Population growth and land conversion into homes, parking lots and buildings is happening at a rapid rate on the NH seacoast - faster than in other parts of the state. From 1940-2000, the average annual population increase in Rockingham and Strafford counties was nearly double the state’s overall average - and it is not slowing down (projections show the population of these two counties will increase by an additional 100,000 people over the next several years). Over the past 36 years in Rockingham and Strafford counties, an average of 2,230 acres of land per year has been converted from its natural state into a developed condition - supporting the ever expanding population. The increase in land development has increased the percentage of areas covered by paved or impervious surface, which allows storm water to runoff in an unmitigated manner and carry pollutants such as nitrogen into our coastal waters. To learn more about the health of our state’s estuaries read the 2006 State of the Estuaries Report published by the NH Estuaries Project (UNH).

Sources: State of the Estuaries 2006, New Hampshire Estuaries Project; The Land Conservation Plan for New Hampshire’s Coastal Watersheds, 2006