Montgomery County DEP Tour Shows Investment in Stormwater Initiatives
Not long ago, I was asked to do something at work that I was never asked to do in any of my previous jobs. I was asked to create a document which outlined my professional goals while working with the Choose Clean Water Coalition. I was pretty floored by how good of an idea this was. Never before had an employer taken such an interest in my professional development, so I set out to ensure the opportunity wasn’t squandered.
The first thing I jotted down was fairly straightforward: to get outside, in the field, and see firsthand some of the projects that resulted from the Coalition’s continued and ardent advocacy. Almost instantly, I was afforded the chance to check this item off my list by attending a tour of stormwater infrastructure and stream restoration projects in Montgomery County—a very informative outing facilitated by the Montgomery County Department of Environmental Protection (DEP).
A handful of other clean water advocates and I began our day at DEP headquarters and received a crash-course presentation on some of the steps that Montgomery County is taking to make sure that areas with the the most need for restoration and infrastructure work are getting attention. They walked us through their game plan, a five-phase initiative which guides a project from planning and design, all the way through to post-construction monitoring.
We learned that DEP is doing some truly great stuff out in the field, including projects still in the design phase. Montgomery County DEP has applied BMPs and restoration techniques to the equivalent of roughly 4,374 acres of impervious surface—an impressive number to say the very least.
Being presented with the numbers is one thing, but I wanted to throw on my boots and get out and see these practices first-hand. This is exactly what we did. DEP staff loaded us into a pair of vans and brought us to a total of five different restoration sites, each one in a different stage of completion. First we visited a completely finished project, the “Hollywood Branch Stream Restoration.” This location, nestled within the Anacostia River Watershed, boasted a 4,470 linear foot project length, including a natural stream channel design, and connection to existing floodplain and vernal pools areas.
On the other end of the spectrum, we went to the site of a proposed project. What is now a dry stormwater retention pond at the end of a quaint cul-de-sac, will soon become a shallow wetland that will not only hold stormwater drainage from 31 nearby acres (26% of which are impervious), but promises to be so aesthetically appealing that nearby residents have threatened to dust off their old row-boats in anticipation of some leisurely jaunts across the floodplain.
All in all, it was a remarkably successful afternoon. I only lost 5 pounds of water weight due to the humidity, and I didn’t get a single tick bite. Most importantly, I was reminded that our efforts are not for nothing. If you’re willing to get outside and wander a bit, there is a lot of measurable work being done to clean up where we live, work, and play and to provide greener spaces for future generations and for ourselves.