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� 02b <br /> Recommendation 1 <br /> Conduct further research into water-borne radon results in south- <br /> central Orange, to see if there is a health concern present. Since the <br /> geologic formation where the highest radon levels are found extends south <br /> into Chatham County, the Board may wish to engage Chatham County in <br /> discussing possible additional research that should be of mutual interest. <br /> Recommendation 2 <br /> Create an ongoing ground water monitoring program using wells <br /> to evaluate changes in yield and water quality changes over time in <br /> areas of the County that are seeing significant new development. <br /> This monitoring system would provide an "early-warning system" to provide <br /> advance notice of impending ground water problems. It would also help <br /> detect potential depletion of ground water storage in developments using <br /> wells, as well as trends in availability, yield and quality over time. This data <br /> could be compared against control well data in undeveloped areas measured <br /> against piezometers (test wells) in new subdivisions. <br /> Recommendation 3 <br /> As the Commission for the Environment reviews ground water and <br /> surface water resource management options, the Committee <br /> recommends that a "water budget" approach be studied for use as a <br /> means to tie together planning and use of these inextricably related <br /> components of our water resources. Changes in land use can change the <br /> overall water budget — urbanization and development tends to decrease <br /> recharge and increase surface runoff. This reduces ground water in storage <br /> and increases the chance of flooding. The cumulative effects of development <br /> within a basin can reduce baseflow to streams, which can adversely affect <br /> instream flow needs for aquatic life and riparian vegetation habitat. More <br /> information on water budgets may be found in Appendix H. <br /> Recommendation 4 <br /> Based on the conservative approach to estimating sustainable <br /> ground water yield in the 1996 USGS report, there are five <br /> watersheds in the County that may not be able to sustain the <br /> density of development that current zoning will permit. The <br /> Committee recommends that potential changes to the zoning in <br /> these watersheds be revisited as part of the ongoing update to the <br /> Land Use Element of the Comprehensive Plan, and that <br /> sustainable ground water yield be incorporated into the decision- <br /> 21 <br />