightly improving chlorophyll-a and epilimnetic phosphorus levels. In 2024, both lakes experienced cyanobacteria bloom watches.

These watches of (Dolichospermum) blooms began in Upper Suncook Lake on June 3rd and in Lower Suncook Lake on June 5th and lasted until June 10th. Lower Suncook Lake also experienced two additional watches in June and October of 2021 for an unidentified length of time. The Suncook Lakes Association has also been working diligently to eradicate variable milfoil in both lakes by identifying and removing plants using a diver and also a ProcellaCOR treatment of 13 acres in Lower Suncook Lake which drastically reduced the amount of milfoil harvested from 735 gallons in 2024 to 55 gallons in

2025. Establishing realistic and attainable, in-lake water quality goals and numeric targets for phosphorus is of paramount concern to halt the anthropogenic eutrophication trends being experienced within Upper and Lower Suncook Lakes and the impetus for developing the Suncook Lakes Watershed Management Plan.

Required Qualifications Submissions Respondents must submit a qualifications package that includes:

• Cover Letter: Express the interest of the firm in working with the Watershed

Management Steering Committee in developing the Suncook Lakes Watershed

Management Plan. Must include all relevant contact information.

• Qualifications: Identify and describe qualifications of key members of the firm, including the project manager, principal staff and any subcontractors who will be working directly with the Watershed Management Steering Committee.

• Experience: Include a description of projects this firm has done similar in nature to this one. Present verifiable qualifications, experience, and knowledge regarding all aspects of watershed management plans and technical services.

• References: Provide three (3) references from current customers receiving the same or similar services. Include name, contact information, and a brief project description for each reference.

• Schedule: Proposed schedule with dates for major tasks along with a timeline.

• Do NOT provide a cost estimate, fee schedule, or price proposal at this time.

Project Team and Level of Participation The selected consultant will work closely with the Watershed Management Steering Committee, consisting of representatives from both Upper and Lower Suncook Lakes, the Town of

Barnstead, NHDES, and community members. Responding consultants must clearly define roles and involvement of each team member and demonstrate availability for public engagement and collaboration.

Project Approach/Scope of Work The project must address all nine key elements of watershed planning as per the U.S.

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Clean Water Act Section 319 guidance. The responding consultant’s approach should reflect an adaptive management methodology and include the following components:

• Review of existing data including GIS layers, water quality data (VLAP, NHDES

Environmental Monitoring Database, etc.), past diagnostic studies, trophic lake surveys, and historical documentation.

• Evaluation and quantification of external and internal phosphorus and other pollutant sources.

• Modeling of current watershed and in-lake nutrient dynamics, including build-out scenarios and future projections.

• Development of hydrologic and nutrient budgets for both lakes, pollutant and sediment load reduction goals, and numeric water quality targets.

• Identification and prioritization of structural and non-structural best management practices (BMPs) and stormwater control measures (SCMs).

• Facilitation of a shoreline survey and watershed investigations with the Steering

Committee to identify nonpoint source pollution locations in the watershed to support

BMP and SCM recommendations.

• Recommendations for the establishment or restoration of permanent riparian buffers, floodplains, wetlands, and other natural features.

• Development of an implementation schedule including responsible parties, funding sources, and expected milestones.

• Public outreach and stakeholder engagement including presentations, materials, and opportunities for community input throughout the planning process.

• Drafts, revisions, and final EPA-compliant nine-element watershed management plan.

• Though not a direct goal of the Suncook Lakes Watershed Management Plan, the reduction and control of non-native aquatic plants should be discussed and addressed in the plan along with relationships to in-lake nutrient cycling (uptake and release) during critical periods.

• All deliverables shall adhere to the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1

Level AA standards.

Project Schedule The responding consultant will provide a proposed project schedule in Gantt chart or milestone format. The schedule should include these items:

• Project kick-off meeting.

• Data collection, watershed investigation, and assessment phases.

• Modeling and analysis milestones.

• Community meetings and public engagement events.

• Draft watershed management plan submittal to Watershed Management Steering

Committee, comments received integration, and revision(s).

• Final Suncook Lakes Watershed Management Plan submitted to The Town of Barnstead, the Watershed Management Steering Committee, and NHDES.

A flexible timeline should acknowledge seasonal limitations on field work, the year-long drawdown to fix Valley Dam, and stakeholder availability.

Selection Criteria Statements of Qualifications will be evaluated based on the following weighted criteria:

• Specialized experience of the project team – 30%

• Project personnel – 30%

• Project approach and understanding – 20%

• Recommendations and conceptual designs and cost estimates for SCMs and BMPs at the watershed scale – 10%

• Past performance on similar projects and references – 10%

High scoring candidates may be invited for an interview at the discretion of the

Steering Committee.

Submission Instructions Requests for Qualifications submittals in PDF are to be directed to the attention of Karen

Montgomery, Town Administrator for the Town of Barnstead and Frank McDonald, President of

Lakelands Improvement Association on Lower Suncook Lake.

Email: kmontgomery@barnstead.org Email: fdtmcdonald@gmail.com

Phone: (603) 269-4071 Phone: (631) 671-9943

Timeline

• June 5, 2026: RFQ Release date

• June 26, 2026: 5pm: Deadline for submission of questions on this RFQ. All those posing questions will receive the complete Questions and Answers (Q&A) Digest. For those consulting firms that do not pose questions but are interested in receiving the Q&A

Digest, please provide that request via email using the contact information below.

• July 3, 2026: Question & Answer Digest distributed.

• July 10, 2026 at 5 p.m.: Deadline for receipt of Qualifications Packages to this RFQ.

• August 31, 2026: Anticipated final selection to RFQ and notification to all firms. The

Watershed Management Steering Committee reserves the right to conduct interviews with selected teams. The decision to interview may affect the specified timeline.

Please email all of the following to request information and to submit questions about the RFQ:

• Karen Montgomery: kmontgomery@barnstead.org

• Frank McDonald: fdtmcdonald@gmail.com

• Laura Dunham: laura.suncook@gmail.com

Insurance Requirements Consultant must provide proof of insurance, including:

mailto:kmontgomery@barnstead.org mailto:fdtmcdonald@gmail.com tel:+16032694071 tel:+16316719943 mailto:kmontgomery@barnstead.org mailto:fdtmcdonald@gmail.com mailto:laura.suncook@gmail.com

• General liability

• Workers’ compensation

• Professional liability (if applicable)

• Subcontractor liability (if applicable)

Disclaimer This RFQ does not commit the Town of Barnstead to contract or pay for any preparation costs.

We reserve the right to reject any and all responses and to negotiate the project scope or deliverables as needed.