What is a watershed?
A watershed is the land region draining into a stream,
river or body of water. There are 20 watersheds in
the Columbia area. The main two watersheds are the
Little and Middle Patuxent rivers, which are part of
the Chesapeake Bay watershed. While Columbia has an
area of 28 square miles, the watershed draining area
is 49 square miles. |
CA developing
watershed management plan
Columbia Association is developing the Columbia Watershed
Management Plan, or CWMP, with the objective of protecting
and restoring the waters of Columbia. The plan will use two
distinct approaches. The first is identifying and restoring
the watershed infrastructure, performing intensive investigations
to find pollution sources and designing restoration projects
to reduce them. The second is educating and involving residents
and property owners in watershed stewardship.
In the coming months, CA will provide information on watershed
practices and ways to become involved. The recently created
Watershed Advisory Committee, or WAC, is also an important
component of connecting you to the plan. Many WAC representatives
have already begun discussions about the CWMP during village
meetings.
At this time, CA is interested in learning about the natural
resources and localized problem areas that are important to
you. Are you concerned about a stream's water quality? Protecting
our tree canopy? Improving biological diversity? Reducing pollutants
in the Chesapeake Bay?
To ensure that all potential stormwater challenges are identified,
CA is seeking the observations of you — residents, employers,
employees and visitors to the area. We are seeking your input
to identify areas throughout the watershed where you have observed
flooding, erosion, runoff and debris. CA will use your input
to help select the first phase of locations for conceptual
plans to preserve and enhance our ecosystem.
Please visit www.ColumbiaAssociation.org/Watershed to
share your feedback.
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