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Upper Watts Branch Park Forest Preserve
Environment Restoration Project
The History
The Watts Branch watershed is an approximately 22-square-mile tributary to the Potomac River. The confluence of the Potomac River and Watts Branch is of particular importance because it is just upstream of a major Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission (WSSC) drinking water intake for suburban Maryland. The water quality of Watts Branch can have a significant impact on the level of treatment required at the drinking water plant.
Approximately 6.5 square miles of the Watts Branch watershed are located within the City of Rockville, including the vast majority of first and second order streams in the watershed. In general, the main stem of Watts Branch flows from north to south in the western portion of the City.
In 2001, the City completed the Watts Branch Watershed Study and Management Plan to establish a watershed protection plan that mitigates many of the impacts and stresses that exist on the ecosystem.
The project was recommended in the Watts Branch Watershed Study and Management Plan as a crucial component to the long-term health of the watershed. It was also recommended by the Watts Branch Partnership and approved by the Mayor and Council.
The Project
The purpose of the Upper Watts Branch Park Forest Preserve Environment Restoration Project is to enhance the Watts Branch Watershed through stream restoration, stormwater management, wetland enhancement, reforestation and protection of adjacent utilities.
Watts Branch is experiencing increased erosion, which is degrading the water quality of the stream and ultimately the Chesapeake Bay. This erosion undermines trees along stream banks and causes them to fall. Stream erosion is a main contributor to poor water quality because excessive sediment along with nutrients enters the water. This project will slow the stream erosion and improve the health of Watts Branch.
The project will take place within the Upper Watts Branch Forest Preserve Park and on City-owned parcels bounded between Gude Drive, Aster Boulevard, Nelson Street and Princeton Place. This park is one of many forest preserves throughout the city. View the project limits.
The goals of the stream restoration project are:
The project was recommended in the Watts Branch Watershed Study and Management Plan as a crucial component to the long-term health of the watershed. It was also recommended by the Watts Branch Partnership and approved by the Mayor and Council.
Study and Design
The study and design of the Upper Watts Branch Forest Preserve stream was awarded by the Mayor and Council at their Aug. 15 meeting and the project is planned start in October.
The consultant services include topographic survey, geomorphic survey, archaeological survey, public meetings and presentations, natural resource inventory, forest stand delineation, forest conservation plan (including invasive species control), four design phases (30 percent, 60 percent, 90 percent and final) and construction bid phase services.
The City committed to designing and constructing repairs along three storm drain outfall channels located near Princeton Place, Aster Boulevard and Azalea Drive. The main stream channel is only being studied at this point.
This project also will consider new stormwater management (SWM) opportunities and evaluate the functioning and potential modifications of existing SWM facilities, which affect the Watts Branch Stream as it passes through the forest preserve, and stream restoration to address erosion in storm outflows and the Watts Branch stream.
Charles P. Johnson and Associates (CPJ), the Environmental Restoration Design Services consultant, will be in the project area starting the week of October 3, collecting data and measurements on the stream, trees, utilities and topography to establish stream cross sections. CPJ will be putting a total of 10 marking pins (rebar set into the ground) to collect, measure and monitor cross sections of the stream.
The project schedule is as follows:
Initiate study – October 2011
Complete 30 percent design – August 2012
Complete 60 percent design – March 2013
Complete 90 percent design - October 2013
Complete final design – March 2014
Begin construction – September 2014
Complete construction – December 2015
Cost
The Mayor and Council approved on Aug. 15 the award of a contract to Gaithersburg-based Charles P. Johnson and Associates for $288,000. The contract award includes restoration of three storm drain outfall channels and bid alternatives in the event the main channel of Watts Branch requires restoration.
Citizens Task Force
A Citizens Task Force has been formed. The group's outline and framework provides the task force purpose, objectives and member roles, as well as the proposed meeting projections. This document is still in draft mode and will be finalized after the task force participants have had a chance to review and approve.
Task Force Members
Agendas and Minutes
Questions from Task Force Members and Residents
In an effort to address questions and concerns from Task Force members and residents, City staff will be posting emails and comments that have been received in between the Task Force meetings. We will address the questions and concerns during the next Task Force meeting and post all responses on the website.
Field Stream Walks
Questions?
If you have questions or concerns about the project, contact the Project Manager John Hollida at jhollida@rockvillemd.gov or 240-314-8526 or Neighborhood Resources Coordinator Orlando Heyliger at oheyliger@rockvillemd.gov or 240-314-8343.
Last Updated:
05/08/2012