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The Corsica River Restoration Project has joined the ranks of noteworthy interagency watershed restoration efforts. The ultimate goal of this project is to remove the Corsica River watershed, an Eastern Shore tributary to the Chester River (Figure 1 and 3), from the State’s 303(d) List of Impaired Waters. Since 2005, an active and very committed stakeholder group, composed of several different state and federal agencies, local jurisdictions, and citizen groups, have gone to great lengths to create the proper institutional framework needed to reach the watershed restoration and preservation goals.
MDE and the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) provided the Town of Centreville with financial and technical assistance in the implementation of the Corsica River Watershed Restoration Action Strategy, published in September 2004. As part of this effort, the Town hired a Watershed Manager and initiated the following restoration objectives:
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Retrofitting the existing stormwater infrastructure;
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Updating Town land management codes to protect water quality into the future; and
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Organizing an intensive outreach campaign to educate watershed residents.
In its effort to ensure that existing codes protect the environment, the Town of Centreville established the Environmental Advisory Committee (EAC) composed of the Watershed Manager and town residents with experience in environmental science and planning. The EAC provides guidance on environmentally sensitive issues and also reviews and updates Town ordinances.
After passing a pet waste ordinance to help address the high bacteria count in the Corsica River, in 2008, the Town of Centerville took additional significant steps to address water quality in the Corsica River. These include:
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Completing two progressive stormwater retrofit designs that will improve both runoff quality and quantity draining from the northeast side of town (Figure 4 and 5). Construction is set for spring 2009;
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Enacting a tree canopy ordinance, which sets forth standards and regulations for the planting, maintenance, and removal of trees within the Town’s limits, which was identified by the Maryland Forest Service as one of the most progressive in the State;
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Studying the feasibility of an environmental features protection ordinance (designed to protect streams and other waterways, floodplains, wetlands, wooded areas, steep slopes and sensitive habitats), as well as landscaping standards, parking and street standards, and open space definitions;
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Embarking on a public education campaign that includes: (i) a new Corsica River watershed website where residents and students can learn about local water quality issues and take a “watershed pledge” to limit polluted stormwater runoff, (ii) working with businesses (e.g., ACME and Food Lion) and media outlets to inform the public about environmental issues and to promote environmentally-friendly products (Figure 2 and 6).
The Town’s outreach and education efforts, coupled with the progressive restoration practices, have helped to build trust among all concerned stakeholders and elicited constructive input for identifying solutions to improve water quality in the Corsica River. The Corsica River Project provides an excellent example of a comprehensive approach to watershed restoration that can serve as a model for other communities working alone or in combination with other local jurisdictions in a regional framework.
For more information
Click here for the Corsica River Website.
Click here for information on the Corsica River Watershed Restoration Action Strategy.
Click here for the Corsica River TV spot.
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